Fun English Spot Rabbit Facts For Kids

How many of us do not know the famous Walt Disney character of Bugs Bunny? Bugs Bunny, who is often seen munching his carrot, has amused us and entertained us over the years with its witty personality and humor.

Bunny is an endearing term used to address a rabbit. And that is our subject of exploration today; the English Spot rabbit. Unlike the popular myth about carrots being a vital part of a rabbit's diet, an interesting piece of information to note is that carrots are not the natural diet of a rabbit.

The carrots can give an upset stomach to these pet rabbits. Hay constitutes more than 70% of the rabbit's diet.

These house rabbits were developed in England through selective breeding in the 19th century. It entered the United States in the early 20th century. In 1924, the American English Spot Rabbit Club was established to promote and preserve this medium-sized show rabbit.

Aren't you looking to discover more and more exciting fun facts about these little fur buddies? So hang in there and continue to explore this incredible little pet wonder. Also, peek into our other interesting articles on European rabbit facts and snowshoe hare facts.

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English Spot Rabbit Interesting Facts

What type of animal is an English Spot rabbit?

The English Spot rabbit is a breed of domestic rabbit. The breed has been quite popular in England since its inception in the 1850s. North America welcomed these breeds of animals in 1910. The French named the English spot rabbits as Lapin Papillon Anglais, which literally translates as the English butterfly rabbit, for the butterfly-shaped marking on their nose.

What class of animal does an English Spot rabbit belong to?

The English Spot rabbits belong to the class Mammalia. The female rabbit gives birth to live young and nurses them with the mammary glands unique to this class.

How many English Spot rabbits are there in the world?

The exact count of the English Spot rabbit around the world is unknown. However, this medium-sized rabbit, with its unique body shape and color varieties on its body, is famous in the pet trade, and there is a massive demand for its breeding.

Where does an English Spot rabbit live?

English Spot rabbits live along with their pet owners or in pet shelters as a domestic breed.

What is an English Spot rabbit's habitat?

The English Spot rabbit is a family-friendly pet rabbit. However, they need large enclosures to keep their energy levels in check.

The enclosure size must be a minimum of 12 sq. ft (1.1 m) in size. Their abode at the pet owner's home should try to replicate their wild abode giving them enough scope for running, hopping, digging, and playing.

Who do English Spot rabbits live with?

In the wild, these bunnies live in large groups. So for a domesticated breed, one must keep in mind their social needs and always keep the Rabbits in pair. Male rabbits should not be placed alongside each other when a female is around, as they may get aggressive and territorial.

How long does an English Spot rabbit live?

The English Spot rabbits are known to live for up to eight years. However, if given proper care and attention, these English Spot rabbits can live longer.

How do they reproduce?

These breeds of rabbits can reproduce year-round. The high success rate of reproduction of this English Spot rabbit is the ability to have induced ovulation upon copulation. The average gestation period for the English spots is 30 days. The litter consists of 5-7 young kittens.

Kittens are born blind, naked, and helpless. Mother feeds and tends the young up to four weeks, after which the kittens wean off and become independent. These rabbit breeds become reproductively active at eight months of age.

What is their conservation status?

The conservation status of the English Spot rabbit is unknown. However, Oryctolagus cuniculus, the parent species of all domestic rabbits, is categorized as Endangered as per the IUCN Red List. Overexploitation of the habitat, forest fires, rare diseases, and climate change is the biggest challenge for these species in the wild.

English Spot Rabbit Fun Facts

What do English Spot rabbits look like?

The English Spot rabbit has long and slim front legs with the hind legs aligned parallel to the body along with furry paws. They have upright ears. The spot markings on their full arch body type give them a distinct appearance.

The six kinds of exclusive body markings are the key differentiators of this breed of animals. These markings are one butterfly spot in the front on the nose, cheek spots, eye circles, colored ears, chain of areas, and herringbone.

The butterfly feature is a marking that looks like the wing of the butterfly spread on either side of the nose. They have well-rounded hips with flyback fur.

The herringbone runs down from the base of the ears to the tail. The color varieties of their body range from black, blue, chocolate, lilac, gray, and gold blend with their body shape.

How cute are they?

These little bunnies are sure to melt anyone with their doe-eyed looks. However, they are very playful and often exhibit their prowess by displaying acrobatic jumps and leaps with their strong legs. Having these English Spots in your backyard is undoubtedly going to keep you amused and entertained all the time.

How do they communicate?

The English Spot rabbit is a shy rabbit breed. When happy, they can do binkying to express their happiness. They are capable of loudly screaming when they feel threatened or frightened. The other communication channels include scent cues, touch, making loud thumps with their hindlimbs to signal danger.

How big is an English Spot rabbit?

The exact length of the English spot rabbit breed is unknown, but they are classified as medium-sized rabbit breed. Their ancestral breed, the checkered giant or the giant papillon rabbit breed, are much more prominent in weight and size than the English rabbits and are classified as giant breed rabbits.

The wild Oryctolagus cuniculus size measures up to 15-20 in ( 38-50 cm ) in length and weight measures of 4.8 lb ( 2.2 kg ).

How fast can an English Spot rabbit run?

The exact speed of English Spot rabbits has not been measured. However, it is known information that these rabbits are lovely athletes who are always ready for some action. Their high energy levels demand at least three hours of activity or exercise time every day.

Generally, in the wild, rabbits can run up to three miles every day. They can jump 90 cm in one single leap. On average, the wild rabbits can run at a speed of 40 mph (64.3 kph).

How much does an English Spot rabbit weigh?

The English Spot rabbit weight measures are 5 - 8 lb (2.2 - 3.6 kg ). Thus, they are three times smaller in weight than the Flemish giant rabbit, whose weight measures 15 lb ( 6.8 kg).

What are their male and female names of the species?

The male of the species is called as buck, and the female of the species is called a doe.

What would you call a baby English Spot rabbit?

A baby English Spot rabbit is called a kit or a kitten.

What do they eat?

The English Spot rabbit breed diet consists of varieties of hay that constitute 70% of their feeding quantity. The rest of the 30% will be fruits, vegetables, green leafy vegetables, and pellets.

Unfortunately, the English spots tend to overeat; hence caution must be taken to keep their diet in reasonable control. They should be provided with an excellent nutritional and balanced diet.

As these are domestic breeds, they do not have any predators. However, their parent breed European rabbit, a wild species, is predated by wolves, foxes, dingoes, lynxes, dogs, and wolverines.

Are they friendly?

The English Spot rabbits are popular among pet enthusiasts for they have a friendly, good-natured, and intuitive personality. In addition, they are lively, fun-loving creatures looking for a lot of action all the time.

Would they make a good pet?

The English Spot rabbit breed is a rabbit breed very much popular as a great family pet. They are suitable for families with older children. Although they appreciate being held, they have a sensitive back that can break if they fall after being dropped. Hence they are not advised for the smaller kids as a pet.

Older children can dedicate their time and attention to this rabbit breed, which has a demanding companionship need. They need a setup in a household that will allow this rabbit breed to express their instincts of digging, running, and binkying. As a social animal, this rabbit breed should always be housed in pairs.

Did you know...

The rabbit's teeth keep growing its entire lifetime. However, as these animal species are prolific chewers, their teeth undergo wearing off. Hence they are never too long.

If your pet is happy and gives an athletic leap with twisting and kicking in the air, it is termed a binky.

Another breed of rabbits recognized by the American Rabbit Breeders Association is Florida white rabbits, a descendant of albino pedigree.

What is the difference between an English Spot rabbit and an Arctic hare?

The Arctic hare is much larger than the English Spot rabbit measuring at 27.5 in (70 cm) and weighing a maximum of 15.4 lb ( 7 kg).

The Arctic hare has longer hind legs and longer ears than the English Spot rabbit.

The Arctic hare changes its coat color in winter and spring. Whereas English Spot rabbits have the same coat color throughout their lifetime.

English Spot rabbits are domesticated animal breeds, whereas the Arctic hare is a wild animal.

How did the English Spot rabbit get its name?

This medium-sized pet rabbit has a short coat spread with unique spots, giving these rabbit breeds their name. The English Spots are one of the oldest fancy rabbit breeds.

These English Spot rabbits were the results of selective breeding of stock that are non-pedigree and closely resembling the Great Lorrainese. The checkered giant is a closely related species as they share some standard features with the English spots like eye circles, cheek spots, herringbone, and colored ears.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other mammals from our Arctic hare facts and coati fun facts pages.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable English Spot rabbit coloring pages.