Mini Rex
Mini Rex
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The Mini Rex Rabbit Breed
What is a Mini Rex? What colours do Mini Rex come in?
This dwarf breed is known for their incredibly soft, velveteen coats, manageable size, and overwhelmingly friendly and laid back disposition. They are a favourite for novice breeders, youth exhibitors, and pet homes of all sorts due to their easy handling.
Weight Limits:
Senior Bucks - 6 months and older may be 3 to 4.25lbs. Ideal 4lbs.
Senior Does - 6 months and older may be 3.25 to 4.5lbs. Ideal 4.25lbs.
Junior Bucks & Does - 6 months and younger may be 2 to 3.75lbs.
Juniors weighing over 3.75lbs may be shown in a higher age class, however, no animal may be shown in a class lower than its true age.
The Mini Rex Breed Description, as sourced from the
2021-2025 ARBA Standard of Perfection
Purchase your own copy at (www.ARBA.net)! A must-have for any rabbit fancier.
Type and Coat Standard:
(Compact body type. To be posed and evaluated with front paws lined up with eyes, rear paws lined up with knees, and elbows on the table)
Body - 35 Points(Body, Shoulders, Midsection, Hindquarters) - "The ideal Mini Rex is a well proportioned animal that gives the overall impression of balance and uniformity. The body is to be compact and smooth. The shoulders, midsection and hindquarters are to be well developed and well filled. Throughout the body, there is good depth, which is in balance with the body's width. When viewed from above, the body is to show a slight taper from the hindquarters to the shoulders. When viewed from the side, the top bodyline is to rise in a gradual curve from the base of the ears to a high point over the center of the hips and then round downward to a full lower hindquarter at the base of the tail. A small dewlap is permissible in does.
Faults - Narrow, long, racy, or rangy body; body in which depth is not in balance to the width throughout the body; roughness over the spine or hips; potty belly.
Disqualifications - Extremely low shoulders; body which is extremely rangy or racy."
Shoulders - "Shoulders are to be firm, well developed and well fleshed. They are to blend smoothly to a slightly wider and deeper midsection. Shoulders are to have enough width and depth to balance with the rest of the body.
Faults - Midsection that is too wide or too narrow to balance with the shoulders and hindquarters; midsection that is too low or too flat to balance with the rest of the body."
Midsection - "Midsection is to be firm, well developed and well fleshed. It is to be slightly wider and deeper than the shoulders and should blend smoothly to slightly wider and deeper hindquarters. Midsection is to have enough width and depth to balance with the rest of the body.
Faults - Midsection that is too wide or too narrow to balance with the shoulders and hindquarters; midsection that is too low or too flat to balance with the rest of the body; midsection that is rough or poorly fleshed."
Hindquarters - "The hindquarters are to be firm, well developed, and well fleshed. They are to be broad, deep, and well rounded. The depth of the hindquarters is to be in balance with the width of the hindquarters. The lower hindquarters are to be well developed and full. The hindquarters are to be slightly wider and deeper than the midsection. There is to be a taper from the hindquarters to a slightly narrower shoulder. Hindquarters are to have enough width and depth to balance with the rest of the body.
Faults - Narrow, flat, pinched, undercut, or bony hindquarters; hindquarters in which the depth does not balance with the width."
Head - 5 Points - "The head is to balance with the body. It should be set relatively close to the shoulders and should be full, with a well filled face and jaws. It is slightly refined in does.
Faults - Head that does not balance with the body. Head too broad as to give the impression of a Netherland Dwarf; long or narrow head."
Ears - 5 Points - "The ears are to balance with the body. The ears are to be thick, relatively short, and well set on the head. They are to be carried erect and close together, without the showing of flanges.
Faults - Ears that do not balance with the body. Ears having thin flesh or fur.
Disqualifications - Ears over 3.5 inches in length."
Eyes - "The eyes are to be bright and bold."
Feet & Legs - "The legs are to be straight, rather short in length, and medium to fine in bone.
Faults - Long legs that give the impression of raciness or ranginess; feet that lack a complete padding of fur; bare skin."
Tail - "Size of the tail is to be in proportion to the body and is to be carried straight."
Fur - 35 Points - "Fur is to be extremely dense, straight, and upright, with an ideal length of 5/8 inch. It is to be the same length, density and texture over the entire animal. Guard hairs, which are not to be noticeably protruding, are to be plentiful and evenly distributed throughout the coat. Fur is to have a lustrous appearance, good body, and a plush-like effect that offers a distinct springy resistance when touched. Fur is to feel and look extremely smooth and even.
Faults - Fur that is lacking in density, uneven in length, harsh, soft, cottony or silky in texture; fur that is dull, lacking luster or has noticeably protruding guard hairs; fur that does not offer a distinct springy resistance when touched.
Disqualifications - Any of the above faults if severe enough to destroy typical Mini Rex appearance; average fur length that is less than 1/2 inch or more than 7/8 inch."
Color - 15 Points - "Per individual color description.
Disqualifications - Disqualify colored varieties having white spot(s) or conspicuous excessive white hairs. White or Himalayan varieties are to be disqualified when they have foreign colored spot(s). Apply general toenail disqualifications. Animals are to be disqualified for having the wrong surface color, the wrong intermediate color, the wrong undercolor, or the wrong eye color."
Condition - 5 Points - "As per ARBA definition." "The overall physical state of a rabbit in relation to health, cleanliness, fur, and grooming."
Groups and Varieties: "Judging is to be by classes of sex and age in each variety, with a Best and Best Opposite Sex of each variety being selected. A Best of Group and Best Opposite of Group are to be selected from the BOV and BOSV of each variety making up the group. The Best of Breed and Best Opposite Sex are to be selected from the BOG and BOSG." (There are so many varieties of Mini Rex that dividing them into "Groups" allows for more chances for Legs and easier judging for Best of Breed)
Group 1 - Self Varieties
Black - "The entire body is to be a rich lustrous black that runs deep toward the skin to a slate blue undercolor. Color is to be even over the entire animal. Toenails are to be dark. Eyes - Brown.
Faults - Faded, rusty or sunburned color; scattered white hairs; color that is not even over the entire animal."
Blue - "The entire body is to be a rich lustrous dark blue that runs deep toward the skin to a lighter blue undercolor. Color is to be even over the entire animal. Toenails are to be dark. Eyes - Blue-gray.
Faults - Faded or rusty color; scattered white hairs; frostiness or mealiness; light undercolor; blue guard hairs that do not match the body color."
Blue Eyed White - "The surface and undercolor is to be pure white. Eyes - Brilliant Blue.
Faults - Fault animals with creamy, yellow, or stained fur."
Chocolate - "The entire body is to be a rich lustrous chocolate that runs deep toward the skin to a dove-gray undercolor. Color is to be even over the entire animal. Toenails are to be dark. Eyes - Brown; ruby cast permissible.
Faults - Faded, rusty or sunburned color; scattered white hairs; color that is not even over the entire animal."
Lilac - "The entire body is to be a rich lustrous medium dove gray that runs deep toward the skin to a slightly lighter dove gray undercolor. Color is to be even over the entire animal. Toenails are to have pigmentation. Eyes - Blue-gray, ruby cast permissible.
Faults - Faded, rusty or sunburned color; scattered white hairs, color that is not even over the entire animal."
White - "The surface and undercolor is to be pure white over the entire animal. Eyes - pink.
Faults - Fault animals with creamy, yellow, or stained fur."
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Group 2 - Shaded Varieties
Sable - "The surface color is to be a rich sepia brown on the head, ears, back, outside of legs, and top of the tail. The surface color will fade to a lighter sepia on the sides, chest, belly, inside of legs, and underside of the tail. Dark face color is to fade from the eyes to the jaws and all blending of color is to be gradual and free from blotches or streaks. The undercolor will be slightly lighter than the surface color. Eyes - Brown. Ruby cast permissible.
Faults - Fault animals that have streaks, blotches, or poor color blending. Animals that are too light or too dark are to be faulted. Scattered white hairs, or lack of darker shading across the loin is to be a fault."
Sable Point - "The nose, ears, feet, and tail are to be a rich sepia brown. The point color is to fade rapidly to a rich creamy body surface color that has a creamy white undercolor. Darker shading is permissible around the eyes. The toenails are to be colored. Eyes - Brown.
Faults - Streaks, blotches, or smut on the body; scattered white hairs; point color that is so light as to lose the contrast with the body color.
Disqualifications - White underside of the tail; white spots; white toenails(s)."
Seal - "Surface color is to be a dark sepia brown that shades to a slightly paler sepia brown on the flanks, chest, and belly. The surface color is to extend as far down the hair shaft as possible to a slightly lighter undercolor. Toenails to be dark. Eyes - Brown.
Faults - Rusty tinge; failure to show lighter surface color on the belly; scattered white hairs.
Disqualifications - White spot(s); white toenail(s); Seals failing to show a discernible shading in their coloration."
Smoke Pearl - "The surface color is to be a rich smoke gray on the head, ears, loin, and outside of legs. The surface color will fade to a pearl gray beige on the sides, chest, belly, and the inside of legs. Dark face color is to fade from the eyes to the jaws and blend with the chest color. The upper side of the tail is to match the saddle color. Underside of the tail is to match the belly color. All blending of color is to be gradual and free from blotches of streaks. The undercolor will be slightly lighter than the surface color. Eyes - Blue gray.
Faults - Fault animals that have streaks, blotches, or poor color blending. Animals that are too light or too dark are undesirable. Scattered white hairs or the lack of a darker color in the area is a fault.
Disqualifications - White spot(s); White toenail(s)."
Tortoise - "The surface color of the body is to be a bright rusty red-orange which blends to a smoky gray-black on the flanks, head, belly and feet. The surface color is to extend well down the hair shaft to an off white undercolor. The shading on the head is to be the darkest at the whisker bed and is to blend into a lighter shading along the jaw line. Ear color should match shading color. Upper side of the tail is to match the body surface color with the underside of the tail matching the shadings as nearly as possible. Toenails to be dark. Eyes - Brown.
Faults - Smutty tinge obscuring the rich orange saddle color; point color or shading color too light; scattered white hairs.
Disqualifications - White belly or tail; white toenail(s); white spot."
Group 3 - Agouti Varieties
Castor - "Surface color of the body is to be an evenly distributed rich reddish chestnut brown that is lightly tipped with black. The intermediate band color is to be a rich rufus red clearly defined over a band of slate-blue undercolor. Width of the intermediate band and the width of the undercolor band should be equal. Surface color of the belly is to be white to creamy tan, clearly defined over slate-blue undercolor. The chest, head, outside of ears, and upper side of tail is to match the body surface color. Ears are to be laced in black. Eye circles, nostrils and jowls are to be white to creamy tan. Surface color on the underside of the tail is to match the surface color of the belly. Toenails are to be dark. Eyes - Brown.
Faults - Surface color that is too light, too dark, uneven, or gray in appearance; barred feet; indistinct ring color; cut for failure to show slate-blue undercolor on the belly.
Disqualifications - Harlequin type markings."
Chinchilla - "Surface color of the body is to be an evenly distributed blend of black and pearl that is lightly tipped with black. The intermediate band color is to be pearl clearly defined over a band of slate-blue undercolor. Width of the intermediate band and the width of the undercolor band should be equal. Surface color of the belly is to be pearl, clearly defined over slate-blue undercolor. The chest, head, outside of ears and upper side of tail are to match the body surface color. Ears are to be laced in black. Eye circles, nostrils and jowls are to be pearl. Surface color on the underside of the tail is to match surface color of the belly. Toenails to be dark. Eyes - Brown - Blue-gray permissible.
Faults - Surface color that is too light, too dark, uneven, or brownish in appearance; indistinct ring color; cloudy or smoky ring color; surface color having a salt and pepper appearance; cut severely for failure to show slate-blue undercolor on the belly.
Disqualifications - Absence of ring color on top or sides of the body; Harlequin type markings."
Lynx - "Surface color of the body is to be an evenly distributed bright fawn that is lightly tipped with lilac. The intermediate color is to be bright fawn clearly defined over a band of white undercolor. Width of the intermediate band and the width of the undercolor band should be equal. Surface color of the belly is to be white to creamy tan, clearly defined over dove-gray undercolor. The chest, head, outside of ears and upper side of tail is to match the body surface color. Ears are to be laced in lilac. Eye circles, nostrils and jowls are to be white to creamy tan. Surface color on the underside of the tail is to match the surface color of the belly. Toenails to have pigmentation. Eyes - Blue-gray.
Faults - Surface color that is too light, too dark, uneven, or blue in appearance; barred feet; indistinct ring color; cut severely for failure to show dove-gray undercolor on the belly.
Disqualifications - Harlequin type markings; blue undercolor."
Opal - "The surface color of the top and sides of the body is to be a rich medium blue. The intermediate color is to be a golden fawn clearly defined over a slate-blue undercolor. The upper side of the tail is to be blue, sparsely ticked with fawn, over a slate blue undercolor. The eye circles, the jowls, the insides of the ears, and the underside of the tail are to be white or creamy tan colored. The surface color of the belly is to be white or creamy tan over a slate-blue undercolor. Eyes - Blue-gray.
Faults - Surface color that is too light, uneven, or faded in appearance; barred feet; indistinct ring color; cut severely for failure to show slate blue undercolor on the belly.
Disqualifications - White spot(s); white toenail(s); failure to show intermediate fawn ring color; white undercolor; Harlequin markings."
Group 4 - Tan Varieties
Otter - "Blue, Black, Chocolate, and Lilac compete together (Body Color 10 points; Markings 5 points).
Note: Otters should not be judged as a marked variety. markings to be the final consideration after type, fur, and body color.
Surface & Undercolor - The surface and undercolor of the head, outside of the ears, front of the forefeet, outside of the hind feet, and the top and sides of the body are to be as described in the respective self varieties.
Markings - Black and Chocolate animals will have orange to creamy orange marking color, while Blue and Lilac animals will have fawn marking color. The belly, nostrils, eye circles, jowls, underside of the tail, inside of the ears, back of the forefeet, and the inside of the hind feet and legs are to be creamy to creamy orange, highlighted by an orange or fawn marking as it meets the self color of the body. The border color between the belly and the flanks shall continue down to the hind feet as it meets the color of the body. The undercolor of the belly is to be as described in the respective self varieties. The triangle and collar are to be orange to creamy. No ticking is preferred. Eyes - As described in the respective self varieties.
Faults - Brown or rusty tinge on body colorl orange to creamy orange hairs in areas other than the patterned areas; mealiness on the ears, head, or muzzle; faded or indistinct markings; scattered white hairs over the body.
Disqualifications - White spot(s). Lack of belly undercolor as described in the respective self varieties."
Silver Marten - "Black, Blue, Chocolate, and Lilac compete together. The surface color of the head, outside of the ears, front of forefeet, outside of the hind feet, and the top and sides of the body are to be of the surface and undercolor as described in the respective self varieties. The nostrils, eye circles, jowls, inside of the ears, triangle, collar, back of the forefeet, inside of the hind feet and legs, belly, and underside of the tail are to be silver-white in color. No ticking is preferred. The undercolor of the belly is to be as described in the respective self varieties. The eye color is to be as described in the respective self varieties.
Faults - Lack of belly undercolor as described in the respective self varieties. Fault animals with mealiness on the ears, head, or body. Scattered white hairs or indistinct markings are a fault."
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Group 5 - Any Other Variety
Himalayan (Black or Blue) - The body color is to be a pure clean white with the ears, nose, feet, and tail being as dark a black or blue as possible. The nose marking is to come well up on the face and is to be well rounded, clean cut, and distinct. The markings of the feet are to be carried well up the forelegs and above the hock joint on the hind legs. The ears are to be well colored and clean at the base. Allowances should be made for developing color on juniors. The upper and lower sides of the tail are to be well colored. Eye stain around the eyes is permissible. The toenails are to be as dark as possible. Eyes - Pink.
Faults - Light, faded, or uneven marking color; light shading on the markings due to molt; color on the dewlap.
Disqualifications - Any color or smut on the usable portion of the pelt (dewlap excluded); absence of color on the ears, nose, feet, or tail; definite white spot(s) in the colored markings; white toenail(s); white on the underside of the tail; Marten markings on the points."
Red - Surface color of the body is to be an even rich tone of brilliant red that should be carried as far down the hair shaft as possible. Surface color should be as even as possible to give the appearance of a self-colored animal. The upper side of the tail is to match the body surface color. Surface color of the belly is to be a deep cream color, carried as far down the hair shaft as possible. Darker lap spots are permissible. Underside of the tail and front and rear foot pads will be lighter in color, resembling the belly color. Toenails to be dark. Eyes - Brown.
Faults - Dark ticking which produces a smutty surface color; light ticking which produces a frost surface color; scattered white hairs. Cut severely for white belly color.
Disqualifications - White spot(s); white toenail(s); blue or gray undercolor."
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Group 6 - Broken Group
For the Broken Group, the 15 points allotted for color is to be distributed as 10 points for the color and 5 points for the pattern. Broken and Tricolor animals are to be judged together.
Broken - Broken consist of any recognized breed variety color in conjunction with white. The eye color is to correspond with the eye color specified under the respective solid colored variety. Toenails may be white or colored, no preference to either.
Tri-Color - Tri-color consists of white in conjunction with one of the following two color combinations: Rich lustrous Black and bright Golden-Orange, rich lustrous Lilac and bright Golden-fawn, rich lustrous Chocolate and bright Golden-Orange, or rich lustrous Blue and bright Golden-Fawn. The colors are to be evenly distributed. Eyes - Brown in Black and Chocolate varieties; Blue-gray in Lilac and Blue varieties. Toenails may be white or colored, no preference to either.
Pattern - 5Points - All Broken-patterned animals are to have a balanced nose marking (no preference given for a butterfly over evenly balanced nose spots), a colored eye marking around each eye, and color on both ears. The body color is to be evenly distributed in a spotted, patched, or blanket pattern. The feet, below the ankle joints, are to be pure white. The total amount of coloration on a broken patterned animal is not to cover less than 10% or more than 50% of the entire animal.
Faults - Unbalanced nose marking; unbalanced body markings; scattered white hairs in the colored markings; Tri-Colors with congested or intermixed colors.
Disqualifications - Absence of color on the nose, around eyes, on ears, or for a rabbit so heavy in pattern as to resemble a booted Broken, or so light in pattern as to resemble as "Charlie." Eye color other than called for. Excessive scattered white hairs in colored section. No Disqualification for a white spot in the colored section.
(*Note: Harlequin and Brindle are not yet recognized varieties. According to breeders working on the colors, these are both genetically the same variety and kits are named based on their phenotype. One litter can come out with both versions. Brindle will show as a smooth mixing of Black and Orange, Lilac and Fawn, Chocolate and Orange, or Blue and Fawn with Brown eyes in Black and Chocolate and Blue-gray eyes in Lilac and Fawn. Harlequin will be of the same colour combinations and show some amount of the characteristic checkering of pattern. For example: half the face Orange, half the face Black, or one Chocolate ear and one Orange ear.)
