What is the difference between rex rabbit fur and hare fur?

The rex rabbit is a typical fur-purpose rabbit, bred mainly for its fur, with its meat as a secondary product. It differs from other domestic rabbits in coat characteristics, appearance features and production performance. The rex rabbit's coat is uniquely distinctive and can be summed up in six words: “short, flat, dense, fine, beautiful and firm.” Let us take a look at the differences between rex rabbit fur and hare fur.

Differences between rex rabbit fur and hare fur

1. Rex rabbits have no guard hairs; all of a rex rabbit's fur is of the same thickness and consists of fine, soft down. Hares have guard hairs, meaning every domestic rabbit has two kinds of hair of different thickness and length: a longer, thicker outer layer of hair, and a shorter inner layer of down.

2. Rex rabbit fur does not shed easily; under the same tanning process, the amount of shedding of rex rabbit fur (that is, the degree of hair follicle damage) is about 1/3 that of hare fur. Hare fur sheds easily.

3. Because a rex rabbit's hairs all stand upright and are perpendicular to the skin surface, the rex rabbit's fur is high in density. Since the fur density of the hare is not high enough to support every hair standing perpendicular to the skin surface, its fur has a direction and lies flat in one direction.