Angoras

Tina and Jeff Stellhorn; 04208 Evansport Rd, Defiance, OH 43512 (419) 428-0303

Angoras . . . .

Angora yarn comes from an angora rabbit, while an angora goat produces a fiber called mohair. Adding angora rabbits to our farm helped us get this little fact straight.

There are four types of angora rabbits: English, Satin, German and French.

English angoras are often chosen based on their small size. The English wool, with its fine diameter and wavy crimp, is often a deciding factor for those wanting to raise a fiber rabbit.

French Angora rabbits typically weigh a minimum of 8 pounds. French angora rabbits have the highest percentage of guard hair of all the angora rabbit breeds. The guard hair may make the French angoras feel less soft, but their fiber matts and felts less and, therefore, requires less attention.

Satin Angoras produce less wool per year than the other angoras, but their fiber has a reflective quality that make it look like silk. Satin angoras matt easily, but the glistening of the fiber is very attractive and it spins into a wonderfully lofty yarn.

German Angoras have a heavily crimped wool and produce the most wool per year of any of the angora breeds. The ideal German angora will have a coat of wool that is even in length over the entire body.

All breeds of angora rabbits are wonderful to raise. They each develop their own personality. Angora rabbits do require a bit of routine brushing and shearing or plucking. Some of our rabbits do not need to be brushed between shearings and others, like the English angoras, do need to be brushed regularly. Harvesting fiber from the rabbits can be done via plucking, or by using scissors or shears. For efficiency sake, we prefer to use electric clippers.