Opossum Rex
A rare British rex breed with long, curly, silver-tipped fur that stands straight out from the body.
Origin
The Opossum is one of the oldest and rarest rex breeds, created in England in the 1920s with the aim of imitating the fur of the Australian possum. It is usually credited to T. Leaver of Kent, who was trying to make a rex version of the Chifox (a long-coated breed that no longer exists) and in 1924 obtained rabbits with this unusual coat. Later, long-haired "woollies" from silvered breeds were crossed in to add the silver tips. The British Rabbit Council still keeps a standard for it in its Rex section, but it is extremely rare, and some writers have suggested it may have died out altogether.
Typical Adult Size
Medium-sized, with the same weight range as the Standard Rex in the UK: about 2.7 to 3.6 kg (6 to 8 pounds) for adults.
Coat Type
Unique among rabbits. The British standard asks for fine, white-tipped curly hairs over the whole body, dense and soft, with a lustrous sheen, standing out at right angles to the body without falling over. The undercoat should be about 2.5 cm (1 inch) long. It appears to combine a rex gene with a long-hair gene.
Colors
Any recognized color, carried right down to the skin, with the body silvered by the white tips. The head, ears, feet and tail should not be silvered.
Temperament
Too few Opossums are kept today to describe the breed’s temperament with confidence. Rex breeds in general are known for being calm and good-natured with regular, gentle handling.
Grooming and Care
The longer, curled coat needs more attention than a short rex coat: gentle, regular grooming to keep it clean and free of tangles, particularly during molts. As with other rex breeds, soft, solid resting surfaces help protect the feet.
Distinctive Features
The coat: long, curly, silver-tipped fur that stands straight out from the body like a fleece, contrasted with an unsilvered head, ears, feet and tail.
What Makes It Notable
It is a genuine living-history breed. A standard written almost a century ago still sits in the British Rabbit Council’s book, a reminder of the 1920s, when breeders in several countries experimented with the new rex coat.