type

Rabbit A

Rabbit B

Many judges and people see that in the standard of perfection for the Dutch that the markings are worth 50 points, whereas the general type is only worth 25 points. So these judges usually think that makes the markings a lot more important than the type.... WRONG. You have to build the house before you even think about painting it. Markings change with each litter. Just because a rabbit is marked really good does not mean that it's going to produce good babies. Sometimes it's the mismarks that produce the best marked rabbits.
Also if you look at the points for the Dutch, you'll notice that the body is worth 17 points. The highest pointed marking is the cheeks with only 12 points, meaning that it is the body type that is really worth the most. For me, it's the body I breed for. Whereas the markings change with each litter, once you have good body type in your rabbits, this does not change. The Dutch have a compact body type, so you want to breed for a well rounded, cobby body on the rabbit. The way I was told to type judge a Dutch by an older Dutch breeder was to close you eyes, and imagine a basketball as you feel over the back of the Dutch. You want it to feel as round as a basketball, starting right behind the neck. If your fingers dip in at the shoulders, that means that the rabbit is weak there. You should not be able to fit two fingers on the shoulders before the rise starts.
As your hand feels over the back of the rabbit it should feel firm, not having your fingers dip in over the hips. If they dip, this is being weak in the loin.
The type should be carried straight to the floor, being very full and balanced. The body should be very short and cobby.
Remember that it is a severe fault for any animals that are pinched, undercut, or have chopped hindquarters.
When you are at shows, when a rabbit wins, ask the breeder if you can feel their rabbit, to get a picture in your head of what the perfect type is suppose to look like.
It is also very important that you pose your rabbit right!! The front legs must be placed flat on the ground as in picture A. This will show off your rabbit's "true" type, as opposed to if you posed your rabbit on it's tiptoes, like in picture B. This makes a normally flat rabbit look like they have good type. Quite a few judges pose rabbits like this, trying to get the rabbit to show it's best.... but this is only making a rabbit that does not have type look like it has type. The sad thing is that there's judges out there that pose compact rabbits like this, and those rabbits win over rabbits with the "true" type.
When posing, you also do not want the hind legs to stick out. They should be sitting straight under them. If they're sticking out in a "V" shape, this means this rabbit is cow hocked which if severe enough is an all breeds disqualification.
The head is also very important. I like very well rounded heads. I can not stand snippy heads, that are long and narrow. This is a trait you do not want in your rabbits!! I've culled rabbits from my herd for throwing rabbits with this.
I hope this helps you understand type a little bit better. For more information, I highly recommend the following two links:
Type Book
Pencil Test

Dutch
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