What is a color project? Well, the first thing you need to know is that the black tortoise variety is by FAR the most common color in the Holland Lop. 95% of Hollands on the show tables are black torts, with the occasional blue tort or black. As black tort is the most common color, more breeders are working on torts than any other color. That means that the standard of torts is being raised higher than other colors because more people are working on torts. The remaining 5% is all the other forty-something recognized colors in the Holland Lop breed. These colors are rare, and they are called project colors or 'colored Hollands'. Because there are less people working on them, the standard of these colored Hollands is typically lower. So when there is a colored Holland on the show table, they are highly unlikely to win or place well.
However...there are a few dedicated breeders who work tirelessly to improve the quality of these colored Hollands in the hopes that they will be competitive with torts and even beat them. Some breeders have become very successful with their project colors, and have won BOB and even BIS with colored Hollands. But it's hard - much harder than winning with a tort.
Project colors would be just about anything except for black tort, broken black tort, blue tort, and broken blue tort. Although, I suppose you could argue that black or sable point aren't project colors, seeing as they are fairly common.
Colors that rely on multiple rare genes to create the color are more rare and often harder to work with. For example, a Black is a pretty easy color project, because it only differs from tort on 1 gene locus (the E locus). However, if you are working with Lilac Silver-Tipped Steels, you're looking at differences on pretty much every locus. That means they are far harder to get good type in than Blacks.
In order to improve colored Hollands, breeders often breed torts into their colored rabbits in the hopes of strengthening their type. However, apart from the fact that outcrossing brings about its own problems, there is also the concern of certain colors being ruined by breeding the tort genes into them. You could get unrecognized colors that could plague your breeding program for generations. However, some breeders do choose to breed their colors to torts regardless of this, and then get rid of any undesirable colors. It depends on your goal and your specific color project. Personally, I choose to often breed my otters to torts if there's a specific goal I have in mind that I could improve by breeding to a tort with the strength I need in my herd. I do get the occasional torted otter, which are unshowable, but these can easily be petted out, or even used in my breeding program if it is an exceptional rabbit and I'm careful about what I breed it to. It just depends on what you think is best for your project.
From what I've seen, there are two different ways you could go about having a successful color project. You could heavily breed colors to your torts, and just keep the desirable colored Hollands and get rid of any weird colors you get from that cross. Or you could keep a separate breeding program of only that specific color project, with no other colors being added to the mix, tort or otherwise. You may have slower progress in achieving type, depending on what quality your foundation rabbits are. Totally up to you.
Color projects are also EXPENSIVE. If you get nice rabbits, be prepared to spend quite a bit of money. When I bought my foundation stock, each rabbit was $175-$300 apiece. My herd buck was $360. I'm not the kind of person who has this money lying around, so it took me quite a lot of saving up, selling things, and teaching a LOT of music lessons to pay for my foundation stock. I don't like talking about money, but that's just a guideline for how much you should be expecting to pay for a top quality colored Holland.
Another thing to keep in mind is that it's EXTREMELY important to start off with nice stock rather than building from scratch. Yes, quality colored Hollands are expensive, but they are worth their price. Starting off with nice stock sets you years ahead of where you would be if you bred poor quality colored Hollands. It saves you years of growing out, culling, and breeding, lots of money on feed, and lots of frustration. Remember, it costs the same to feed a quality rabbit as it does to feed a cull.
Some color projects are further along than others. Black, Blue, and Sable Point are the furthest along in developing consistent type that can hold their own against torts. However, Red, Pointed White, BEW, and Smoke Pearl are a few of the colors that are in their beginning stages of improvement. Chocolate is also a tricky one, as they are currently a 'trendy' color project with lots of poor quality ones being produced, but there are a few breeders scattered throughout the US who are producing some gorgeous ones. Black and blue based Otters and Agoutis are somewhere in the middle. There are lots of poor quality ones out there, but there are a few breeders out there who produce competitive ones. Several Otters have won Convention classes, a feat that is very, very hard to accomplish.
Many breeders have one or even two color projects alongside their tort program. Some don't have color projects at all. In general, most good breeders don't have more than a couple of color projects, because each project takes a certain amount of cages in addition to very tricky, selective breeding in order to achieve the end result of high quality colored rabbits. For the most part, breeders who deal with a lot of color projects at once, breed incompatible colors, or change color projects constantly are not serious color breeders and aren't producing good quality animals.
A color project needs quite a few holes. You need to be able to grow rabbits out and evaluate both the type and the color before deciding who is a keeper and who is a cull. It's possible to do it with say, ten holes, but it's a lot harder because it means you are producing less litters so you have less nice rabbits to choose from. You honestly need 20-30 holes absolute minimum to have enough grow-out holes and cages for your producing does. This goes for torts as well as colors.
In my experience, color projects are HARD. But I like challenges! As such, youth otter Holland breeders are few and far between. I only know of a few others in the country. But I loved the look of otters for years before I started breeding, so nothing was going to convince me to breed something easier. I was going to breed otters, and that was that! I started off with 7 holes, but soon realized I needed more in order to advance my program further, so my number of cages has definitely increased since then!
Color projects are also frustrating. Sometimes I take an otter to a show only to have it first off the table because a judge didn't like that it was a colored Holland. Or it's a nice rabbit but just isn't good enough to beat the torts. It's also frustrating sometimes dealing with people who think they can get an exceptional otter for the same price and work as a tort.
However, color projects are really rewarding. It's wonderful waking up to feed the rabbits and seeing a rainbow of colorful newborn kits snuggling in the nestbox. It's amazing to pose a grow-out and feel a sense of overwhelming pride when you realize it could be a competitive show rabbit against the torts. It's so exciting seeing your homegrown colored Holland winning on the show tables. Although I adore my torts and selfs (especially black torts), otters are the color closest to my heart and are my biggest passion in rabbits. It's so rewarding and so much fun to raise quality colored Hollands, so I suggest that if you have the time, energy, cages, and funds to raise colors, that you totally go for it!
However...there are a few dedicated breeders who work tirelessly to improve the quality of these colored Hollands in the hopes that they will be competitive with torts and even beat them. Some breeders have become very successful with their project colors, and have won BOB and even BIS with colored Hollands. But it's hard - much harder than winning with a tort.
Project colors would be just about anything except for black tort, broken black tort, blue tort, and broken blue tort. Although, I suppose you could argue that black or sable point aren't project colors, seeing as they are fairly common.
Colors that rely on multiple rare genes to create the color are more rare and often harder to work with. For example, a Black is a pretty easy color project, because it only differs from tort on 1 gene locus (the E locus). However, if you are working with Lilac Silver-Tipped Steels, you're looking at differences on pretty much every locus. That means they are far harder to get good type in than Blacks.
In order to improve colored Hollands, breeders often breed torts into their colored rabbits in the hopes of strengthening their type. However, apart from the fact that outcrossing brings about its own problems, there is also the concern of certain colors being ruined by breeding the tort genes into them. You could get unrecognized colors that could plague your breeding program for generations. However, some breeders do choose to breed their colors to torts regardless of this, and then get rid of any undesirable colors. It depends on your goal and your specific color project. Personally, I choose to often breed my otters to torts if there's a specific goal I have in mind that I could improve by breeding to a tort with the strength I need in my herd. I do get the occasional torted otter, which are unshowable, but these can easily be petted out, or even used in my breeding program if it is an exceptional rabbit and I'm careful about what I breed it to. It just depends on what you think is best for your project.
From what I've seen, there are two different ways you could go about having a successful color project. You could heavily breed colors to your torts, and just keep the desirable colored Hollands and get rid of any weird colors you get from that cross. Or you could keep a separate breeding program of only that specific color project, with no other colors being added to the mix, tort or otherwise. You may have slower progress in achieving type, depending on what quality your foundation rabbits are. Totally up to you.
Color projects are also EXPENSIVE. If you get nice rabbits, be prepared to spend quite a bit of money. When I bought my foundation stock, each rabbit was $175-$300 apiece. My herd buck was $360. I'm not the kind of person who has this money lying around, so it took me quite a lot of saving up, selling things, and teaching a LOT of music lessons to pay for my foundation stock. I don't like talking about money, but that's just a guideline for how much you should be expecting to pay for a top quality colored Holland.
Another thing to keep in mind is that it's EXTREMELY important to start off with nice stock rather than building from scratch. Yes, quality colored Hollands are expensive, but they are worth their price. Starting off with nice stock sets you years ahead of where you would be if you bred poor quality colored Hollands. It saves you years of growing out, culling, and breeding, lots of money on feed, and lots of frustration. Remember, it costs the same to feed a quality rabbit as it does to feed a cull.
Some color projects are further along than others. Black, Blue, and Sable Point are the furthest along in developing consistent type that can hold their own against torts. However, Red, Pointed White, BEW, and Smoke Pearl are a few of the colors that are in their beginning stages of improvement. Chocolate is also a tricky one, as they are currently a 'trendy' color project with lots of poor quality ones being produced, but there are a few breeders scattered throughout the US who are producing some gorgeous ones. Black and blue based Otters and Agoutis are somewhere in the middle. There are lots of poor quality ones out there, but there are a few breeders out there who produce competitive ones. Several Otters have won Convention classes, a feat that is very, very hard to accomplish.
Many breeders have one or even two color projects alongside their tort program. Some don't have color projects at all. In general, most good breeders don't have more than a couple of color projects, because each project takes a certain amount of cages in addition to very tricky, selective breeding in order to achieve the end result of high quality colored rabbits. For the most part, breeders who deal with a lot of color projects at once, breed incompatible colors, or change color projects constantly are not serious color breeders and aren't producing good quality animals.
A color project needs quite a few holes. You need to be able to grow rabbits out and evaluate both the type and the color before deciding who is a keeper and who is a cull. It's possible to do it with say, ten holes, but it's a lot harder because it means you are producing less litters so you have less nice rabbits to choose from. You honestly need 20-30 holes absolute minimum to have enough grow-out holes and cages for your producing does. This goes for torts as well as colors.
In my experience, color projects are HARD. But I like challenges! As such, youth otter Holland breeders are few and far between. I only know of a few others in the country. But I loved the look of otters for years before I started breeding, so nothing was going to convince me to breed something easier. I was going to breed otters, and that was that! I started off with 7 holes, but soon realized I needed more in order to advance my program further, so my number of cages has definitely increased since then!
Color projects are also frustrating. Sometimes I take an otter to a show only to have it first off the table because a judge didn't like that it was a colored Holland. Or it's a nice rabbit but just isn't good enough to beat the torts. It's also frustrating sometimes dealing with people who think they can get an exceptional otter for the same price and work as a tort.
However, color projects are really rewarding. It's wonderful waking up to feed the rabbits and seeing a rainbow of colorful newborn kits snuggling in the nestbox. It's amazing to pose a grow-out and feel a sense of overwhelming pride when you realize it could be a competitive show rabbit against the torts. It's so exciting seeing your homegrown colored Holland winning on the show tables. Although I adore my torts and selfs (especially black torts), otters are the color closest to my heart and are my biggest passion in rabbits. It's so rewarding and so much fun to raise quality colored Hollands, so I suggest that if you have the time, energy, cages, and funds to raise colors, that you totally go for it!