This article is all about Holland bodies! Per the Holland Lop breed standard, the body is worth 32 points - so almost a third of what the rabbit will be judged on! As such, it's absolutely critical to have a solid understanding of what a Holland's body should and should not look like. It's easy to look at a picture of a beautiful Holland online and see that it's a quality animal. Equally, it's easy to look at a picture of a poor quality Holland and see that it looks bad. However, the key is to have a solid understanding of WHY they look different, and what specific traits make it that way. Hopefully this article will help in that respect!
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Short shoulder (correct)

Long shoulder (incorrect)

First, let's talk about shoulders. I go into more depth on this topic in another article, but I'll touch on it here too. When looking at the tort on the left, the shoulder is short and deep. She appears 'tall'. This means her topline starts right at the nape of the neck, and turns smoothly in a graceful curve. When we look at the black fox on the right, there is a long flat spot over the top of the shoulder. This really detracts from his topline by lengthening it out, which is why he doesn't look as good as the tort doe.

Short, round midsection (correct)

Long midsection (incorrect)

Next is the midsection. This is the trickiest aspect of the body for most people to learn. The midsection is the middle of the body, in between the shoulders and hindquarters. It should be short, deep, and well-rounded, providing a smooth transition from the shoulder to the hindquarter. The solid tort buck on the left has a short, well-rounded midsection. This is what I shoot for in my herd. The broken tort doe on the right has midsection length. Notice how the center of her back seems to have 'too much' spine. If you are still having trouble determining whether your rabbits have long midsections, allow them to move freely on a table and observe them at eye level. If your rabbit has a long back, and a long distance between their front and rear feet, then they have midsection length.

 A lot of people will over-pose and constantly work with their rabbits that have long midsections in order to 'meld' them into a good looking pose. Try to avoid doing this as it will only damage the quality in your herd in the long run. Not being honest with yourself about your rabbits' true type will not get you anywhere.

Something else to keep in mind is that does often will naturally have longer midsections than bucks, especially after they've had one or two litters. However, I would still never excuse extreme midsection length in my own herd, regardless of whether it's a buck or a doe. The shortest rabbit I've ever owned was a doe!
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No slope (correct)

Slopes (incorrect)

Next, let's talk about sloping. The interesting thing about sloping is that it can sometimes be the result of other body faults, such as long shoulders or midsections. If we look at the black tort buck on the left, his topline turns smoothly from shoulder to hindquarter in a graceful curve. If we look at the blue tort doe on the right, she slopes over the midsection and hindquarters. This is due to a flat hindquarter and some length in the shoulder. I would personally fault her on both the sloping itself and her low shoulder. 

Smooth topline (correct)

Angular topline (incorrect)

Let's talk about another topline fault: angularity. When looking at the side profile of a Holland, the line that the spine makes should be a smooth curve without any flattened areas of the spine. If there are one or more areas in the topline with these flat spots, then we could say the rabbit has an 'angular topline'. The tort doe on the left has a super smooth topline without a single flat spot. The fox buck on the right has multiple flat spots over his back, and is therefore considered angular. He is also overposed.
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Broad, wide hindquarters (correct)

Pinched hindquarters (incorrect)

Next let's talk about pinched hindquarters. This is a frequently misunderstood topic. What a lot of people will do is flip over the rabbit and observe whether the hind feet are parallel or pointed out. They then get rid of anything with feet that are remotely pointed out, thinking that they have pinched hindquarters. However, this isn't always necessarily the case. In fact, I've only ever seen a handful of Hollands with truly parallel rear feet when flipped over! Part of this is obviously structure, but part is also that flipping the rabbit on its back can make them pull their rear feet in and give the illusion of a pinched hindquarter when it doesn't actually exist. Instead, it's better to observe the rabbit when posed. Feel down its back and see if the hindquarter feels like it chops off or narrows toward the base. Another big telltale sign of a pinched hindquarter is when the rabbit has a strong inclination to thrust its rear feet forward when it poses. The black otter doe on the left has a super wide, massive lower hindquarter, and lacks any pinching. The feet are set correctly underneath her and are carried parallel to one another. The broken black fox doe on the right has a slight pinch. If you look closely at the picture, you can see that she narrows toward the very base of her hindquarter, and thrusts her rear foot forward. It's not an extreme pinch by any means, and she never had any issues kindling litters of up to 8 babies for me, but it's still there and should be faulted.

Lack of undercut (correct)

Undercut hindquarters (incorrect)

Next up: undercut hindquarters. Undercut means that the hindquarter tucks inward toward the base, rather than flowing smoothly to the table. The solid tort buck on the left has a correct hindquarter. His topline ends with a slight ruffle at the base. The broken tort doe on the right has an undercut hindquarter. If you look closely, you can see how the topline tucks inward toward the base of the hindquarter rather than flowing downward or slightly out. This is incorrect.
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Carries good depth over the hindquarter (correct)

Lacks depth over the hindquarter (incorrect)

The next trait we're going to look at is depth over the hindquarter. Just like a Holland should have a deep shoulder, as observed in the first example in this article, they should also carry good depth over the hindquarter. Per the standard, the depth at the hindquarter should equal that of the shoulder. The tort doe on the left has excellent depth of hindquarter. Her depth of hindquarter is the same as her depth of shoulder, and she turns smoothly over the hip before her topline falls in a curve over her hindquarter. The tort buck on the right does have good depth over the shoulder, but his topline falls too low over the hindquarter rather than carrying the depth further back.
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Wide body and chest (correct)

Narrow body and chest (incorrect)

We've talked quite a bit about shortness and depth of body, so now we're going to take a look at width. A Holland should be equal parts short, deep, and wide. It's all well and good having a flashy topline and side profile, but the rabbit has to back it up with width when viewed from the top, rear, and front, and substance when you put your hands on them. The black silver marten doe on the left has excellent width. Notice how broad her chest plate is, and how far apart her front legs naturally stand. She is equal parts wide and deep. On the other hand, the fox buck on the right lacks the width to balance with his depth. While he does have decent depth of body, he lacks the otter doe's massive chest plate and width between the front legs. When faulting this rabbit, we would typically say he, "lacks the width to balance with his depth", or even just, "lacks width to balance".

While it would be very difficult to cover this in an article as it's not hands-on, it's also important that the rabbit feels wide and firm in flesh when you get your hands on them. They shouldn't feel soft, weak, or narrow in the slightest. If this is something you struggle with evaluating, get an experienced breeder or judge to show you in person.


The traits discussed above are some of the most important to consider when evaluating a Holland's body. I will possibly add some more to this page in the future, but in the meantime, I hope you found this article helpful!