Angora, the Long-Haired Rabbit

Ethel H. Dolnick, Thora M. Plitt Hardy.

The wool of the Angora rabbit is valued for its length, softness, luster, and fineness. It is often combined with cotton, rayon, silk, and sheep's wool in an amount equal to approximately 25 percent of the total blend. Such a mixture will impart the desirable characteristics of soft "handle" and luster to the finished fabric.

The use of Angora wool as a specialty fiber is subject to fashion cycles, as are most specialty fibers. They are in vogue for a time, disappear from the market a while, and are rediscovered as something entirely new.

One may gain appreciation of the lightness and warmth of Angora rabbit wool by handling even a small sample. If the sample is teased apart, two main types of fibers can be recognized. The underfur fibers, the finer ones, constitute the main mass of the sample. They measure approximately 14 microns in diameter; 21 microns is the average diameter of fine wool from sheep. The remaining fibers, or guard hairs, make up about 5 percent of the total number of fibers in the sample. They are much thicker and measure about 90 microns in diameter.

GUARD HAIRS present in Angora rabbit wool at the time of spinning will produce a fuzziness in the cloth, which sometimes is fashionable. They can be eliminated by blowing the wool, before spinning, in a small tower or in a con-fined area; the underfur fibers are lighter and will collect at a higher level than the guard hairs.

For spinning, the wool should be of uniform texture and of fairly long staple. Angora rabbit wool has a tendency to "fly" acquire static electricity in spinning but that can be reduced by spinning in a room where humidity is controlled, or by dampening the fibers and cutting down the speed of the machinery.

Very fine wool is used to make Angora sweaters and underwear. The wool usually preferred for the purpose is obtained from the English variety of Angora rabbit. Most of the Angora rabbits raised in the United States are descendants of the types developed in France and England. French stock is bred for the coarser wool.

In knitting or weaving a cloth containing sheep's wool and Angora rabbit wool, the diameter of both types of wool fibers should be about the same. In such a combination, the wool obtained from the French variety may be preferred, because it more nearly approximates the diameter of the fine wool from sheep, with which it is usually blended. Coarse Angora wool is also used for socks, mittens, scarves, and heavy sweaters.

For hand spinning, plucked wool is more popular, because the fibers are longer and have a more even staple; a more uniform yarn is obtainable with the longer fibers. Some users believe that the taper of the fiber at the tip end and the slight thickening at the root end into a bulb, or brushlike structure, increase the spinning quality of plucked wool. Most Angora wool harvested by shearing or clipping shows cut ends.

MILLS DYE the yarn or the cloth in the familiar pastel shades and in the darker colors. The dye must be in a more concentrated form than that used for sheep's wool, because Angora wool absorbs more of it. Sometimes dyes are used that will affect only one of the fiber components, such as sheep's wool or cotton, while the rabbit fiber remains white. An attractive novelty cloth is thus produced.

The commercial use of Angora rabbit wool depends upon its availability in large quantities and upon current demand. For handicraft purposes, the wool may be accumulated and used as the needs arise. The wool is often spun on an old-fashioned spinning wheel in much the same way as sheep's wool is spun, but it is not necessary to wash or card the Angora wool before spinning. The carding treatment combs and straightens the individual fibers in sheep's wool. Angora rabbit wool is spun directly after plucking or shearing.

Small, electrically operated spinners with variable-speed controls, originally designed for use by disabled veterans, are now on the market. Angora rabbit trade journals tell where to buy these machines; instructions for their operation are available from the manufacturers. The spinners are easy to work.

Public interest in handicrafts has risen in recent years. Information on classes in arts and crafts can be had by writing to the departments of education of the various States. Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Georgia, New Mexico, and North Carolina are among the States in which such classes have been organized. Public libraries also list local handicraft schools.

The raising of Angora rabbits is a comparatively new cottage industry that has been developing slowly since 1900. It received its main impetus during the Second World War, when imports were limited.

Angora rabbit wool is harvested every 10 or 12 weeks. Personal preference largely determines the choice of the method, whether it be by clipping, plucking, or shearing. Commercial grading is based on length of fibers.

The longest and most desirable fibers come from the back and sides of the animal. They are 2 1/2 to 3 inches long, grade No. 1, and bring the highest prices. The wool from the belly grades as No. 3, if it is less than 1 1/2 inches long, or as No. 2, if it is longer. Matted wool is placed in grade No. 4. Soiled wool is grade No. 5 and the lowest in value. Matting is found in some Angora rabbits and not in others. The cause for matting is not known; the type of cells in the cuticle, the outside layer of the fiber, may have some bearing on it.

The average yield of wool from an Angora rabbit is about 12 or more ounces a year. The total amount of wool obtained by any one of the harvest methods will be practically the same over the period of a year, but a greater proportion of No. 1 wool may be obtained by plucking. If a rabbit is to be plucked, an examination of the fur at frequent intervals is necessary in order to get the longest fibers when they will pluck with ease, that is, at the time the animal is in molt. Animals in molt are identified by the presence of loose, shedding hairs.

In full coat an Angora rabbit looks like so much fluff. The fibers stand out loosely over the body and give a rounded appearance to the animal. On the whole, the rabbits are gentle and easy to care for. The kind and quantity of feed, the frequency of feeding, and the breeding and management practices are discussed in Farmers' Bulletin No. 1730.

ETHEL H. DOLNICK is a microanalyst in the Bureau of Animal Industry. She has been conducting investigations on the characteristics of North American commercial furs at Beltsville, Md., since 1943.

THORA M. PLITT HARDY, a graduate of Barnard College and the University of Chicago, was in charge of the fur fiber laboratory in the Bureau of Animal Industry from 1938 to 1948, when she joined the Production and Marketing Administration.