I ran across a website with a very interesting article on Angora rabbits. It was about Nazi’s and Angora rabbits - what a combo, huh?
A highly ranked SS Commander, Heinrich Himmler, wrote a book about raising Angora rabbits for their wool. Many of the death camps - Auschwitz, Dachau, Ravensbruck had rows and rows of rabbit hutches and pens. While the prisoners lived in squalor, these highly regarded rabbits were well fed and well cared for with large cages and clean pens. Of course, being kept by the Nazi’s, they were all White Angoras. (if available, they probably would have preferred blue eyed whites instead of red eyed whites). These animals were prized for their fur which was used in clothing. The wool lined coats for the Luftwaffe pilots and socks for the U-Boot crews and warm undergarments for the infantry in winter.
It is believed that Himmler hid away his Angora Raising book when it became apparent that the Russian and American forces were closing in. He did not want his informative handbook falling into “enemy” hands.
A few starving prisoners were promptly killed when caught stealing an Angora to eat.
A war correspondent for the Chicago Tribune obtained this book. Eventually the Wisconsin Historical Society received it. It is not known how many copies may exist.
To view the scanned photos of row upon row of rabbit hutches, German officers holding Angoras, the Angoras themselves, the grooming staff etc., visit this website, it is fascinating. All the pictures I’ve ever seen of concentration camps, never showed rabbits or hutches. To see more go to: www.wpr.org/news/angora.cfm