From Rabbit Smarties "What’s black on both ends and white in the middle? No, it’s not an oreo, because it walks. No, it’s not a belted cow, because it has ruby red eyes. It must be a Himalayan Bunny!
In rabbits, “Himalayan” is the name of both a color and a breed that sports that color. The Himalayan breed is a pretty cool study, too, but this article’s concern is with the variety.
CLOSE TO COLORLESS
The Himalayan color is pure white with dark “points”; that is, the nose, ears, feet, and tail are colored while the rest of the bunny is white. This is caused by a gene that is commonly called the “Himalayan gene”, symbolized by the letters ch. The group of “C” genes in rabbits controls the amount and placement of the color. The “Full Color” gene, symbolized by a capital C, produces varieties like chestnut, black, blue, chocolate, and otter. The lowest and weakest “C” gene is the Ruby-Eyed White gene, symbolized by a lowercase c. The REW gene removes all color from the fur and eyes.
Himalayan, or “ch”, is just one step above REW—most of the color is gone, but it lingers on the rabbit’s extremities."