General color group: self

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more blacks: other selfs including black, blue, chocolate, lilac, black-tort, blue-tort, chocolate-tort, lilac-tort; REWs from a self background

Colors to generally avoid: chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins and eye color problems), REWs from unknown backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel

General color group: self

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more blues: other selfs including black, blue, chocolate, lilac, black-tort, blue-tort, chocolate-tort, lilac-tort; REWs from a self background

Colors to generally avoid: chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins), shaded (can lead to misidentified blue seals and shadeds tend to carry modifiers for weakened eumelanin expression), REWs from unknown backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel, avoid breeding light dilutes together 

General color group: self

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more chocolates: other selfs including black, blue, chocolate, lilac, black-tort, blue-tort, chocolate-tort, lilac-tort; REWs from a self background

Colors to generally avoid: chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins and eye color problems), shaded (can lead to misidentified chocolate sables and chocolate seals and shadeds also tend to carry modifiers for weakened eumelanin expression), REWs from unknown backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel

General color group: self

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more lilacs: other selfs including black, blue, chocolate, lilac, black-tort, blue-tort, chocolate-tort, lilac-tort; REWs from a self background

Colors to generally avoid: chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins), shaded (can lead to misidentified lilac sables and lilac seals and shadeds also tend to carry modifiers for weakened eumelanin expression), REWs from unknown backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel, avoid breeding light dilutes together 

General color group: self

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more torts: other selfs including black, blue, chocolate, or lilac that carry non-extension; black-tort, blue-tort, chocolate-tort, lilac-tort; REWs from a self background that carry non-extension

Colors to generally avoid: chinchilla and shaded if the torts will be used in a full extension self program, REWs from unknown backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel, avoid breeding light dilutes together 

General color group: whatever color background they come from

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more REWs: REW to REW will always produce REW, but if crossing with other color groups, try to keep within the same general group 

Colors to generally avoid: Any color that is not complimentary to the color group that makes up the REW's background

General color group: shaded

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more siamese sables: other shadeds including siamese sable, seal, sable point, smoke pearl, and smoke pearl point; REWs from a shaded background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good shaded expression; selfs and pointed whites can also be used in a shaded program

Colors to generally avoid: agoutis (non-showable resulting colors), chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins and eye color problems), chocolate-based colors, REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel 

General color group: shaded

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more seals: other shadeds including siamese sable, seal, sable point, smoke pearl, and smoke pearl point, selfs can also be used in a shaded program, REW and pointed white will not damage color, but will not produce seal

Colors to generally avoid: agoutis (non-showable resulting colors), chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins and eye color problems), chocolate-based colors, REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel

General color group: shaded

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more sable points: other shadeds including siamese sable, seal, sable point, smoke pearl, and smoke pearl point, REWs from a shaded background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good shaded expression, selfs and pointed whites can also be used in a shaded program

Colors to generally avoid: agoutis (non-showable resulting colors), chinchilla (can lead to misidentified sallanders and eye color problems), chocolate-based colors, REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, harlequin, steel

General color group: shaded

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more smoke pearls: other shadeds including siamese sable, seal, sable point, smoke pearl, and smoke pearl point, REWs from a shaded background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good shaded expression, selfs and pointed whites can also be used in a shaded program

Colors to generally avoid: agoutis (non-showable resulting colors), chinchilla (can lead to misidentified self chins and eye color problems), chocolate-based colors, REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel, avoid breeding light dilutes together

Picture credit Ponder Lionheads & Netherland Dwarfs (thank you!) 

General color group: shaded

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more smoke pearl points: other shadeds including siamese sable, seal, sable point, smoke pearl, and smoke pearl point, REWs from a shaded background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good shaded expression, selfs and pointed whites can also be used in a shaded program

Colors to generally avoid: agoutis (non-showable resulting colors), chinchilla (can lead to misidentified sallanders and eye color problems), chocolate-based colors, REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, harlequin, steel, avoid breeding light dilutes together

General color group: agouti

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more chestnuts: other agoutis including chestnut, opal, chocolate agouti, lynx, orange, cream, REWs from an agouti background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good agouti expression, selfs, chinchilla.  Red can improve rufus expression but also will introduce wideband genetics which are not correct in chestnuts

Colors to generally avoid: shaded (non-showable resulting colors), REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, harlequin, steel

General color group: agouti

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more oranges: crossing oranges into other colors will generally worsen smut expression unless selection away from smut has taken place in those lines.  In general, oranges are best bred to other oranges and creams where selection away from smut has taken place.  Other agoutis including chestnut, opal, chocolate agouti, lynx, and selfs can also be used, REWs from an orange background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good orange expression.  Chocolate-based oranges will have brighter and cleaner color appearance.  Red can improve rufus and minimize smut, but wideband genetics are not correct in oranges

Colors to generally avoid: shaded (non-showable resulting colors), REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, harlequin, steel

General color group: agouti

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more chinchillas: due to the difficulty in achieving good chinchilla color (no brassiness) in Lionheads, chinchillas are best bred only with other chinchillas.  Squirrel (blue chinchilla) or ermine (non-extension chinchilla) can also be bred with them.  REWs from a chinchilla background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good chinchilla expression.  Selfs and agoutis may be used if needed

Colors to generally avoid: shaded (non-showable resulting colors and particular difficulty with modifiers for weakened eumelanin expression), REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, harlequin, steel, any color that is light for its respective variety, wideband

Picture credit Sunny Slope Rabbitry (thank you!) 

General color group: wideband agouti

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more reds: crossing reds into other colors will generally worsen smut, reduce rufus expression, and lose wideband genetics.  In general, reds are best bred only to other reds or creams from red backgrounds where selection away from smut has taken place.  REWs from a red background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good red expression.  Chocolate-based reds will have brighter and cleaner color appearance

Colors to generally avoid: shaded (non-showable resulting colors), REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, harlequin, steel

General color group: otter

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more otters: otter Lionheads have difficulty with expression of full tan-pattern markings such as eye circles and ear lacing, so otters are best bred with other otters that have good tan-pattern markings.  Agoutis can also be used beneficially.  Selfs may be used, but often introduce modifiers for poor otter expression.  REWs from a good otter background will tend to carry the modifiers needed for good otter expression

Colors to generally avoid: shaded (non-showable resulting colors), REWs from unknown or non-complimentary backgrounds, BEWs and Vienna, brokens can sometimes hide stray white hair genetics, harlequin, steel, wideband

General color group: pointed white

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more pointed whites: pointed white Lionheads are best bred only with other pointed whites for optimal color.  REWs from pointed white backgrounds can also be used beneficially, though carrying REW will lighten points.  Full extension selfs or shadeds may be used, but require the dominant full color to be bred out

Colors to generally avoid: non-extension will wash out points, agouti will wash out points, tan-pattern will add non-showable tan-pattern markings to points, harlequin will create uneven points with washed out or missing components, broken will make foot markings disappear and may damage other point markings, vienna will inconsistently damage point color, steel will wash out points

Picture credit Ponder Lionheads & Netherland Dwarfs (thank you!) 

General color group: Vienna

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more BEWs: BEW, vienna-marked or carriers that are do not have genes to be avoided (below)

Colors to generally avoid: any shaded genetics (weakens pigment in eyes causing ruby cast), any chocolate genetics (weakens pigment in eyes causing ruby cast), some breeders avoid REW because it is more recessive and can mask BEW, some breeders avoid broken because vienna markings can be difficult to distinguish within broken markings, random white spotting genes are best avoided because they can create false VMs

General color group: broken + group of specific variety

Generally complementary colors if you want to produce more brokens: keep the broken version of colors within the color group for that color, breed broken to solid to avoid charlies.  REWs from broken backgrounds or backgrounds of the same color group can also be used beneficially

Colors to generally avoid: any color that is non-complimentary to the colored portion of the rabbit, Vienna