Molting House Rabbit

[Janeway]

Anyone here have a house rabbit?

I adopted one from the SPCA back in January (she is a 2 year old, medium- large “american standard” with agouti colouring). Since I’ve had her she has shed about as much as a cat, but this past month she has gone CRAZY and is molting so badly that she looks like a rag-a-muffin with big tufts of fur sticking up all over her. I’m trying to keep up with it (brushing, gently pulling out the tufts) but it does’t seem to be stopping!

Is this normal? plus I swear she seems thinner now too. I’ve never had a rabbit before, so I wouldn’t mind some advice from those that have!

Here’s her picture - if anyone has a better idea of her breed, I’d love to know. The SPCA jsut called her an “agouti American Standard”:

Webshots - Wallpaper / Screen Savers

[Guin]

Rabbits shed almost as much as a corgi. You need to brush the bunny every day, especially if it’s a fluffy one. That will even out that “weed whacked” appearence.

An old hairbrush works fine.

[Gallop_on_Grant]

My house Wabbit “Hugh Hefner”, aka Mr. Buns would molt like this about 3 times a year. It is normal.

I referred to this website often being a first time rabbit owner Its chocked full of everything wabbit. http://www.rabbit.org/

I would just pluck him like a Thanksgiving Turkey!!! He seemed to like that more than the constant brushing and it expedited the process a bit. Mr. Buns would rather be pet than brushed, so I got one of those sticky gloves shedder things at Petsmart. I can’t remember the name of it though.

I will say that my Corgi hands down sheds more than Hef ever did, but now that I think about it, they must have been competing.

[3020HV]

Rabbits are the epitome of shedders. I have two - a black one and a white one - what was I thinking?? The black one, Winslow, has a gray undercoat, so his tufts made him look like a little street urchin. I too have adopted the plucking approach. Fifa (white bun) simply will NOT agree to sit for a brush.

Depending on her size (over 8 or 9 lbs), your agouti (I love that color!!) may be a Flemish Giant. My first bun was a FG, and she was stunning (as is yours!). Tugnutt grew to a healthy 12 lbs - and chased our cats down the hall.

Good luck with your bun - she’s lovely. And the shedding does stop, eventually…

[Janeway]

@3020HV;5810397

The black one, Winslow, has a gray undercoat, so his tufts made him look like a little street urchin.

That’s sounds so familiar! :winkgrin:

I’ve tried the plucking but she doesn’t have much patience for it. I can get quite a bit out but only if my roommate scratches her head/ears at the same time, then she is suitably distracted. I try to use a “Furminator” brush that I have, but I have to get her at the right moment, and make sure she is cornered and then she will give in for a few minutes.

I’m going to have to look for that brushing “glove” - is it like the grooming mits for horses?

This is my first rabbit and boy is it different than a cat! Thanks Gallop-Grant for the link! I had forgotten about that site!

I refer to her as the “Big Bitchy Bunny” because she has a huge attitude… I never knew rabbits could growl She is sweet too though! She likes to sit on the couch with me.

She is not big enough for the Flemish giant - she is only 6lbs! Love the names Tugnut and Hugh Hefner for bunnies!

[Gallop_on_Grant]

This! http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3931206

Speaking of growling…

First rabbit, found him in the alley… Not really interested in me. After about a week of turning him out in the kitchen, he started to follow me around and I say to my husband “look Mr GoG, he luvs me!” and “oh how sweet… he is trying to cuddle with me!” And then “what is he… huh… what the heck? OMG get him off off me, help!” and I go running out of the kitchen and jump on the couch with Hef in hot pursuit of my leg!

Oh, you have not lived until you have been “loved up” by a randy wabbit. Good Lord. Rabbits like it rough.

[BetterOffRed]

Oh, you have not lived until you have been “loved up” by a randy wabbit. Good Lord. Rabbits like it rough.

That’s what you get for naming your bunny Hugh Hefner! :lol:

[Gallop_on_Grant]

That’s WHY we named him “Hef!”

[Guin]

If you have a male wabbit, get him neutered! The smell of male rabbit pee makes you gag. Neutering eliminates (ha) that horrible stink, as well as toning down the “randy” behavior.

It’s inexpensive - my vet neutered my current bun for $125 including everything, and I’m sure if you’re in a less expensive area you could have it done even more cheaply.

[KarrotKreek]

Rabbits do go through molts plus shed on a regular basis. A bath can sometimes trigger shedding. As can the amount of light they are exposed too. You can take a straight toothed comb and hold your finger on the outside against the hair as you comb w/light pressure. This is “plucking” and will help speed up the molting. Think of it like taking a shedding tool to dogs. I’ve also used the fulminator on my rabbits and it worked out well. Don’t get carried away… Some rabbits can take months to molt out!

[Gallop_on_Grant]

Agree with the neutering! Absolutely… There are a few vets in our area that specialize in rabbits… I found them on the house rabbit site I listed above.

Mind you, this was my first rabbit and I really wasn’t sure he was a boy until I saw the pink lipstick during the alleged attack. My husband would always sing “Let’s get it on!” in his best Marvin Gaye voice when I would bring him out… sheesh…

When I was in college, I was working in the Herp Lab and there was a rabbit in there waiting to be snake kibble. They were going to put him in a jar and chloroform him the next day. He was obviously someones pet and was very tame. We busted him out that night and I was able to find him a home the next day. No one ever asked about Foghorn… Quite sure they thought he was et.

[Ruth0552]

I JUST adopted out my rescued house rabbit- and I did in face notice a day before he left that he was shedding funny. I also referred to it as molting. I reached under the couch to grab him and somehow only got a big pinch of fluff from the top of his head- and he wasn’t bald after. He had the same coat underneath, but shorter.

[StillHorseCrazy]

My house rabbits are shedding like crazy right now too. I think I read somewhere they have 2 major sheds and 2 minor sheds throughout the year, but I can never figure out when the minor sheds are - they all seem pretty major!

I think plucking works best, but I do it when I’m petting their head and ears, so one hand is continuously petting and the other is going through and plucking the tufts at the same time. And make sure she’s getting plenty of hay and leafy veggies to move the fur that she ingests through her system. Rabbits can “colic” and need treatment ASAP if they stop eating.

I second (or maybe third?) getting info from rabbit.org.

[Roxyllsk]

Those jelly scrubbies for horses work really well on the bunnies - they are like mits and one side has fine bumpies and the other has big ones, and they’re pretty flexible. My bunny loves being scrubbed with the jelly scrubber ! I think he gets really itchy when he sheds and likes the scratching. When I brush his butt he stretches his legs all the way out behind him and lays his tail flat so I can get everything back there. Very funny.

I also will pluck him if he will allow - and I’ve been know to shopvac him from time to time too. :eek: He’s pretty tolerant .

My bunny is also a rescue - he’s an english lop, and I found him running around outside of work on a cold rainy day. He gets along with the dogs (sometimes a little TOO well LOL). And he chases them around the house when he’s in the ‘mood’, which is pretty funny.