Does your rabbit lose fur in autumn, and you don’t know what to do?
Don’t worry, this is a natural process. The spring undercoat falls off to allow the winter, thicker and softer one to grow up.
How fur moult occurs in rabbits
In general, after weaning and at around 5 months the rabbit’s baby coat is replaced by a transitional one. After this, rabbits moult regularly at each change of season, which is why a moult also occurs in autumn.
During the seasonal moult, the fur slowly sheds. The loss starts from the head and gradually continues up to the abdomen. In place of the ‘old’ fur, therefore, a new and ever-growing coat appears.
How to help rabbits when loosing fur in autumn
All you need to do is to clean their home, to take care of their nutrition and then groom their coat. Here’s how to do it!
1. Clean the rabbit home
Just like cats, rabbits also usually lick themselves over and over again throughout the day. For this reason, it is necessary to clean their cage and the rooms they live in from the tufts of fur scattered here and there. By doing this you will avoid the formation of hairballs which, if swallowed, can lead to consequent intestinal obstructions.
2. Take care of the rabbit’s coat
Help your rabbit’s hair loss by brushing his coat daily. Brushing should be gentle and superficial. In this way the excess fur will be eliminated and consequently there will be a reduction in the risk of the rabbit swallowing wads and tufts of fur.
You can use the GRO 4949 carding brush. It is a brush for small animals, equipped with strong teeth with rounded tip covered in plastic that make it gentle on the pet’s skin. It is a precious tool for small animals’ grooming, that helps to remove dead hair, keeping the fur always flawless.
When brushing, also remember the areas where the fur is particularly prone to felting. Especially brush the area behind the ears, at the base of the tail and the abdomen.
3. Feed your rabbit properly
Nutrition also plays an important role in the animal’s coat care.
First, it is important to ensure the rabbits the correct daily dose of water. If your small pet does not love plain water, you can enrich it with pieces of apple or pineapple that make it more flavorful.
A good idea is to provide the bunny with a drinking bottle, such as FPI 4662 DRINKY 300 bunny bottle from our line. The water will always be fresh and clean. It is available in four sizes of capacity from 75 to 600 cc.
In the rabbit diet it is important to introduce hay, in order to ensure the correct dose of fibers that are needed for the herbivore’s gastrointestinal system. In addition to this, it helps the continuous chewing by which bunnies wears out their constantly growing teeth.
In the event that the loss of fur should be out of the norm and continues even after the seasonal change, it is always good to contact your vet. Only the expert can understand the causes of this high fur loss and will be able to recommend a remedy.