Dustybunny
New Kit
Hello everyone!
I live in Colorado, in the US, and I groom primarily dogs and cats for a living. However, I know there are cases where angora rabbits become matted and must be shaved down for their comfort/safety. I haven't come across a rabbit in this situation yet, but I assume that it may at some point in time, and when it does, I would like to be prepared. The problem is, the pet grooming school I attended did not mention rabbits, and I have not yet met a dog groomer in this area who works with them.
My own rabbits are, I believe, mini lops. They have short but very fluffy, wooly, whispy fur that sheds often. They live in a large kennel in the living room and I brush them constantly. I know from my experience brushing them that if I were working with a less docile rabbit, I could easilly be bitten. I learned through grooming school how to safely restrain a dog while grooming it in a way that keeps my hands safe from bites, but I do not know how to achieve this on a rabbit.
In a search on Youtube for a bunny grooming demonstration, I came across this video:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CAiAjwoQ2U&feature=related
Part 2: http://youtube.com/watch?v=AXiaEfk7JIM
It features a restraining device that, at first, horrified me. My poor bunnies would HATE that, I thought, but when I took a second look, it seems designed with their comfort and anatomy in mind. The wrinkles of its extremely thin skin (thinner, I'm told, than even cats) are made taught so it cannot get sucked through the teeth of the clipper blades and nicked and the demonstration bunny doesn't appear to struggle or show signs of discomfort.
I've never seen a device like this though, and I was wondering if you guys could tell me more about it or suggest an alternative. Hopefully I will never have to shave a rabbit, but if I do, I would like to know how to do it correctly.
Thanks for any advice or suggestions you might have
I live in Colorado, in the US, and I groom primarily dogs and cats for a living. However, I know there are cases where angora rabbits become matted and must be shaved down for their comfort/safety. I haven't come across a rabbit in this situation yet, but I assume that it may at some point in time, and when it does, I would like to be prepared. The problem is, the pet grooming school I attended did not mention rabbits, and I have not yet met a dog groomer in this area who works with them.
My own rabbits are, I believe, mini lops. They have short but very fluffy, wooly, whispy fur that sheds often. They live in a large kennel in the living room and I brush them constantly. I know from my experience brushing them that if I were working with a less docile rabbit, I could easilly be bitten. I learned through grooming school how to safely restrain a dog while grooming it in a way that keeps my hands safe from bites, but I do not know how to achieve this on a rabbit.
In a search on Youtube for a bunny grooming demonstration, I came across this video:
Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CAiAjwoQ2U&feature=related
Part 2: http://youtube.com/watch?v=AXiaEfk7JIM
It features a restraining device that, at first, horrified me. My poor bunnies would HATE that, I thought, but when I took a second look, it seems designed with their comfort and anatomy in mind. The wrinkles of its extremely thin skin (thinner, I'm told, than even cats) are made taught so it cannot get sucked through the teeth of the clipper blades and nicked and the demonstration bunny doesn't appear to struggle or show signs of discomfort.
I've never seen a device like this though, and I was wondering if you guys could tell me more about it or suggest an alternative. Hopefully I will never have to shave a rabbit, but if I do, I would like to know how to do it correctly.
Thanks for any advice or suggestions you might have
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