Fuzzy Lop fur

Hello,

We have a 10 week old fuzzy lop. All of a sudden i noticed a bare spot on the back of his neck. I haven't seen him scratching at it. I have noticed matting on his neck and ive been brushing him almost everyday. Should i be concerned about this or is he just possible molting?

Thanks.
Mark

:wave: hi mark..not from "this side of the pond" if oyu have a fuzzy lop right?

i have a little rescue bun whose got bits of fur like his face and his rump which are very much like a fuzzy lops fur...cute.

is the little bun with another bun or has just left mum/siblings? sometimes other rabbits groom so much it matts or puls out the fur.....
my little rescue doe washed our little lionhead rabbits mane behind his ears and back of neck and it matted up for the first time since we had him..and no matter how much we combed and brushed him it happened on a daily basis so we trimmed his mane right down and she still tried!! if another bun has acess its possible its a similar problem.

otherwise i would say it could be down to fur mites.....are there any teeny patches of what look like the start of dry skin? or any signs of a type of white powder like skin or flakes? usually where the bald patch is and aorund the rump just above the tail.....
theyre treatable with ivermectin drops in between the shoulder blades..but in the meantime id just keep an eye if he does start scratching a lot in that patch particulalry then id say mites...but at the moment it oculd be form stress...moulting...not usuallyas such a young age but its possible.
Dont fret too much just keep an eye over the enxt few days/week..if in doubt seek the advice of a vet..as i dint know whats available over there..i do hope im right..or are you the first person to have a fuzzy lop over here..?
this is where i learn theyve been here for a while now:lol::lol:

i hope it all goes ok..btw our bun didnt show signs of mites but the vet said to treat him nayway as he was scratching like mad on his shoulders/back by then.

good luck!

Actually, Im from the USA. I didn't realize this wasn't a US site until I had already posted. Thanks for replying

Anyhow, we got him about 4 weeks ago and he's the only bunny we have. The skin, as far as I can tell, looks nice and pink. I haven't noticed any dry spots or powdery looking substance, but I will keep watch. We were using pine bedding, but realized it was getting in his fur, so we stopped using it. I will keep an eye on him.

Thanks!
Mark

Hi do you have a photie?

He may well have wool slip if his fur is actually wool. If it felts / mats up into felt looking knots this is probably the case. With a picture perhaps we could tell better?

I dont have a picture of the spot right now, but here's one of him when we had just gotten him.

It does feel felt like when it matts.

Duncan

I have just had a quick look on the web - and AFL fur is "wool" hence why your bun has bald patches. You need to remove any matting completely and brush regularly, and thoroughly. My Toshi Bunny had wool and was forever getting woolslip. It's caused by matted wool in the area. It's quite hard to remove every mat as they can form so close to the skin, and around the chest, stomach and bottom areas! The slightest spec of hay can cause a mat the size of a golfball within days, if it gets mingled in with moulting wool, it starts tangling into the actual coat.

However, advice I picked up was;

Use a hairdryer on cool setting to blow the loose wool out, and this separates the wool helping to show up small mats which are starting to form.

Do not wet the wool as it makes the mats worse, and causes mats in the first place. Avoid straw and woodshavings as these can cause knots around the skirt (long fur around the bottom, when in a sitting position) and on the hocks.

Mats are best removed asap - you can use a set of clippers to very very carefully shave off any large/bad mats. But not around the face, genital or foot areas!

If left, mats will cause skin irritation / infection as the bacteria gets trapped in the mat and the skin can't breathe properly. This means a trip to the vets and medications!

Wool breeds moult more or less constantly, but tend to have major moults 4 times a year. You have to keep ontop of the grooming / removal of loose hair. Otherwise the bunny will swallow masses of moulted hair whilst grooming itself. This can then cause problems, Angoras/wool breeds are prone to gut probs because of the ingesting of their wool!

The best thing to do is look under Angora rabbit grooming - or Cashmere Lop Grooming on the internet. They also have wool rather than standard fur so the hints and advice about these breeds will help you manage your buns coat.

Good Luck, AF lops look sooo sweet!! :wave:

ooooh he is gorgeous! Yes his coat is the same as my bridge bun Toshi..

Thank you for the advice! I will keep on top of it.

Another question then. Do you recommend just not using any bedding in his cage, and maybe just using flat newspaper and some pads for him to lay on? He seems to be sensitive to bedding getting caught in his hair.

I use cardboard squares in the litter trays.. here you can buy a large bag for £6 sterling.. they are 1" squares of cardboard. I use puppy pads or newspaper with blankets or vet bed on the top, for the buns to relax / sleep on.

If you can't get cardboard squares in the US is there anything similar/paper based pellets etc? You can't use grit/cat litter as if they eat it, it makes them ill/blocks their insides...

It is really a case of trial and error as to what you find works best, and makes less mess - as it is important to make sure the areas where they lay down are not covered in old/moulted wool, hay, etc.. so sweeping/hoovering and keeping the blankets clean that they lay on is important.

They must still have hay for their tums/teeth. But try a hay rack / basket to keep it off the floor.

He must have some litter in a tray to soak up any urine - as wet wool gets matted really really quickly.. and as you are not supposed to bath wooley buns, he will also smell! So I would recommend finding a suitable litter, which isn't so lightweight/to get tangled in his coat.

:wave:

We have a hay rack, He LOVES the hay(timothy). We have the paper pellets here for his litter. Im going to try the cushion thing. The "bedding" is just too messy and gets stuck in his coat. Thank you for the advice! You've been very helpful.

Yes that sounds ideal then - if he already has suitable litter in his tray and a hay rack - he can have blankets to line his cage with, and to sleep on etc.

None of our house buns have straw / woodshavings etc.. all are spoilt with blankets, chairs, cushioned cat beds etc! Just keep an eye that Duncan doesn't start munching the blanket regularly.. he may have a quick nibble (as buns use their teeth to check out what something is.. as they don't have hands to touch a new item!) but make sure he doesn't chew/swallow bits of blanket. Other than that I think he will love having a lovely cosy bed to chill out on!

Do you find your bunny urinating on the blankets?

oh mark........hes adorable

yep its a uk site but soo many folks on here from all over...welcome to the site mark...and the adorable duncan.

aww hup casper has wooley fur on his cheeks and his butt altho its shorter than duncans.

mark..this is the best cat litter for a bun.....
http://www.strictlypetsupplies.com/_047557100302-Yesterdays-News-Original-Cat-Litter-30-Lbs


ooh so does this.....ive not seen this over here yet...

http://www.strictlypetsupplies.com/_044845103021-Oxbow-Eco-Straw-Bale-20lb


pop it in a cat litter tray or buny litter tray......

put some soft hay on top to cover the pellets and there you go

hope duncans fur sorts itself out soon.....see you on here again!

debbie

thanks! I think I have a good idea for how to better setup his home.

i back up the old blankets idea too......its way better for them...and you!! might have to have to a bit extra washing tho...or not...depends on the bunny!!

lets have more pics of duncan:wave:

As I was combing the fur w/ my wet hand on my Bernie's fur, a patch also come off. About 2 wk. later, it grow back. No parasite, everything is normal