Lion Head rabbits

[Lord Trellis]

Today I have been helping somebody who rescued a very poorly kept, neglected looking lion head bunny.

When I saw the bunny its was in a total mess, it couldn't even lay down properly because it had huge lumps of hard poop on its butt, it must have been in some discomfort and I feel it might have some issues with its teeth.

I tried getting off what I could, some of the poop I had to cut off its fur because there was no other way of removing it, I gave the bunny a bath to attempt to remove the rest of the dried on poop from its butt and I got nearly all of it off .

It can sit and lay down a bit more comfortably now. I'm not experienced enough to trim teeth, I've had a look and they look like there is more going on with them so it possibly needs to see a vet at some point but its eating fine so not so urgent.

It needs a lot of grooming, The person asked me if it was ok to trim the bunnies fur... its a very friendly but scared bunny.

What is the best way to tidy up the appearance of a messy lion head bunny?

I would have thought a grooming brush of some kind would be enough?

 

[Shimmer]

I use a double sided metal dog comb for all my furries. My rabbits are always lionheads or crosses, usually VERY fluffy. They get groomed weekly with the fine toothed side. The wide toothed side is useful if the fur is thicker and a bit knotty to get it cleared, then switch to the fine side. If they are moulting, they will need grooming more often.

You have to get down to skin level, or the undercoat mats up. Brushes only really do the top layers. Mats are best cut out with a sharp pair of scissors, pointed outwards, away from the body. You can also cut into the mat, rather than across it and it can gradually be worked out over a few sessions. The skin is so easy to cut and tear. If its already full of muck, it's risking infection if you do cut the skin.

If the fur is really matted, the best thing is to get it clipped off and basically start again. Not all animal clippers are suitable, especially on lionhead fur as it is so fine. Some groomers will do rabbits, otherwise the vet / vet nurses. May need sedation if it's bad. If it's not that bad, you can work on a section at a time to clear it, then go back over previously cleared bits for maintenance.

I wouldn't bath a rabbit unless absolutely necessary, and the matted bits need removing first or you just end up with worse mats and soggy, infected skin that won't dry. Bum baths can be useful for messy bottoms, once the mats and knots have been removed. Then the diet needs to be sorted so it doesn't happen again - so that's hay, hay and more hay.

Teeth - should NEVER be clipped and should not be dealt with at home. They need assessing by a vet. If they need trimming, they should be burred down. Clipping stresses the rest of the tooth and can cause damage to the root - which leads to all sorts of long-term and expensive complications (jaw abscesses, misalignment of teeth and uneven wear, etc).

I would also advise that you shouldn't be handling other rabbits when you have had a known transmissible disease which has killed several rabbits. You need to avoid contact for a few months to avoid passing it on. You could also be picking up other diseases from a rabbit of unknown origin and taking them back to your remaining rabbits, which are all recovering from a traumatic time.

The lionhead could do with vaccinating ASAP to protect it against RHD and Myxomatosis. It's teeth can be assessed at the same time.

 

[Lord Trellis]

I would never attempt to do rabbit teeth... I remember years ago you could get specialized clippers for rabbit teeth but I would never do it. I can trim nails but that is about it. The rabbit could do with a vet examination anyway. I can handle rabbits as the problem I had wasn't contagious. I bought some savlon spray with me just encase. The bath was more of a butt bath, you couldn't even see the bunnies tail so it really needed wetting to get the worst of it off. When I go back tomorrow I will give it the once over and advise a health check. I can only really cover the basics.

 

[Orenoko]

Sounds like the best thing may be for the bunny to see the vet regardless. They can have a proper look at the teeth and anaesthetise if needed to do a dental. That may also offer a chance to shave off any remaining matted bits of fur without stressing the rabbit too much.

I would still be careful of being around it given you don't know it's history or whether it has vaccinations given your own recent losses.

 

[Lord Trellis]

I saw it again today and its not eaten a whole lot. Its eaten a small handful of pellets and a tiny bit if hay. It seems to be chewing ok. It definitely needs a good trim, the fur around its head I'd say is fine but needs some taken off the back and the behind of the bunny, the bunny has a dip in its fur from where to poop was removed and it looks like the back of an old ladies head the way it dips down. It also has some scares possibly from a spay? so if its been spayed then there is a good chance shes been vaccinated.

 

[Shimmer]

It's usually very difficult to find a spay scar on a rabbit. Even ultrasounds may not be conclusive. Often the only way to tell if they have been spayed is to open them up again.
As the rabbit hasn't been groomed properly for some time by the sound of it, there has been a general lack of care and I would not assume that vaccinations are up to date. It's much safer to assume no vaccinations and to start again ASAP. It sounds like it would benefit from a vet examination anyway.

 

[Lord Trellis]

That's what I said. I'm hoping it gets seen sooner rather than later. Its a nice grey and white lionhead I think it would make a nice house pet once tidied up .and fully checked over.

 

[Lord Trellis]

I actually found my old bunnies nail clippers that I didn't even know I still had from all those years ago. I used to trim Bloomers nails with them my old bunny, she had an issue with one of her paws where her nails would grow in the wrong direction and had to be trimmed when as they grew each time. I got used to doing that I became a pro at it.

 

[Lord Trellis]

Update on the lion head bunny.

I've got rid of all the matted hair and poop so its a fresh clean bunny now, it seems to be sleeping a lot. The owner doesn't want to take it to a vet because of the cost so I'm stepping in to do what I can for it.

It doesn't look like its spayed because it tried to mount and hump the cat... would a spayed bunny do this?

 

[Lord Trellis]

Just an update on the lionhead bunny... I found out this afternoon that the bunny came from a rescue who is spayed, vaccinated and micro chipped it back in 2020. An investigation has began to find out why the bunny isn't with its original owner who rescued it.

 

[Shimmer]

I hope she has been vaccinated again recently.

 

[Lord Trellis]

Judging by the state of her fur and all the dried on poop she had on her butt that I removed I doubt she has had a booster. It was crusted on thick like the bottom half of her. She had clearly been neglected.

 

[Shimmer]

But if she's recently been rehomed, has she been vaccinated by her new owner? It's really important.

 

[TheBee]

Presumably you have informed the rescue, as the owner will have signed an adoption contract stating that the rabbit must be returned to them if for whatever reason the owner couldn’t keep her.

 

[Lord Trellis]

Presumably you have informed the rescue, as the owner will have signed an adoption contract stating that the rabbit must be returned to them if for whatever reason the owner couldn’t keep her.

There starting an investigation to track down the original owner and to find out why the bunny isn't with her original owner. I'll be asking my friend for more updates on the situation.

 

[Lord Trellis]

But if she's recently been rehomed, has she been vaccinated by her new owner? It's really important.

I hope she will get her booster. She is in good hands so I'm assuming the vet will advise my friend on what the bunny needs. I'll keep y'all updated. once I hear more news.