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How often to groom?

mashbywood6892

mashbywood6892

Young Bun
When my two Netherland Dwarfs are moulting/shedding, I of course groom them DAILY to avoid too much fur ingestion and blockages etc. I get lots of old fur out on these daily grooms - they love being groomed! :)

However, when they're not actively moulting, should I continue to regularly groom them? At the moment I tend to give them a quick brush every 10 days or so, but not much fur comes out. I wondered what everyone else did and whether it is necessary or not.

They are both short haired and have fairly thick, shiny coats.

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Everyone has a different routine but, as they enjoy it, I would think once a week should be adequate. :thumb:
 
My elderly arthritic solo bun I groom at least daily but my healthy pair I groom only when moulting. If they are your signature bunnies they are very cute :love:
 
joey&boo said:
My elderly arthritic solo bun I groom at least daily but my healthy pair I groom only when moulting. If they are your signature bunnies they are very cute :love:
Click to expand...
Ah good to know! Maybe I don't need to do it as often... I was just paranoid about them ingesting fur!!

And aw thank you :) They are cuties!

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I normally do them weekly - unless they are having a big moult, in which case it's twice weekly.

It depends on what their fur is like, indoors or outdoors, moulting, what you use to groom them, general health, etc.
It's useful to groom them anyway so you get to know what they feel like, and you can spot issues earlier. They also get used to being handled, which can make it easier to eg medicate when needed.
 
Shimmer said:
I normally do them weekly - unless they are having a big moult, in which case it's twice weekly.

It depends on what their fur is like, indoors or outdoors, moulting, what you use to groom them, general health, etc.
It's useful to groom them anyway so you get to know what they feel like, and you can spot issues earlier. They also get used to being handled, which can make it easier to eg medicate when needed.
Click to expand...

Their fur is short and thick, and they are indoor rabbits. I use the "Furminator" comb to groom them :)

Seems as roughly weekly is about right, going by what everyone has said. And then I will continue to groom daily during heavy moulting.

Thanks all!

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Last edited:
For Sophie and Casper, when they're not moulting, I groom them every week during their weekly checkup, which for Sophie is necessary as she loses quite a bit of hair even when she's not moulting. Casper, though, often doesn't need much grooming as he doesn't lose much hair outside of moulting times. So, I think it depends on the bunny, really, how often it's needed. Since you find that they don't lose much fur when they're not moulting, you won't need to do it often, though as they love being groomed you could just do it because they enjoy it. I have read, though, that if you groom them a lot it can encourage moulting, so they'd lose more hair if you groom them too much, but I don't know if it's true. It was a professional groomer who said it, and I read it in a book once, too.
 
mashbywood6892 said:
Their fur is short and thick, and they are indoor rabbits. I use the "Furminator" comb to groom them :)

Seems as roughly weekly is about right, going by what everyone has said. And then I will continue to groom daily during heavy moulting.

Thanks all!

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Just a heads up on the furminator, I’ve never used one on a rabbit and I never would after reading this linked thread warning, some distressing content In the link http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...TOR-users-U-D-19-10-2012&highlight=Furminator
 
a reader of books said:
For Sophie and Casper, when they're not moulting, I groom them every week during their weekly checkup, which for Sophie is necessary as she loses quite a bit of hair even when she's not moulting. Casper, though, often doesn't need much grooming as he doesn't lose much hair outside of moulting times. So, I think it depends on the bunny, really, how often it's needed. Since you find that they don't lose much fur when they're not moulting, you won't need to do it often, though as they love being groomed you could just do it because they enjoy it. I have read, though, that if you groom them a lot it can encourage moulting, so they'd lose more hair if you groom them too much, but I don't know if it's true. It was a professional groomer who said it, and I read it in a book once, too.
Click to expand...
Great, thanks :) :)

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Zoobec said:
Just a heads up on the furminator, I’ve never used one on a rabbit and I never would after reading this linked thread warning, some distressing content In the link http://forums.rabbitrehome.org.uk/s...TOR-users-U-D-19-10-2012&highlight=Furminator
Click to expand...
That link doesn't work? :( Thanks for the warning though. I can try and investigate further.

I've used the furminator on them for a while now (several months) and never had issues, personally. Doesn't damage their coat (their coats are lovely and thick and shiny) and their skin is great too. So not sure what the issue with the furminator could be - I can't read the article you link to.

I tried a few other brushes before the furminator and they were all rubbish. Even ones recommended by other bunny owners. They didn't get ANY fur out and my two suffered from gut stasis episodes fairly regularly, quite possibly due to ingested fur. Since using the furminator their coats have been SO much better and they haven't had gut stasis issues either.

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mashbywood6892 said:
That link doesn't work? :( Thanks for the warning though. I can try and investigate further.

I've used the furminator on them for a while now (several months) and never had issues, personally. Doesn't damage their coat (their coats are lovely and thick and shiny) and their skin is great too. So not sure what the issue with the furminator could be - I can't read the article you link to.

I tried a few other brushes before the furminator and they were all rubbish. Even ones recommended by other bunny owners. They didn't get ANY fur out and my two suffered from gut stasis episodes fairly regularly, quite possibly due to ingested fur. Since using the furminator their coats have been SO much better and they haven't had gut stasis issues either.

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Click to expand...

I did edit the link I first posted as it didn’t work for some reason. It should work now. I have tried and used lots of different combs and brushes over the years depending on the coat of the bunny. I’m using a cat brush with very closely set bristles at the moment. Sometimes damp hands stroked over the skin removes a lot of loose hair.
 
Zoobec said:
I did edit the link I first posted as it didn’t work for some reason. It should work now. I have tried and used lots of different combs and brushes over the years depending on the coat of the bunny. I’m using a cat brush with very closely set bristles at the moment. Sometimes damp hands stroked over the skin removes a lot of loose hair.
Click to expand...
The link works now. Wow. Thanks for flagging this - that's awful! Poor bunny. I've not had any issues at all with mine, and their coat and skin seem great, but that's definitely made me wary of using it...

Any specific brushes you'd recommend??

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mashbywood6892 said:
The link works now. Wow. Thanks for flagging this - that's awful! Poor bunny. I've not had any issues at all with mine, and their coat and skin seem great, but that's definitely made me wary of using it...

Any specific brushes you'd recommend??

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Click to expand...

Yes, sorry, it’s not really what you want to read when it’s been working for you, but I just wanted to make you aware.

The one I use at the moment I’ve had for some years, and I can’t remember what it is :lol: I have found the coat of the bunny determines what will work best. Some bunnies I’ve had have had very fine soft fur and the one I use at the moment was the only thing to work effectively. The one I’ve found most useful is a slicker brush and mine looks similar to this one https://www.amazon.co.uk/KW-SMART-S...ds=Rabbit+slicker+brush&qid=1610364944&sr=8-7
 
Zoobec said:
Yes, sorry, it’s not really what you want to read when it’s been working for you, but I just wanted to make you aware.

The one I use at the moment I’ve had for some years, and I can’t remember what it is [emoji38] I have found the coat of the bunny determines what will work best. Some bunnies I’ve had have had very fine soft fur and the one I use at the moment was the only thing to work effectively. The one I’ve found most useful is a slicker brush and mine looks similar to this one https://www.amazon.co.uk/KW-SMART-S...ds=Rabbit+slicker+brush&qid=1610364944&sr=8-7
Click to expand...
OK fab thank you. Will look into slicker brushes like the one you link to!

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I bought a slicker brush instead, as per your suggestion, and it works fab! :) Thanks so much!

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