abruptly shedding and eating hair?

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bunnyornot

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Hello friends,
My rabbit has been doing some weird stuff. She's a lionhead/dwarf mix. She's almost a year old. she has a NIC cage and a whole room to herself when we're home. She's not spayed yet. She gets hay all the time and pellets with some veggies too. She started out fuzzy with a big main but over the course of the year her hair has thinned almost unnoticeably but something weird has been happening. (I'm a newb so maybe it isn't so weird).

I've walked in twice now and all of a sudden hair is everywhere!!! It's long and fluffy as though it's coming from her main but I can't tell where it's thinning from and it's A LOT of hair. More than it looks like there should be, and to make matters worse this time she created a little cozy home in a box with a blanket under it. She had the blanket all fluffy and pulled in underneath the box and her hair was everywhere. and when I went to gather the hair she dug and put a a huge chunk in her mouth. I had to pull it out and it was a big handful of hair. I know she sheds and shedding is normal but when I pet her it's not like hair is just coming off. This happens really suddenly.

She's doesn't have bald spots. She seems happy - she plays, eats, uses the potty, lays down when I'm there, binkys, etc. I don't think she's pulling it out but I have no idea. Has anyone experienced this before. I should also mention the hair is in open space so I don't think she's getting hung up on anything. It shedding like this normal?
 
here's bunny. Her hair not on her main is short - she does have some small tuffs on her belly still but not very much at all. and there wasn't much before this. I don't want her eating the hair. If anyone has any suggestions on helping any hair she may have swollowed to pass let me know.

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How long have you had her? If she's pulling her fur she could be pregnant, or just having a false pregnancy.

She also could be molting which is normal. Have you noticed any dry crusty skin, dandruff, or sores? Those are all signs of fur mites which is treated by revolution. If this is the situation it's best to take her into a vet to get a for sure diagnosis and the right dosage. Here's more info on fur loss.

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/furloss.html
 
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Make sure you are brushing her so she doesn't ingest a lot of hair while grooming herself. Make sure she's eating LOTS of hay and she should be fine. If you notice that she stops eating or drinking then she may have a blockage (syringe her pineapple juice, canned pumpkin, baby food) If that happens it can end up very serious so watch her closely :)
 
I agree, it sounds like she's having a false pregnancy (or is pregnant if she's been around other bunnies). When rabbits make a nest, they pull fur from their bellies to make it, they carry it in their mouths to arrange it. I would leave the nest for now, and once she stops showing signs of pulling fur and arranging it, you can remove it. If you remove it too soon, she will probably just start from scratch again :)
 
Oh no! I totally took the hair from her because I thought she was eating it. that makes sense though because she had it in the box and all cozy. I've had her since september and we don't have other rabbits so maybe she just thinks she's pregnant. that's sad. I probably stressed her out taking the hair. She's still eating and drinking but she has been eating less pellets. Her hay consuption seems good though. No crusty skin that I can spot and her hair feels healthy. would it be okay to go ahead and get her some canned pumkin or baby food and give it to her as a treat from time to time to be on the safe side. I brush her but really don't get much hair not since her first molt she lost a lot of baby fuzz early on.

Thank you all for your comments I feel much better that it's not too abnormal.
 
Hay is really the best thing to help keep any ingested fur moving through the digestive tract. If she likes to eat the stalky pieces of hay(the hard stems), giving her a bit more of those will help the most to increase GI motility. Also cutting out any sugary starchy treats for now will help keep things moving better too.... unless it makes her go on a food strike :p.

Moisture and fluids are also really important. Continuing the veggies is good(except carrot), and if she drinks from a bottle offer a water dish as well. Rabbits tend to drink more water from a dish.

Taking the fur away will probably be fine. She may have been done nesting anyways. And if she really is chewing on it and maybe ingesting some, then that is certainly an important concern.

http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Uro_gen_diseases/Pseu_preg/pseudo_en.htm
 
Thanks for the info. I'll definitely pick out the hard pieces, and cut out any sugary stuff. I actually got a different brand of pellets this time around and she doesn't seem to like them very much, which I guess is okay in this case because she's going through Hay very quickly so she's eating it really well. I haven't seen any more fur so hopefully she's done with it. I bought a can of pumpkin for some quick first aid if she starts acting sick but so far so good.
 
As a side note, change in pellet brand/type should be done slowly. It not only gives them an opportunity to get used to the new taste, but it gives their stomachs time to adjust and adapt too.

Is she still pulling fur?
 
Nope she hasn't pulled anymore fur. I usually mix the remaining pellets in but this time it was very little. I went to a different pet store too so my choices were limited otherwise I would've stuck with the same brand. I've thought about going and getting a bag of oxbow and mixing it in so she has some of what she likes because she's really not digging this brand. She maybe only eats half of what I've been giving.
 
Never mind it happened again. smaller amount just today but again all at once. I left it in there to see if she'd build another nest. I even threw in some materials that were safe that she could use to help build it. Could it be possible she's having an allergy to this food. It's just kaytee brand which she has had before when I first got her, and the first time this happened she was on other food. She again has no bald spots and to be honest I haven't checked her belly because I'm uncomfortable picking her up to show the belly. She gets lots of free time outside the cage and has lots of toys so I don't believe she's bored. She even has a couple new toys. From what I've read about psuedopregnancy I think it is what's going on. She's not been nessecarily mean but she's been real pushy she nudges me when start messing with her stuff.

I know I just need to get her spayed. or at least a vet visit. the quote for the spay was very expensive and I'm saving up for it. I was set back because a cat we've been taking care of ended up having a heart condition and we had to have it put to sleep. It makes me even more worried for the bunny to be doing all this.
 
very well! thanks for asking. she made a nest again and I left it alone - in fact it's still there just incase she wasn't done. I'm not sure how long to keep it. but she used her blanket too so the corner of the room under the banket is her nest area I guess. she seems happy and not so pushy so I think it's over. I also made her happier by redoing her cage. she kept excaping so I just used it to block off the closet and everything else she gets into when she feels like being a bad bunny. so she pretty much just has free roam of the room. And she started eating the food better (but I'm still going to go back to other food). I hope it's over and no more hair explosion. we'll see I guess.
 

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