I got my bunny when she was around 4 years old off of craigslist which means I got her out of a situation I knew nothing about, but when I got her she hated physical touch, she would nip at me if i tried petting her. Now after a year of having her she will tolerate some head pets while she is eating. This also means that picking her up to do things with her whether its clipping her nails or grooming her is very hard. When I groom her I try to sit somewhere and have her in my lap but she still hates it and will chew at my clothes and try to get away. I was wondering if any of y'all have advice for rabbits like her. I also had a question, I only noticed this in the past couple of weeks but she has large pieces of matted fur on her hocks and I've never heard of rabbits shedding their fur on their hocks and I was considering just cutting off the large pieces of matted fur from her hocks but I decided to ask just in case I shouldn't or you have any other ideas.
Bunny grooming struggles
- Thread starter raven123
- Start date
Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:
Well, I don't pick them up for such tasks, I keep them on the floor. Preferable slick vinyl flooring, or such. They hate brushing and plucking fur, but it needs to be done, I can controll them pretty well by putting one hand on their head, or sticking their heads between my legs when kneeing on the floor. I don dedicated clothes for that, new holes and rips tend to magically appear.
Most important is a treat afterward, and I try to do get them regularily in that position even without grooming, just that they learn that it's not worth the anger.
When I need scissors I prefer to get a second person to help, but a lot of matted clumps come off after gently brushing or plucking that spot.
Most important is a treat afterward, and I try to do get them regularily in that position even without grooming, just that they learn that it's not worth the anger.
When I need scissors I prefer to get a second person to help, but a lot of matted clumps come off after gently brushing or plucking that spot.
Rabbits do shed the fur on their feet, it's just not as noticeable because it's shorter fur. I've found my older rabbits do tend to develop matts on the bottom of their feet, probably because it becomes harder for them to groom that area as they age and get stiff. I would gently try and pluck the matt off the bottom of the foot. If you try to clip it, blunt nose scissors are safest to use, and you just don't want to be clipping the fur too short there or it could lead to sores developing because the fur is too thin to protect the foot anymore.
