So I have an eleven month old two-pound Netherland Dwarf rabbit named Cosmo.
Recently, Cosmo has been shedding a lot. He's not neutered. My sister also has a Netherland Dwarf (he's 2.5 years) who is neutered. They are never near each other.
Cosmo has been shedding a lot recently. So has my sister's rabbit (named Lennie) so I haven't thought much of it.
I decided to try to brush Cosmo today and about half his hair came out - in tufts. Like he's "blowing out an undercoat." He even has a small bald spot on his side.
His back end is now longer and fluffier and his back has shorter dense hairs. I assumed that he was just molting.
I did also notice some very small flecks of dandruff. I looked it up to see what could help and all I can find is information on mites.
I've looked at the pictures of mites and rabbits with mites and the dandruff is a lot bigger and a lot more frequent. The dandruff I see are tiny white specks and appear more when I brush him - which I admit, isn't often.
If I split the hair on his shoulders and back, I don't see a build up of dandruff like I do on the pictures and videos online. There isn't a cluster of dandruff like there would be for mites. His ears are also perfectly clean.
If he did have mites, I'm not sure where he'd get them from. Our house has central air and the windows aren't open often. His cage is upstairs and he doesn't have free range of the house. He does go on our covered porch once in awhile, but it's been so hot that today was the first time in a month.
His bedding is crinkled paper and his hay is Oxbow.
His extreme shedding/hair loss and bald spot didn't know up until after I started brushing him. Until I put a comb to his back, he was just shedding strand by strand heavily.
Any ideas? Can rabbits have dandruff or is it definitely mites?
Recently, Cosmo has been shedding a lot. He's not neutered. My sister also has a Netherland Dwarf (he's 2.5 years) who is neutered. They are never near each other.
Cosmo has been shedding a lot recently. So has my sister's rabbit (named Lennie) so I haven't thought much of it.
I decided to try to brush Cosmo today and about half his hair came out - in tufts. Like he's "blowing out an undercoat." He even has a small bald spot on his side.
His back end is now longer and fluffier and his back has shorter dense hairs. I assumed that he was just molting.
I did also notice some very small flecks of dandruff. I looked it up to see what could help and all I can find is information on mites.
I've looked at the pictures of mites and rabbits with mites and the dandruff is a lot bigger and a lot more frequent. The dandruff I see are tiny white specks and appear more when I brush him - which I admit, isn't often.
If I split the hair on his shoulders and back, I don't see a build up of dandruff like I do on the pictures and videos online. There isn't a cluster of dandruff like there would be for mites. His ears are also perfectly clean.
If he did have mites, I'm not sure where he'd get them from. Our house has central air and the windows aren't open often. His cage is upstairs and he doesn't have free range of the house. He does go on our covered porch once in awhile, but it's been so hot that today was the first time in a month.
His bedding is crinkled paper and his hay is Oxbow.
His extreme shedding/hair loss and bald spot didn't know up until after I started brushing him. Until I put a comb to his back, he was just shedding strand by strand heavily.
Any ideas? Can rabbits have dandruff or is it definitely mites?
