Hair in Poop

[PupTheRabbit]

Hey guys,

Pup's coat is SO thick that he frequently gets strings of hair connecting his poop. I use a furminator on him almost every day but I still see these hair strings. He just has so much fur that it's hard and he gets impatient and ends up running off.

There are no places that groom rabbits near me (not that I know of at least). Is there another option? Has anyone ever "shaved" their bun before? And by shave I mean not remove all the hair, but just take off the top layer? I just don't want him to get stomach issues from all the hair he gets in his system when he grooms himself.

Advice would be greatly appreciated!!! Thank you

 

[Bkeenan89]

I would maybe try giving him a hairball remedy that you can buy for cats and just put it on his paw or something so he will lick it off. You don't want this to cause a blockage which could end with gi stasis (which im dealing with right now). I would just continue to keep brushing him.

 

[Bkeenan89]

I should say maybe before you try a hairball remedy to contact a rabbit savvy vet and see what they would recommend doing, before things could possibly cause other issues.

 

[DogCatMom]

Several angora breeders have protocols they follow to prevent "wool block." When you find pieces of poo connected by hair, that's an early stage of wool-block development.

An Internet search of "wool block prevention rabbit" will find these sites for you.

Best wishes!

 

[PupTheRabbit]

thank you to each and every one of you who responded. i will call vet tomorrow

 

[missyscove]

I wouldn't recommend the petroleum-based products used in cats. Cats can "cough up" a hairball but rabbits are not physically capable of vomiting so everything they ingest has to pass completely. The petroleum based products are thought to coat the hair and prevent moisture from getting into it, making it harder to pass. I offer my buns Oxbow's papaya tablets which have enzymes in them that should help break up ingested hair. It's also important to keep them well hydrated in order to keep their gut moving.

 

[JBun]

A little bit of fur in the poop is a normal thing when a rabbit is molting. If you are seeing lots of fur with lots of fecal poop strung together, and/or your bun is showing signs of having discomfort or problems from it, then that does need to be addressed to avoid a blockage from occurring. Typically the best thing to ensure good GI motility is a rabbit eating lots of hay. The more mature and fiberous the hay is, the better the gut contents will move through. If I notice too much fur in my rabbits poop or smaller than usual fecal poop indicating a gut slowdown, I will decrease pellet amounts so that my rabbits eat more hay. Things like apple branches will also provide extra fiber. If your rabbit drinks from a bottle, offering a water dish may be helpful, as most rabbits drink better from a dish. Also eliminating sugary and starchy treats should help as well, as carbs slow down the GI tract.

I've read varying opinions on hairball remedy's and enzyme tablets. Some people say they work, and other places I've read that hairball remedy's aren't good for the reason Christina mentioned, and that the enzyme tablets don't work because they don't affect the fur at all and don't survive the stomach acids. So for my rabbits I just use the added fiber in their diets. I feed my rabbits a mature hay with thick stems, and that seems to help prevent issues with them.

If you are still wanting to look into getting your rabbit clipped, I know that angora owners and breeders, clip their rabbits. You could give it a go, but if you are using scissors and not clippers, of course you just want to be careful. You could also talk to your vet to see what they would charge to clip your bun.

 

[PupTheRabbit]

Thank you JBun. I actually just called one of the vet's I've been to with Pup and explained to her the fur poop string situation. She put me on hold and asked the dr who deals with rabbits and told me that I should bring in Pup to see if there are any problems, like parasites, etc. I don't think that's necessary though. Pup seems fine and is always up to eat. It's just the fur that concerned me. What do you think?

A little bit of fur in the poop is a normal thing when a rabbit is molting. If you are seeing lots of fur with lots of fecal poop strung together, and/or your bun is showing signs of having discomfort or problems from it, then that does need to be addressed to avoid a blockage from occurring. Typically the best thing to ensure good GI motility is a rabbit eating lots of hay. The more mature and fiberous the hay is, the better the gut contents will move through. If I notice too much fur in my rabbits poop or smaller than usual fecal poop indicating a gut slowdown, I will decrease pellet amounts so that my rabbits eat more hay. Things like apple branches will also provide extra fiber. If your rabbit drinks from a bottle, offering a water dish may be helpful, as most rabbits drink better from a dish. Also eliminating sugary and starchy treats should help as well, as carbs slow down the GI tract.

I've read varying opinions on hairball remedy's and enzyme tablets. Some people say they work, and other places I've read that hairball remedy's aren't good for the reason Christina mentioned, and that the enzyme tablets don't work because they don't affect the fur at all and don't survive the stomach acids. So for my rabbits I just use the added fiber in their diets. I feed my rabbits a mature hay with thick stems, and that seems to help prevent issues with them.

If you are still wanting to look into getting your rabbit clipped, I know that angora owners and breeders, clip their rabbits. You could give it a go, but if you are using scissors and not clippers, of course you just want to be careful. You could also talk to your vet to see what they would charge to clip your bun.

 

[Chrisdoc]

One of my buns is an angora mix and has loads of hair and it´s one of the things I worry about. I groom him regularly but don´t give him anything else apart from his pellets, hay and veggies. I sometimes find poops strung together but never a lot. They all eat lots of hay, chew on twigs and eat high fibre pellets. The other two who have short hair are always grooming him (just watching now Houdini grooming him) so I worry about them two. I have tried giving them Papaya enzyme tablet but they´re not keen on them so I stopped.

 

[Blue eyes]

Whenever mine start showing signs of pearl-string poos, (usually during a heavy shed) then I encourage lots of hay eating by refreshing it often throughout the day. For some reason they like it best when it's first put in their cage. I also give them papaya tablets then to help out too.

Also, here's a great article (though pics of the types of poo can be gross) that should be informative (from medirabbit).

 

[JBun]

I'm not sure what parasites have to do with molting and fur in the poop.

If you are still worried about how much fur is in his poop, you could post a photo, so we have a better idea of what you are seeing. Check the link blue eyes shared. If you start seeing thick strands of fur(like in some of those photos in the link) connected to the poop and/or reduced poop size, that is more worrying and indicates something more needs to be done to reduce the fur ingested.