Jenk
Well-Known Member
Our Cali boy (about 2 years old) tends to overgroom his backside, loosening a lot of fur so that he seems to shed perpetually. About 2-3 weeks ago, his ongoing shed seemed to stop, which made me glad. But two days ago, it seemed to start again. And last night, I noticedthat he's lost fur on the back half of the outside of his ears.
The only dietary change that occurred (on 6/1) is that we've switched him and our other two rabbits to Oxbow timothy hay. So my question is this: is it likely to be the hay change that's causing the irritation (e.g., an allergy), or could it also be the heat? (Our home gets up to 80-deg. F, but we keep the bunners' ceiling fan on high 24/7.)
Mind you, this shedding issue (minus the ear fur loss) has occurred while he was on Sweet Meadow hay. And he often seemed to require a week-long adjustment period each time we started a new hay bale. (His gut sometimes got very loud/gurgly, and he'd be more sluggish during that time.) So I'm wondering if the switch to Oxbow, which doesn't contain clover like SM's hay, could be the issue?
Thank you,
Jenk
The only dietary change that occurred (on 6/1) is that we've switched him and our other two rabbits to Oxbow timothy hay. So my question is this: is it likely to be the hay change that's causing the irritation (e.g., an allergy), or could it also be the heat? (Our home gets up to 80-deg. F, but we keep the bunners' ceiling fan on high 24/7.)
Mind you, this shedding issue (minus the ear fur loss) has occurred while he was on Sweet Meadow hay. And he often seemed to require a week-long adjustment period each time we started a new hay bale. (His gut sometimes got very loud/gurgly, and he'd be more sluggish during that time.) So I'm wondering if the switch to Oxbow, which doesn't contain clover like SM's hay, could be the issue?
Thank you,
Jenk