Do Pet Rabbits Shed?

   Yes, like many other pets, rabbits will also shed. This is normal, but it also means that responsible pet parents need to make time each week for regular grooming sessions. Pet rabbits can get hairballs, like their feline counterparts, but for a pet rabbit, this can become more serious. Take the time each week for a gentle grooming session - your pet rabbit will enjoy and be healthier because of it!
   The House Rabbit Society explains this in more detail below:

  "Rabbits shed every three months. Every alternate time they’ll have a light shedding that may not be very noticeable. Next they’ll have a heavy shedding that you will not be able to escape.

Rabbits are fastidious groomers. They insist on being clean and tidy and will lick themselves like cats, and like cats, they can get hairballs if they ingest too much hair. Unlike cats however, rabbits cannot vomit. If hairballs are allowed to form they can become gigantic masses of tangled hair and food and will block the stomach exit, causing the rabbit to starve to death while his stomach appears to be very fat.

   Rabbits need to be brushed at least weekly. In addition to removing any loose hair, this weekly brushing session helps prepare them for the multiple daily brushings that they must undergo when their heavy shedding begins. Rabbits will shed in different ways. Some rabbits will take a couple of weeks or more to loose their old coat of fur. Other rabbits will be ready to get rid of their old coats all in one day and these rabbits are the ones that cannot be neglected once they start shedding. You can often remove a very large percentage of hair by just pulling it out with your hand. But, however you remove it, remove it as soon as possible or your rabbit will do it during grooming.

   Bald spots on rabbits are quite common when they are shedding. I have one Angora rabbit for instance, that gets totally naked except for her face and feet. But, short haired rabbits can do the same thing. If these bald spots occur from shedding, they will begin to grow back within a week or two."

   To read the entire article on grooming pet rabbits, clcik here: Rabbit.org Grooming

Visit BuyRabbitHutch.com for more great info about Pet Rabbits!