bunny is pulling his hair out

[lylupeters]

Ishmael is a three year old netherland dwarf rabbit. He is an almost five pound male and has been neutered. Lately he has been pulling his hair out. I first noticed it a week ago. It was a pretty large bald spot on his side and belly. The skin looked fine so I just thought I would keep a close eye on it for a while. I then noticed he had made it bigger and it has become very red and irritated. I took him to a vet today and she checked for fleas and mites and couldn't find either so she said she was thinking it must be behavioral.
He eats oxbow rabbit pellets and has a constant supply of timothy hay. Why could he be doing this and is there anything at all that I can try to do to help him. I think he might even be eating some of it because I try to take out all of the hair lying around his cage And I javent found enough to have covered his bald spot (which now covers his entire belly). Please help me. Any information at all would be amazing.

 

[JBun]

Did the vet check the belly area, to make sure it wasn't some sort if internal problem causing pain, and resulting in him pulling out the fur in the same area?

Fur chewing can also be caused by nutritional deficiencies. A magnesium and protein deficiency can cause a rabbit to do it, as well as inadequate fiber in the diet. Two of my rabbits started doing it when they were switched over to a new pellet and weren't getting adequate nutients in the amount I was giving them. Once I increased the pellet amount, the fur chewing stopped. Since your rabbit is getting unlimited timothy, I think low fiber can be ruled out. So you could try addressing the magnesium or protein deficiency by either increasing his pellet amount, or switching to a higher protein pellet.

 

[lylupeters]

I currently feed him Oxbow brand adult rabbit food. And I have actually been feeding him his pellets unlimited throughout the day. The vet flipped him over and examined and looked his stomach over well. She also tested for fleas and mites and found neither.

 

[jamesedwardwaller]

I currently feed him Oxbow brand adult rabbit food. And I have actually been feeding him his pellets unlimited throughout the day. The vet flipped him over and examined and looked his stomach over well. She also tested for fleas and mites and found neither.

well,--lets see,--neutered male,inspected for fleas and mites/niether found,,--the areas chewing fur-like side and belly obviously are a bother,--fleas generally inhabit the warmer regions head spine bum..--one might consider a allogenic bathe-only if you know how to do it properly--did the vet suggest anything,/--or--i might still even try a vile of advantage for fleas,mites--directions are a must read and proper amount per bun weight (box color)-must be observed,,-i am not a big beliver in herbivores and allergies but it is possible the pellets could be the culprit...it would be best to wait awhile between testings don,t try everything at once--here is a link which could help http://www.medirabbit.com keep in touch sincerely james waller :happyrabbit:

 

[lylupeters]

well,--lets see,--neutered male,inspected for fleas and mites/niether found,,--the areas chewing fur-like side and belly obviously are a bother,--fleas generally inhabit the warmer regions head spine bum..--one might consider a allogenic bathe-only if you know how to do it properly--did the vet suggest anything,/--or--i might still even try a vile of advantage for fleas,mites--directions are a must read and proper amount per bun weight (box color)-must be observed,,-i am not a big beliver in herbivores and allergies but it is possible the pellets could be the culprit...it would be best to wait awhile between testings don,t try everything at once--here is a link which could help http://www.medirabbit.com keep in touch sincerely james waller :happyrabbit:

The vet couldn't find any fleas or mites but did go ahead and gave him some medicine for mites.. just to be safe. How does one go about an allogenic bath? Also, I have been using the same brand of pellets since I first got him (almost two years ago), could he have just recently become allergic or something?

 

[JBun]

With feeding the unlimited pellets, how much do you think that he eats in a day? It's still possible he isn't getting enough protein if he's not eating a lot of the pellets.

Another possible cause for fur loss is a hormone imbalance, in which case you would need a blood test done to check for thyroid function, and the endocrine system.