Getting my first angora bunny

[samandsnuggles]

Hi! I've had house bunnies before and like to think I'm pretty knowledgeable, but it's been a few years since I've had one of my own.

In the next couple of days I'm adopting a young angora that my friend bought a couple of months ago and soon realized she wasn't equipped to take care of him.

Has anyone got any info about this breed specifically that you think I should know?
He's VERY fluffy at the moment, and I'll want to give him a haircut. Is it okay for me to trim it myself with some scissors? He's a very laid back, cuddly rabbit, so I think he'd let me.

And I'd like to know if sawdust is a suitable bedding for him. Honestly I don't like my bunnies to be caged, and I'll let him be completely free range once I've bunny proofed my flat, but he'll be in a large cage while I'm not home to watch him at first.

Any tips or advice would be welcome. I'm really excited to be a bunny mama again, and I want to do things right.

 

[CrazyChickenGirl]

What breed of angora is he? Although the angora breeds are alike in quite a few ways they are also different in quite a few. I know as far as French or Satin angoras, at certain times of years you can “pluck” them which is really just them going through a shedding period, but they shed to the point that it is like you shaved them. Satin angoras fur is harder to brush than the other breeds because they have less guard hairs, also making them softer.
As far as brushing I would recommend a curry comb, a double sided comb, and maybe a wire brush (you have to be carful with this one).
When clipping rabbit’s skin is VERY easy to cut so you will want to be extremely careful. There are quite a few good videos how to clip their hair on YouTube, but I don’t know how to put a link to any on here. Hope some of this helps!

 

[Mac189]

Congratulations on your new friend! I'd steer clear of sawdust altogether, there's the risk of respiratory problems from it and it will be a total mess, getting stuck in his coat and tracked everywhere. Kiln-dried pine pellets will probably be your best bet until you have the place bunny proofed and a good choice for litter after that. I switched to them from paper bedding over a year ago and am very impressed. Good luck with your bunny!

 

[RabbitO]

Do you have a photo of him/her?

 

[Futurebunmom]

Congrats on your new friend. I have an English angora. I do not brush him but use a small blower to blow out any debri. If you must brush him a slicker brush was recommended to me by multiple EA people.. Brushing their hair too much will damages it. He doesn't have any knotting. I use pine pellets for his litter box with a grate on top (it's actually a grilling pan with a grate on top) . I have little pee pads that line his cage to prevent anything from getting stuck in his hair. Outside his cage he has stations with pee pads he uses to relieve himself (no litterbox). Because of their hair, their protein requirements differ than that of a regular rabbit. I've personally spoke with multiple breeders to find out what pellets to look into.. The breeder I got him from recommended 18% manna pro grow, there are other brands you can choose from. Mine has access to his pellets and hay almost all the time. He gets a big bunch of leafy greens as well. Sometimes I'll mix manna pro dried calf milk (just a sprinkle) or organic sprouted black oil sunflower seeds.
Mine has accesses to the entire house and he doesn't chew anything. He has toys he doesn't really play with and sticks he loves to chew. He also has a Himalayan salt block he's fond of.

I hope this helps! I'd love to see pictures of your bun!

 

[JBun]

Grooming with angoras, is the most important thing to stay on top of. Some people will keep their pet angora rabbits clipped to help minimize this problem. Clipping does require experience and has to be done with great care. If you have a knowledgeable rabbit vet or groomer, I would start there and maybe they can give you some tips if you are wanting to do the clipping yourself. If scissors are being used and not electric clippers, it's important to use blunt nose scissors to prevent accidents occurring if your rabbit struggles. And also having a comb between the rabbits skin and scissors to prevent the skin from accidentally getting nicked.

If you aren't going to go the clipping route, like mentioned above, using a pet grooming blower to help keep the coat blown out and prevent matting occurring, might work better than brushing.

As for the sawdust, I would recommend wood pellet litter covered with a layer of hay. That's what most of us have found works best at absorption and odor control. Sawdust would be very dusty and get tracked everywhere with an indoor rabbit. Plus with an angora, it would stick to the fur and cause issues there.

https://rabbitsindoors.weebly.com/litter-training.html
https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Litter_training
https://wabbitwiki.com/wiki/Bunny-proofing

 

[samandsnuggles]

Thank you all for the replies! I'll try to attach a picture of him in a moment. I brought him home this evening and he's such a sweetheart. Hasn't stopped doing binkies!

Based on Google I think he's a German Angora. I've not done much research yet, but I think they have to be clipped, but not brushed? I'm definitely going to clip him anyway. Will have to see if there's anyone around here that could do that. I'm not sure how rabbit savvy the vet is, as they're new to me. (Had a terrible experience with my old vet recently, so not wanting to go back.)

I'll look at the bedding recommendations, thank you! I'll also read the links, thanks again!

 

[samandsnuggles]

It's not the best picture because my phone hates taking photos in low light, but here he is!

 

[JBun]

He's adorable Congratulations!

If you're looking for a new rabbit vet, you can try the rwaf list. Or give your general location if you want any possible recommendations from members here. Most of the good UK rabbit vets are on the list, but there are a few that aren't.

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-...abbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/

 

[samandsnuggles]

Thank you

I live in West Sussex, if anyone has any suggestions for a vet I'd appreciate it. The nearest one to me on the map is too far for me to travel at the moment, as I'm without my own car.

 

[Futurebunmom]

He's adorable! To my knowledge German and giant angoras do not have facial tufts- that's an English angora trait. Maybe a cross tho if not English. Weird the person you got him from didn't know the type of angora. He's adorable and looks so sweet regardless! Are you going to spin his wool?

 

[JBun]

Thank you

I live in West Sussex, if anyone has any suggestions for a vet I'd appreciate it. The nearest one to me on the map is too far for me to travel at the moment, as I'm without my own car.

Some that may be too far from you are in Andover, Miadestone, Windlesham, and Twichenham. The closest that I could find to West Sussex was Julie at Meyes Vets in Haywards Heath. These are all recommendations from other rabbit owners. There is one in Lancing that is on the rwaf list that might be a little closer, but I didn't see any personal recommendations for it. Unfortunately rabbit vets aren't as prevalent as dog/cat vets, so it usually does take a bit of traveling to get to one.

 

[samandsnuggles]

He's adorable! To my knowledge German and giant angoras do not have facial tufts- that's an English angora trait. Maybe a cross tho if not English. Weird the person you got him from didn't know the type of angora. He's adorable and looks so sweet regardless! Are you going to spin his wool?

It's so funny I just saw this, as I realized this morning (after looking at pictures) that he was probably an English one. Glad to have confirmation, thanks!

Honestly I've not thought much about it, but I planned to keep him clipped to minimize any potential issues with him swallowing wool.

 

[samandsnuggles]

Some that may be too far from you are in Andover, Miadestone, Windlesham, and Twichenham. The closest that I could find to West Sussex was Julie at Meyes Vets in Haywards Heath. These are all recommendations from other rabbit owners. There is one in Lancing that is on the rwaf list that might be a little closer, but I didn't see any personal recommendations for it. Unfortunately rabbit vets aren't as prevalent as dog/cat vets, so it usually does take a bit of traveling to get to one.

Thank you for the recommendations
Haywards Heath is about an hour away, so I'm hoping to find one closer. I've not got my own car at the moment, so that limits me a bit too. I was considering the Lancing one, but tbh it's still a bit too far. Going to keep calling around.

I know how hard it can be to find a good vet. I've had birds for years, and a good avian vet is like gold dust around here lately.