hair loss

[bunnylover202]

my friend's rabbit has been losing a lot of hair. she thinks that its molting but its been like that for abot two months and its happend twice this year that shes been brushing him 'with her hands' and he has lost about a half dollar sized chunck of hair. She says she has just been feeding him pellets bcuz he doesnt like timothy or alphalpha and feeds him a bit of fruit every few days. why could he be losing hair?

 

[Haley]

First off, it is natural for rabbits to be losing hair this time of year, all of mine are losing clumps of it whilst I am brushing them.

However, if this has been going on for a while, it probably just isnt shedding. Are there any bald spots on the rabbit? Places where there is no hair or and bumps? It is possible that her rabbit has mites. This has been known to cause what looks merely like loss of hair, as mites can be microscopic. She needs to get her rabbit to a vet to have this examined.

Also, her rabbit needs to have access to unlimited hay (alfalfa hay or timothy, depending on age). Im sure her rabbit will eat the hay if it is placed in front of her. Pellets alone are not a sufficient diet for a rabbit. Rabbits need unlimited hay, veggies, and pellets in their daily diet.

Hope this helps..othermay know more than I do on this one.

-Haley


Edit:moving this to the infirmary to see if anyone else has some ideas for you.

 

[pamnock]

A diet high in protein may also cause continual shedding.

Pellets are specifically designed to meet the nutritional needs of rabbits just as baby formula is designed to meet the nutritional needs of the human infant. Arabbit will not suffer from dietary deficiencies on a pellet diet.

While hay is not a necessary part of the diet (the correct fiber levels are in pellets), many people do add hay to the diet. The hay helps to combat boredom andhelps to satisfythe rabbit's need to chew.

Pam

http://www.geocities.com/pamnock/

 

[JimD]

pamnock wrote:

A diet high in protein may also cause continual shedding.

Pellets are specifically designed to meet the nutritional needs of rabbits just as baby formula is designed to meet the nutritional needs of the human infant. Arabbit will not suffer from dietary deficiencies on a pellet diet.

While hay is not a necessary part of the diet (the correct fiber levels are in pellets), many people do add hay to the diet. The hay helps to combat boredom andhelps to satisfythe rabbit's need to chew.

Pam

http://www.geocities.com/pamnock/

Thanks Pam,

I was going to mention that there are owner/breeders that have their rabbits on a pellets-only diet.

And hay is so messy, too. I prefer to give my buns timothy cubes, but they enjoy their hay so much. IMO......Brindle throws more of it around than she actually eats.

We often refer to timothy hay as nature's scrub brush, and it is alleged that the stringy fibers help clean and move gut contents. However, this might even be considered a "bunnie myth". Yes? No?

And then there was somewhere that mentioned that the enzymes in timothy are necessary for controlling tooth growth. Another myth?

~Jim

 

[pamnock]

JimD wrote:

We often refer to timothy hay as nature's scrub brush, and it is alleged that the stringy fibers help clean and move gut contents. However, this might even be considered a "bunnie myth". Yes? No?

And then there was somewhere that mentioned that the enzymes in timothy are necessary for controlling tooth growth. Another myth?

~Jim

We've been raising Dwarf Hotots for over 7 years, a breed known for intestinal motility problems. We stopped feeding daily hay after many years of doing so, and noted no difference in the occurrence of GI stasis in the Dwarf Hotots. The pelleted diet is formulated with the proper amount of roughage. Rabbits also get roughage from greens as well as fruits and vegetables. It is aoften purported myth that hay is the only source of roughage for rabbits.

I had previously mentioned that I believe that feeding moderate amounts of hay to growing kits is conducive to good dental wear. There are no enzymes in hay that control tooth growth -- the simple act of chewing does just fine I had switched to a different feed during the fall of one year. Every single one of my Holland Lops that wereborn and growing up during that time had bad teeth and had to be put down. The feed company theorized that the difference was the fact that the new feed was softer and did not wear the teeth as well. I switched back and haven't had the problem since. Could have been coincidence -- will never know for certain.



Pam