I just noticed that my bunny Smokey had pulled out some clumps of fur and upon inspection I see that he has some matted fur on his bottom kind of under his back legs. He is only tolerating a little bit of brushing to try to get the mats out. I am wondering if a bath would help loosen it up or would that make it worse? If it would help, I don't have any kind of shampoo for rabbits. Would some fragrance free people shampoo be okay?
Matted fur
- Thread starter Bville
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Kipcha
Well-Known Member
Water will tighten mats. I do see it quite a bit in the grooming shop I work in, people have dogs that are matted and they try to bath them to loosen them, but it only actually tightens them right down to the skin and makes them harder to get out.
How close to the skin is it?
How close to the skin is it?
I thought the water might do that. I think the mats are pretty close to the skin so it may be hurting him when I try to brush. He did let me do a little, but there is more that needs to be done.
Kipcha
Well-Known Member
Oh, if it's close then what I was going to recommend won't work (Cutting them out with scissors). But yeah, don't do that if they are close.
Is there any way you can use a comb rather then a brush? That was you could start at the end of it and loosen as you go down.
Is there any way you can use a comb rather then a brush? That was you could start at the end of it and loosen as you go down.
I tried a comb, but he's really not letting me do too much. He doesn't let me hold him for long and I've only had him 2 weeks and never really restrained him. He has his first vet appointment on Tuesday. Maybe they can get at it. Hopefully, he will keep working at it too.:bunnybutt:
Korr_and_Sophie
Well-Known Member
If you have a vet appointment, the vet could probably shave the area for you. It is a sensitive area to be brushing a lot, especially if there is matting. Shaving is usually pretty quick and much less risk of cutting the skin. The vet and vet techs should know how to hold a rabbit safely. If it is irritated or something else is going on, you can get a cream or something to put on it help it heal.
S
Sophie's Humble Servant
Sophie had mats close to the skin when I got her from the shelter. There was no way to brush them out. What I did was I very carefully snipped them out bit by bit with blunt ended scissors. I would not attempt this unless the scissors were blunt ended and the rabbit held still. Otherwise you could accidently cut their skin. After I got most of the mat out, I was able to comb the rest out easily. If there are many of them, it's probably just best if the vet gets them out.
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