Part 4: Grooming and Rabbit
Medical Concerns
Grooming Your Rabbit
I hope
you’ve learned about rabbit care so far. Training and
disciplining can be quite a challenge, but it is really
worth the effort and really adds to the quality of the
lifestyle you two will have together. Grooming is another
aspect of proper ownership that can add to a happy life
together with your rabbit. Grooming, as with many animals,
seems to be one of the least forward parts of pet
ownership, but doing it correctly can prevent major
headaches from occurring.
Brushing and Fur Management
Rabbits,
like many other animals do shed their fur,and one of the
biggest headaches in the world ownership is getting that
fur off all of your furniture, and clothes. Yes, a rabbit
will do a lot of grooming themselves, but you giving them
a helping hand works out even better. There are a few ways
to groom a rabbits fur and the most common way is by
brushing it.
There are
a variety of different grooming brushes out on the market
and some are better than others. You’ll want the brush to
be firm, but not too hard. The rabbits skin at the base of
the fur is very sensitive, so be very gentle while
brushing. This experience should be a pleasant one for you
and your rabbit, and feel like kind of a massage to him.
You should hear the brush go smoothly through the fur, any
sound of scraping means you are either being too rough or
that you need a new brush. As a habit you should try
brushing your rabbit at least once a week to help keep too
much fur from making it all around your home.
Self Grooming
Also,
when rabbits groom themselves they will also most likely
ingest some fur, and unlike cats they won’t cough up a fur
ball. So regular weekly brushings can help prevent
potential blockages in your rabbits digestive tract that
could lead you expensive veterinarian bills or even worse.
Alternative Grooming Method
Sometimes
your rabbit may not like brushings so alternative methods
can be used as well. Nibbler will sometimes not want to be
brushed no matter how gently I do it, or with any brush I
choose. Other times he’ll enjoy it, but sometimes he’ll
keep grabbing that brush out of my hand and toss it away.
On days that he is in this mood I use an alternative
method to brushing. What I’ll do is lightly pluck his hair
with my fingers. Just like with brushing, this has to be
done very gently. You’re not trying to pluck out feathers
here, just lightly remove the loose fur. Nibbler actually
really enjoys this, and will just lie down and relax. The
motion is very gentle and very smooth, and the process
even appears quicker than brushing. You’ll be amazed at
how much loose fur you can get off your rabbit in a short
amount of time using this method.
Nail Clipping
Apart
from brushing, the next and least looked forwarded to part
of grooming is nail clipping. Clipping your rabbits nails
on a regular basis can help prevent your rabbit from
hurting you, other people and animals, and from destroying
your clothes, blankets and furniture. Some people say they
find it easy to clip their rabbits nails while they have
it in trance like I mentioned earlier. I personally don’t
prefer that method, but you are welcome to try it if you
like. Just be careful when attempting it.
For the
rest of us, I use the old fashioned method. Some people
are truly blessed, and have a rabbit that doesn’t mind
having its nails clipped and can successfully do it by
themselves. For most people though, I usually recommend
two people to take part in the nail clipping being one
person to hold, and the other person to clip. For those
with an extremely difficult rabbit, you may want to
consider having it professionally done.
With
Nibbler, me and Kayla take turns holding and clipping. We
have to hold him very secure, because he does not like
having his nails touched. I usually prefer having him held
securely on the ground so we can prevent him from kicking
his legs out and hurting himself or one of us. Doing this,
I’ll take one foot at a time and start clipping.
How Much to Clip
Knowing
how much to clip is of the utmost importance. First, you
need a pair of small animal clippers which you can get at
any pet store. When you get ready to clip the nail there
are two parts that you should be aware of. Beginning from
the tip, start moving up slowly, and you should see the
clear see through part of the nail that can be clipped. As
your moving up the nail you should begin to see a darkened
area know as the quick. Once you see this STOP! You don’t
want to cut that. This is a vein where the nerve endings
are, and if clipped will cause your rabbit a lot of pain
and bleeding, not to mention it’ll also make your rabbit
like nail clipping even less. Once you see the quick,
slide the clippers back down a little bit to the clear
part, and then snip. If you have trouble seeing the quick
you can use a flashlight to shine on the nail to help you
see it. If you still can’t tell then you should probably
have it professionally done. If you do happen to cut the
quick, and it starts to bleed you can use some corn
starch, flour, or styptic powder to stop the bleeding.
Also
during the grooming process you my want to give your
rabbit an all around inspection. Take a lose look at the
ears to see if there’s any wax, check the body for
scratches, cuts, tender spots, etc.
