Rabbit Coat Molt (Fur Change)
A completely “harmless” explanation for hair loss, shedding, and changes in the coat can be the natural molting process. Normally, rabbits shed in spring to transition from their winter coat to a lighter summer coat, and again in autumn to grow a thicker, insulating winter coat. Many breeds lack a dense winter coat but still undergo two molts per year.
For healthy, robust rabbits kept outdoors, the molt is often barely noticeable. However, for indoor rabbits or those that are weakened, infested with parasites, poorly fed, elderly, or sick, the shedding can be much more intense.
In these cases, it is advisable to check for intestinal parasites by conducting a fecal test. For indoor rabbits, you can also provide a UVB lamp or another source of vitamin D.
Molting can cause bald patches (healthy skin at the bald spots, without flakes, wounds, or other issues—otherwise, it is likely a disease rather than molting). Additionally, areas of the coat may appear different from the rest of the body. Bald spots with healthy skin may also result from chewing or overgrooming by a partner rabbit, or from thyroid gland underfunction.
Nutrition and Care During Molting (To Prevent Hairballs)
To prevent life-threatening hairballs (fur clumps in the digestive tract) during the molting process, follow these proactive steps:
Removing Loose Fur
- Regular Grooming: Brush away loose fur using hands, damp rubber gloves, or plucking brushes. These tools are especially effective in removing shedding fur.
- Self-Grooming Areas: Place brushes in narrow areas of the enclosure, such as tunnels or passageways, so that less tame rabbits brush themselves as they pass through.
Supportive Diet for Hairball Prevention
- Unlimited Fresh Greens: The best prevention for hairball formation is feeding large amounts of fresh grasses, herbs, and leafy greens, available day and night. This ensures a natural fiber-rich diet that supports digestion and reduces hairball risks.
- Avoid Dry Foods: Avoid dry foods such as dry herbs, or commercial pellets, as they contribute to hairball formation.
Supplementary Foods
- Oily Seeds: Offer soaked linseeds (flaxseeds) or sunflower seeds daily (½ teaspoon per rabbit). These not only help prevent hairballs but also promote a healthy, shiny coat.
- Linseed Cakes and Pellets: Linseed cakes or pellets are even more effective. Limit to one small piece per day as a treat. These also help expel ingested fur from the digestive system.
- Vegetable Oil: Alternatively, a small amount of edible oil (e.g., hidden in a piece of banana) can be given. Coconut oil (up to 1 teaspoon/day/rabbit) is another option. Oil works mainly in the stomach, where hairballs are most problematic.
Additional Hairball Remedies
- RodiCare Hairball: This proven remedy is often eaten directly from the tube by rabbits.
- Psyllium Husk: A cost-effective alternative to RodiCare Hairball. Soak 1 teaspoon (5g) of psyllium husk in 100ml of water overnight. Mix 1-3 teaspoons of this with grated carrot or apple and feed it to your rabbit. Any leftover psyllium mixture can be frozen in ice cube trays for later use.
Encouraging Movement
- Provide your rabbits with plenty of space to move around at all times. Physical activity stimulates digestion and helps expel fur from the gastrointestinal tract.
Cleanliness and Hair Management
- Indoor Cleaning: Vacuum frequently in indoor and sheltered outdoor spaces, especially since there is no wind to carry away loose fur.
- Rubber Brooms: Use rubber brooms to remove hair without creating dust. They are also effective on carpets and fabric surfaces.
- Shearing Fur: In extreme cases, indoor rabbits can be clipped to minimize the length of ingested fur.
Do not worry if you notice “stringy poop” (poop connected by strands of fur). This is a good sign, as it means the ingested hair is being expelled from the body rather than accumulating into harmful hairballs.
By maintaining these grooming, dietary, and cleaning practices, you can help your rabbits stay healthy and comfortable during their molting periods.
The following dietary and husbandry mistakes promote the formation of life-threatening hairballs:
- Hay as the main diet with portions of fresh food.
- Hay as the main diet combined with dry food and fresh food (dry food also absorbs all the water).
- A diet primarily consisting of hay.
- A diet based on dry food.
- Feeding practices with low fiber content: excessive concentrate feed (seeds, grains, etc.), commercially available dry food, etc. Dry food not only absorbs moisture but also has minimal water content and very little crude fiber.
- Confinement in cramped spaces without constant access to exercise (being locked in a hutch/cage).
Malt Paste? Bezo-Pet Paste?
The composition of these pastes is often flawed or not even listed on the packaging. Typically, only the effects are described, which, according to the packaging, are based on three factors: plant oils and fats, fiber, and malt, which is supposed to aid digestion. Cat pastes are nearly identical to rabbit pastes and are often used by rabbit owners as well.
However, these pastes are only fiber-rich for cats. Any rabbit food (herbs, hay, branches) contains significantly more fiber than these pastes! Rabbits naturally consume far more fiber in their normal diet compared to cats. What is considered fiber-rich for cats would be classified as fiber-poor for rabbits.
Malt consists of sprouted cereal grains that are dried and processed after a short germination period. Often, poorly digestible wheat is used. Additionally, these pastes contain numerous additives that may harm rabbits. The only beneficial ingredient is the plant oil, which can be administered in a healthier form (pure or, for example, as “RodiCare akut”).
The pastes contain no active substances that could effectively combat hairballs. Instead, they include many harmful substances, and most ingredients are not disclosed.
A better option is RodiCare Hairball, which is based on soaked psyllium husks.
Good to Know:
According to recent studies, most “hairballs” do not primarily consist of hair but rather of food pulp that has dried out due to excessively dry feeding, stress, or other causes and has clumped together.
4
