First grooming of my little angora! (Happy bunny!)

[cactuspancake]

I’ve had Franz still only for a few days and I’ve been trying to let him warm up before I freak him out and brush his fur. Anyway I saw some little poops and hay… and mats and I was like “um I don’t care if he doesn’t like it he needs a brush!” so I lined the bathtub with towels and got an extra one for cuddling and I put some carrots and hay in there with my brushes, and he let me pick him up and I took him in there and hugged him and let him explore the bathtub… then I put him in my lap and he only kicked for a second and he began eating carrots, and I started brushing him! I got all of his topside… and then I was like… gotta get his belly! I tried to turn him over gently like I saw in some grooming videos but he wasn’t having it. He went to the other side of the tub ( not in a scared way) and flopped over on his belly! I touched him to make sure he wasn’t going to murder me with his feet and it was like he was waiting for me to finish up! I was rubbing his tummy and he started to fall asleep and I gently cut his little mats out and brushed him. He let me pick him up again and set him on the floor… and WTF bunny wanted more. So weird! I let him be while I cleaned up and he kept sitting on my socks begging for carrots lol. He started doing binkies and the bunny 500. Exactly the opposite of every other time I’ve handled him! He’s been with me all day after that! Now he has a beautiful soft fluffy coat with no poops and hay! <3<3<3<3<3 Also he smells like fresh laundry always...? lol I videotaped it but you can’t see too much besides my arm lol.

[lashkay]

That’s wonderful, cactuspancake!! Congratulations…you’re already a very caring and GOOD bunny mom. And you seem to have an extra abiliity with the issues of angoras. I hope you found the articles I gave links for, helpful…on the grooming, etc. Although, it seems you’ve found your own way of doing things after the immense research you must have done…in a way that agrees with the bunny enough to make him want more! It must be that you’re very very gentle brushing him etc. too. What a wonderful mutual affection you have already! Thank you so much, I for one am grateful you posted detailed notes how you did it. To think this is your very first brushing session with him. So, he let you clip the mats off his tummy and brush him there after he lay there and let you rub his tummy? All I can say is, I’m so glad it is going so wonderfully for you and thanks again for sharing!

[cactuspancake]

Absolutely. I recommend the bathtub for sure with the curtains closed for sure as he didn’t even try to get out and the low lighting calmed him down. Thanks for the props haha! Ya I think he thinks I’m his real bunny mommy! I’m so honored. I have pictures of his face right in my camera like 20 seconds after I let him out lol I have to get them off my phone. I’m going to repeat this method every two days I guess since he’s so fluffy. I brushed him very gently and used my other hand to hold the mats before I tugged on them and he didn’t notice. Also, he didn’t mind me touching his butt, feet, or chin. Weird!

[cactuspancake]

And omg lashkay that is the CUUUUTEST little baby bunny picture ever! I’m totally going to your profile to find more lol.

[lashkay]

Thanks for the additional suggestions. My bathtub too is lowlight when the curtains are closed and the bunnies seem to really like low light where their pens are. I just put the hall light on and it filters in and have a low wattage lamp near Petie’s pen. It IS an honor when they think you’re their real bunny mommy. You’ve been VERY honored. As you can see, Dustor AND Petie are fluffy to the nines as well, and probably could use brushing more often than the every 3 or 4 days I’ve been doing it.

Thanks for the compliment! I can’t take credit for the photo, that was taken by his breeder when he was still a week or so younger than when I took him home. Since then, he’s become very much more longer haired and fluffy although he’s molted out some of his fluff it seems. I haven’t taken many pictures because he seems to be very camera shy so sorry, you won’t find many photos in my profile. I wish I had more when he was the age his breeder took the picture. His hair grew fast between that time and the time I first got him.

[cactuspancake]

haha I thought the flash would scare Franz but he doesn’t react to it.. I think he’s a true vogue bunny! I’m gonna dress cute and take some pics cuddling with him later. I want to capture the baby years on film forever <3 I know a little about photography; you should try turning off the flash and adjust the camera settings for the lower light like aperature. If the aperature is open more however the shutter speed lowers. I would google it as it's been awhile for me but basically open the aperature, increase iso and put your shutterspeed higher. The picture will be a bit grainy but a great picture nonetheless! Just take a few pics every day maybe let him get used to the camera noise? Feed him when you click it perhaps for some operant conditioning!

[lashkay]

Yes, the flash and camera noise rattles him. Petie, on the other hand, is another vogue bunny! I was snapping away all this evening, I think he even let me take one of him asleep with his eyes closed. Thanks for the great photography advice, I’m going to try that. Just don’t know what iso is.

[lashkay]

Yes, the flash and camera noise rattles him. Petie, on the other hand, is another vogue bunny! I was snapping away all this evening, I think he even let me take one of him asleep with his eyes closed. Thanks for the great photography advice, I’m going to try that. Just don’t know what iso is.

[cactuspancake]

ISO is shutterspeed basically. You want to crank it up to 1600 if the bunny is running for action shots and 800 at the lowest for absolutely still moments. At 800 you have to have a steady steady hand though. Lower = higher quality. There is an actual shutterspeed but they almost do the same thing really. I think my shutterspeed goes down to 30 seconds. You can use it for making ghosts in your pictures and also for taking pictures of lightening! Also it adds a pretty effect to rivers. You need a tripod for that stuff though. If your camera has a picture of a man running on it or a soccer ball or something, use that for binkies.

[lashkay]

Thanks, my camera is digiital so don’t know if the shutterspeed info would apply. Sounds like you must be a very good photographer. Right now, I have to locate my instruction books on my digital camera! lol Thanks for the info, I probably will be getting an SLR soon.

[cactuspancake]

Second grooming session:
I took some pics to show how I do it. This time I picked him up and set him down in the tub and he just sat between my legs eating carrots the whole time! When I turned him on his back I held his front and back legs and did it up against my body hugging him the whole time with my boyfriend covering his eyes. It was a great idea and he didn’t even move. I had his eyes in the crook of my elbow and he stayed completely still the whole time about 15 minutes. My boyfriend did Franz’s belly, he was really gentle! Franz  was surprisingly clean around his butt as his fur there is super long I don’t know how it’s so clean lol. I only had to cut two mats out and I’m sure I will be quicker at it after a few times.

after I was done I gently turned him over using the same method and he began eating carrots again. He let me lift him up and put him down easily. He then sat on my feet and wanted to play lol… weird bunny.

Last pic is him right after his grooming! A happy bunny!

Lol his little mouth! His teeth are straight and cute!

 

[lashkay]

Congratulations again! You must be one of the best bunny mommy’s ever. Thanks for the pics, i’ll have no excuse now not to try it with my bunnies. What kind of tools do you use? I have a nylon brush that I thought was really soft, but my bunny was flinching when I just lightly brushed his back with it. I think I have been too rough in the past and have pulled at the hair with the hairbuster too much and that’s why both bunnies are nervous when I brush them. I can hear Dustor panting or rapid breathing when I lift him to take him to the bathroom and he just freezes, I know he’s dreading it. Thanks for your good example, I will try to follow itm with the carrots. Who couldn’t love a bunny’s face like that framed in all that fur? I feel bad that I’ve hurt my bunnies grooming them. I can take all the tips you can give! Keep up the reports, please~ thanks!

[Elrohwen]

Congrats! What an accomplishment! I can assure you my bunnies would never sit still like that – I’ll have to send them to your guy for lessons 😉

Also, I love how they smell like fresh laundry! Best thing about bunnies 😀

He’s such a cute little guy.

[cactuspancake]

Posted By lashkay on 10/21/2010 09:44 PM
Congratulations again! You must be one of the best bunny mommy’s ever. Thanks for the pics, i’ll have no excuse now not to try it with my bunnies. What kind of tools do you use? I have a nylon brush that I thought was really soft, but my bunny was flinching when I just lightly brushed his back with it. I think I have been too rough in the past and have pulled at the hair with the hairbuster too much and that’s why both bunnies are nervous when I brush them. I can hear Dustor panting or rapid breathing when I lift him to take him to the bathroom and he just freezes, I know he’s dreading it. Thanks for your good example, I will try to follow itm with the carrots. Who couldn’t love a bunny’s face like that framed in all that fur? I feel bad that I’ve hurt my bunnies grooming them. I can take all the tips you can give! Keep up the reports, please~ thanks!

I just wrote a huge reply and I accidentally erased it! so anyway…

I’ve tried a few combs;

Slicker brush; stupid and pulls on his hair even when It’s already brushed through (cat brush, wire bristles)

Wide tooth woman’s hair comb; Good for pulling out hay, knots go through it. Stupid..

Regular woman’s hairbrush with plastic bristles and little balls on the ends of them; it was alright, not any control on the pulling of fur. Don’t reccomend.

Men’s comb with fine teeth on one side, and wider on the other side (super standard prolly like 50 cents); Worked miracles. Work through with the wide teeth and then comb with the finer teeth after!

*A pair of scissors. I don’t have ball point yet but they’re necessary for safety. My bunny doesn’t even flinch but I’m going to get ball point asap. Don’t try to brush out mats; it really doesn’t work. The really tiny ones maybe… but really it’s just uncomfortable for the bunny to sit there and brush them out. Make sure you hold tangles with one hand and comb with the other to not pull his skin. Seperate the mats and then cut off as little as possible. You honestly can’t tell I’ve cut anything and he just looks shinier and fluffy after brushing him hehe!

[lashkay]

I’ll get me a men’s comb with fine and wide teeth, then, thanks! I have a pair of ball-tipped scissors, wouldn’t be without them for cutting off mats. I fear that if I try to hold him/them in a football hold, they’re going to squirm and wiggle away. Anyway, thanks again for the tips! And sorry your first posting got away from you, that’s happened to me so many times, I try to remember to highlight what I’ve written with the control C key so I can paste it if necessary if I accidentally lose it. The paste key Contol V works if you delete the passage with Control X too. Just mentioning it in case it’s helpful…

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