First-time grooming for buns still in the “getting to know you” stage?

[joea64]

I think it’s getting on to time to give Panda and Fernando their first grooming at my hands. As they’re Polish rabbits, they’re fairly short-furred so don’t require extensive grooming as long-furred breeds do, but they do need a good regular brushing.  The issue here is that they’re both still in the settling-in/getting-acquainted-with-me stage so I’m not sure they’ll want to hold still long enough to be brushed, and I certainly don’t want to make them hold still against their will when I’m focused on earning their trust! I’m actually thinking of skipping the “Hair Buster” comb that I have for now and using a grooming glove such as the “Love Glove” instead for at least the first few grooming sessions. Is that a workable alternative?

[sarahthegemini]

I actually find a grooming mit to be way more effective than any other brush I’ve tried. My bunnies hate being groomed. They like being pet (especially butter bean) but as soon as she realises I’ve got the mit on? She runs. Having said that, we’ve had the most success putting her on the kitchen breakfast bar and grooming her with the mit. Being up high stops her from running and the glove removes SO MUCH FUR!

[ThorBunny]

My buns also like the grooming mitt better than the comb! For Boo (who I’ve had for about a month now), I’ve only groomed him using the mitt and plucking tufts by hand. He’s just learning to trust me so I haven’t pushed him on the brushing. I think for short haired rabbits, as long as they are not heavily molting, plucking and a quick groom with a brush and/or mitt works great!

[joea64]

Seems to be unanimous. I see that Pet Supplies Plus should be open now; I have a $7 coupon on a $25 purchase for Preferred Pet Club members, so let’s go see about that Love Glove (if you ask me, it sounds more like something you’d find sold in one of those lingerie/adult-novelty stores. )

[Q8bunny]

LOL That’s what I was thinking, too.

[joea64]

I got the Love Glove (along with a few new toys for the buns). The bristles on it are very soft plastic, which the lady at Pet Supplies Plus says should be optimum for sensitive rabbit skin. I think I’ll have to time my first grooming attempt for a period when they’re in a snuggly mood – it’s mid-afternoon right now and even though I have the X-pen up, it’s that time of day when rabbits basically just want to laze around and not do much of anything.

[Deleted User]

I use a baby brush and a zoom groom to groom my baby bunny. At the moment I believe she has ear mites and her ears are flaky and itchy. I’ve been treating with baby oil and she hates having it in her ears, but she’s been letting me brush her and I think she’s starting to enjoy it.

[joea64]

I attempted to groom my buns a couple of times this weekend, but they’re still pretty skittish overall; Fernando held still for a few moments but I wasn’t able to get Panda to hold still. I’ll have to try again this evening, but I’m not going to force anything on them. I think I’ll have to get them to accept it a little at a time.

[Hashi]

(New user, please let me know if I should start a new thread)

On a similar topic, I’ve tried to groom my French Angora (quite furry) with those cat brushes with the soft metal, but no fur comes out. I’m wondering if I’m doing it wrong, and I brush really gently because I don’t want to hurt her so maybe that’s why there’s not fur?

I’ve had her for about 5 days and she’s yet to receive a thorough brushing but I read online that angora rabbits need to be groomed daily or they swallow their own fur and gets congested so I’m getting a little worried. She’s been scratching/biting/grooming (i can’t tell lol) her sides a lot more these days so I’m wondering if she’s cleaning off loose fur and eating it.

Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

[joea64]

Posted By Hashi on 9/12/2017 4:17 AM

(New user, please let me know if I should start a new thread)

On a similar topic, I’ve tried to groom my French Angora (quite furry) with those cat brushes with the soft metal, but no fur comes out. I’m wondering if I’m doing it wrong, and I brush really gently because I don’t want to hurt her so maybe that’s why there’s not fur?

I’ve had her for about 5 days and she’s yet to receive a thorough brushing but I read online that angora rabbits need to be groomed daily or they swallow their own fur and gets congested so I’m getting a little worried. She’s been scratching/biting/grooming (i can’t tell lol) her sides a lot more these days so I’m wondering if she’s cleaning off loose fur and eating it.

Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

No worries, you’re in the right thread.  I’m still working on getting both my buns – who are Polish and therefore short-furred, so don’t need nearly as frequent brushing – to hold still. I’ve had some success with the “Love Glove” grooming mitt but haven’t yet been able to give either of them a complete brushing, so I try to attack this problem when I can. I did observe that Panda (the female of the pair) gave herself a real thorough grooming last evening, so I’m going to try again with her this evening and see if I can get anything done. I have a Hair Buster comb which I haven’t actually deployed yet, will try that and see if that works. I’m going to offer them both parsley and see if that makes them hold still long enough.

[DanaNM]

Moose is still a little skittish, but he is CRAZY for his pellets, and is molting right now, so I’ve started combing him while he’s eating his pellet ration, so he associates the combing with the pellet reward. I go slowly and use lots of praise when he stays still. It’s been working out great, and doesn’t involve picking him up or anything like that.

I like both the love glove and the fur buster comb. the comb works better for big tufts when they are molting (hand plucking is good for this too), and the mit is better for loose hairs.

. . . The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.  

[OverthinkingBun]

One thing that might help is to mix up the grooming with a petting session. I find that my rabbit tolerates grooming much better if I pat her a little first, and take breaks to rub her cheeks (add in whatever your bunny’s favorite thing is here). I’m hoping to trick her into liking the process over time I think the Hair Buster comb is a well made product, (and gets out a lot of hair) but maybe it tugs too much or something, because my rabbit doesn’t really like it, so it sounds like you made the right choice. I have a soft silicone cat brush that she likes better, which might help if your bunnies don’t end up liking the glove.

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