Strange Fur?

[Lilli!]

We have two holland lops, Freyja and Claude. Claude is a furry holland lop. The other day when I was cleaning Freyja’s litter box I found a large chunk of hair that was similar to Claude’s. They are kept separately but can reach each other through a gate so I just thought Freyja was grooming Claude. Today I was looking around the house and found even more of the same hair. This time it was behind an entertainment system and there was a lot. When held all together it was the size of a softball. I think Freyja is hoarding this fur. I know it is Freyja because she runs around the house, Claude is kept in a enclosure because he still isn’t completely potty trained. The hair seems too long to be Claudes, and there are no noticeable bald spots on him. I considered that it could be my cat who Freyja enjoys playing with but it is a different texture. What could this be??

[Deleted User]

Is your girl spayed? It looks like she could be pulling fur to be a nest from a false pregnancy.

[sarahthegemini]

Goodness me that is a lot of fur. Is Claude neutered? Bunnies can apparently mate through bars so could Freyja be pregnant?

[Bam]

Even spayed buns can feel a bit nesty. It is after all spring. But as Sarah says, buns can mate through cage bars, and if Freyja actually is pregnant, the babies will arrive very soon now. The fur pulling occurs a day or two before the bun gives birth.
If it’s a false pregnancy it will resolve of its own. Hormones make the fur loosen from the mama bun, so when she pulls it out it’s not like she’s self-mutilating.

It looks like a lot of fur, but buns can have an almost endless amount of fur, you can brush them and brush them and collect a mountain of fur and the bun still looks like it did before you started.

Give her a nestbox. If its a false pregnancy she’ll get calmer if she can prepare for her non-babies. If she’s having babies, it’s good if she has a box to put them in so they can’t crawl away and get cold (mama buns don’t “lay” with their kits like dogs and cats do, she just goes to feed them 1-2 per day.)

[Lilli!]

Okay, thank you! I am going to give her a nest box today.

[Lilli!]

Freyja is not yet spayed, her appointment is actually this Wednesday

[Lilli!]

Claude is not neutered, he is 3 to 4 months old. I will be taking him to the vet soon to see what they say.

[sarahthegemini]

There’s a good chance she is pregnant then

[Author]

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