Rabbit's are really good at grooming theirselves, and rarely need you to groom them unless they are a wool breed. For rabbits that don't have wool, it's usually only when they're going through a molt (shedding) that they need to be groomed. This happens 2-3 times a year. You can use a cat brush to brush them with.
At shows for grooming my rabbits, and making sure that there is no stray hairs on them, I use a spray bottle, to spray my hands once, then I stroke the rabbit's body from behind the head all the way down to the tail. This works really well to get all the stray hairs off. It also gives the rabbit's coat more of a luster to it. I do this right before I take them up to the show table. After one of my rabbits won a BIS, a judge actually asked my dad if I put baby oil on the rabbit, because his coat had such a shine to it.
If you have a wool breed, your rabbit needs to be groomed at lease twice a week. Here's some Angora websites that have tips for grooming them:
Betty Chu's English Angoras
P.C.'s Pets
For keeping your rabbit clean, the biggest thing is for it to have a clean cage. Click here for information on cage cleaning.
A rabbit should never be given a bath, as this will ruin the natural oils of it's coat. It's better to spot clean the rabbit. Baby wipes are good to use for this.
If you have a white rabbit that you can not get the stain out of, a way of getting it out is mixing half water and vinegar in a spray bottle. Spray the stain, then rub cornstarch into it. Let this dry, then use a brush to brush it out going against the fur. Repeat if needed. I've also heard that tooth paste can be used to get stains out. This I have not tried before.
It is also important to clip your rabbits nails at least once a month. Click here to learn how. Usually when clipping my rabbits nails I clean their vents, as I already have them in the position for it. Click here to learn how to do this. |
