How to take care of the fur of rodents and rabbits
Before you get a rodent or a rabbit at home, you need to purchase everything you need to care for a new family member. In the shopping list, there must be devices for combing wool. They will be especially needed if the pet has a fluffy and rich fur coat. A pet with long hair needs additional and more thorough care for its fur coat than its short-haired counterparts.
We will tell you what care should be and what tools will be needed for this.
With a short-haired pet, the owner has practically nothing to worry about, because such animals do not particularly need to be combed out. Except during the shedding season. For example, in rodents and rabbits, molting usually occurs 2 times a year: in spring and autumn. But in home conditions, they can shed at other times and even all year round.
It is very important to help your friend and make it easier for him to change his fur coat, even if he has a short one. When there is no molting, you can walk along the coat with a comb or toothbrush, or even hold it with a damp cloth or a hand dipped in water.
But about the long-haired handsome men it is worth talking in more detail. Care for their fur coat is always necessary, and during molting it should be especially thorough. Long hair is prone to tangling and matting. And such a coat will become dirty more often short.
Sometimes small dirt can be removed with a moistened cotton pad or a simple brush. But if the situation is worse, then the baby will have to be washed. Not completely, but only in the place of contamination. To do this, you need to purchase a special shampoo for rabbits or rodents in a pet store.
For washing rodents and rabbits, you can use a professional dry shampoo-mousse (for example, MOUSSETTE from Iv San Bernard). These products remove dirt and grease from the coat and do not require rinsing. They are convenient to use for the care of pets that are not recommended to be washed.
Products for cats, dogs or people will not work. Wash only the area that needs to be cleaned, make sure that water and shampoo do not get into the ears and eyes of the pet.
Long hair is not only a natural gift, but also a danger to its owner. First of all, due to the high probability of ingestion and blockage of the gastrointestinal tract. Getting inside a small amount of wool is not scary, it will come out naturally. But during molting, the baby can swallow too much wool, and this threatens with intestinal obstruction, tissue necrosis and the imminent death of the pet. By the way, rodents and rabbits cannot spit out a ball of hair, as cats do. That is why it is so important to comb them out on time.
Combing is best done by the original Furminator. Get one that is designed for rodents and rabbits. For example, the FURminator brand tool. It gently removes hair that is loosely attached to the skin without harming the pet’s skin. With the help of the Furminator, you can rid the animal of dead hairs up to 99%: the tool pulls them out of the deep undercoat, which no comb or brush can do. This means that excess hair will not enter your baby’s stomach and cause health problems.
Combing a rabbit or rodent with long hair should be regular, and during molting it should be done even more often (every other day). Run the tool only in the direction of hair growth. The teeth of the Furminator should penetrate deep into the fur coat and capture excess hairs. Try not to stay in one area. If your tool has a self-cleaning function, as in the products of the FURminator brand, then just press the button to remove all combed hair. It is much faster and more convenient than removing the fur by hand. If your little friend’s coat is a little tangled, you will need to go through the comb before using the Furminator. But remember that a comb for rodents and rabbits should be with long and rare teeth.
While combing, pay special attention to the areas near the hind legs and abdomen, because. it is there that wool most often gets very tangled and straws, debris, filler and pet excrement get stuck.
Clumps of matted wool are called tangles. Sometimes they can be untangled with tangle detangling spray, and sometimes you have to cut them off, and it’s not just the aesthetic component. Under the tangles, the skin swells, which can lead to dermatological problems and long-term treatment. To remove tangles, it is advisable to buy a tangle cutter. If the mat is too close to the skin and you are afraid to cut it inaccurately, you will be helped in the grooming salon.
Rodents and rabbits with curly hair also need the attention of the owner. Motes, wood filler and so on easily get stuck in curly hair, all this must be removed in time.
Before participating in exhibitions, some breeders and owners of small pets with long curly hair curl their fur on curlers. They make curls not only beautiful and defined, but also allow the animal to move faster and more conveniently, not to get tangled with its paws in its fur coat and not to dirty it.
They will help you take care of your pet fluffy.
By the summer, you don’t need to cut your pet: this will only ruin the coat of a rabbit or rodent, but will not help him.
Like dogs and cats, small animals also need to be trained in grooming procedures as early as possible. Otherwise, as adults, they will squeak, bite and kick furiously when you try to comb them or trim their claws.
Do not forget about the correct diet of your furry friend. If the animal eats poorly and unbalanced, there can be no talk of any beauty.
Cleanliness in the home of a rodent or rabbit is also very important. Dirt and debris very quickly cling to a chic fur coat and spoil its appearance.
The hair that has fallen out can end up in a pet’s food or water bowl, and then into his stomach. Therefore, keep the water clean and the absence of wool in the feed.
Caring for the long hair of a rabbit or rodent is not such a difficult task if you stock up on high-quality tools, do everything right and take a responsible approach to your pet’s health.