The best rabbit brushes for grooming.
Grooming is an important part of owning a rabbit. Regular grooming will help keep your rabbit comfortable and help avoid health issues. So, how do you go about grooming a rabbit, and what are the best rabbit brushes? Let’s find out!
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Basics of Rabbit Grooming
Rabbits are mainly self-cleaners. They groom themselves similar to cats, but there are still some grooming tasks we have to help them out with.
First off, rabbits need their nails clipped about once a month. A bunny’s nails are constantly growing just like a human’s so clipping them ensures they aren’t getting caught on anything or uncomfortable for the rabbit.
Rabbits also need regular brushing, especially if they are long-haired. Since rabbits are self-groomers, they keep themselves clean by licking themselves. However, rabbits aren’t able to throw up (like cats can with hairballs). Brushing your rabbit on a regular basis helps reduce the amount of hair that ends up in their system. Too much hair can lead to GI stasis and health issues.
Rabbits Shed!
Something many people don’t know about rabbits is they actually shed similar to dogs. They shed 3-4 times a year, so brushing during this time is especially important. These sheds can be heavy or barely noticeable, but they still mean your rabbit is doing extra grooming.
While rabbits are shedding, there is more hair that can end up in their system. With some rabbits, you may need to brush them several times a day to really reduce the amount of hair on them while they’re shedding. You can usually pull tufts of hair out with your hands during a shed, so this really shows why it’s so important to keep your rabbit from licking off all this hair.
How to Brush a Rabbit
Brushing a rabbit can be a bit tricky since most rabbits don’t like to be picked up or handled much. You may have to work pretty quickly if you have a rabbit that doesn’t want to sit still.
It might be helpful to have someone else hold and distract the rabbit while you brush them. I like to set my rabbit on a solid surface like a table with someone else keeping a hand on the bunny’s shoulders. My rabbit can’t hop away unexpectedly and my helper can distract them with veggies and pets while I brush.
To brush a rabbit, you just work from their back right behind their ears and work your work all around their body. During a shed, you may be able to pull a lot of hair out just with your hand as well. You can get the big chunks pulled out first and then go back through with a good brush to get the rest of the loose hair off.
Having the right tools can help the process. Since you might have to go somewhat quickly if your rabbit doesn’t want to sit still, you want your brushes to be as effective as possible.
Best Brushes for Rabbits
You want the brushes you use for your rabbit to be comfortable for your bunny, but also effective! Here are my 5 favorite brushes for rabbits:
The Hairbuster
This is hands down the best brush for a shedding rabbit. It was created to remove as much loose hair from the rabbit as possible and it works really well.
This is my go-to brush to use with my rabbits. It gets so much hair off and helps the shedding process go a little bit quicker if you use it on a regular basis!
Rabbit Slicker Brush
A slicker brush is a good general grooming brush for a rabbit. It will easily brush through a rabbit’s coat and will grab any loose hair.
You want to make sure you choose one that has metal bristles, but that they aren’t sharp at all. These brushes do a good job getting through thick coats or brushing out the hair of a long-haired bunny.
Rubber Grooming Mitt
A grooming mitt works especially well if you have rabbits that don’t like being brushed but do like being pet. You can put this on and pet your rabbit and it will grab quite a bit of hair.
It won’t get deep into the hair, but during shedding, it will help your rabbit out quite a bit.
Shedding Brush
These work well if you have a shedding or long-haired rabbit. They grab the hair that is loose but not quite ready to be pulled off by hand.
I like to use this brush when my short-haired rabbit is shedding to get all the shedding hair pulled loose. Then, I go back with the hair buster (mentioned above) to get all the loose hair brushed off.
Comb
I use a comb with my long haired bunny to help keep from getting mats. It works a little better than a slicker brush for getting through longer and thicker hair.
If you have a long-haired rabbit, letting it’s fur get matted can be a hug project to clean up. Regular brushing and working through everything with a comb can go a long way to keeping their fur looking nice.
Final Thoughts on Brushes for Rabbits
Brushing your rabbit on a regular basis is an important part of their regular care. These brushes will help you get the job done quickly and easily!
What brushes do you use with your rabbits?
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