My rescued bunny's fur was plucked. How can I help it grow back?

Usually that fur will grow back in within a couple of weeks- occasionally not until a molt happens again. And if there is a scar there from a wound, it may not grow back at all. But generally bunnies are fast growers of hair!

It can be completely normal for a rabbit to shed. Sometimes they will shed larger amounts when scared or stressed. They can also lose fur with skin infections or mite infestations. If Bunny Boo’s skin is nice and pink and appears healthy, then she is probably having a normal amount of shedding. If her skin seems overly dry, crusty, or flakey, this could indicate a problem. You also want to watch closely to make sure there are no additional areas of baldness like around the ear. If Bunny Boo is exhibiting any of the symptoms described above, I would recommend taking her in to the vet to be checked out. She may need medication for a skin infection. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Thanks for your question about Puku. I didn’t see what breed she is, but that could make a difference. For example, Angoras require grooming on a daily basis due to the large amounts of hair that they grow. It also can be temperature dependent - longer haired rabbits in warm climates will shed a great deal. Of course, there are also nutritional and medical conditions that can be related to hair loss as well. An ideal rabbit diet is made up of 80% grass based hays that are of high quality, one tablespoon of Timothy pellets per 5 lbs of body weight, and 1 cup of leafy greens per 5 pounds of body weight. Greens examples include red and green leaf lettuce, romaine, endive, escarole, cilantro, parsley, mint, dill, basil, and radicchio. I don’t recommend any fruits, seeds, milk products, or other carbohydrate treats for rabbits. I would recommend considering an examination for Puku. They can evaluate the skin and look at hairs under the microscope to ensure she doesn’t have any issues there. They may also recommend blood work to evaluate her systemic health. I hope that gives you a place to start, and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

This could be due to Cheyletiella parasitovorax, a rabbit skin mite. It's characterized by by patchy fur loss with flaking on the back of a rabbit. I'd have Rueben seen by a vet to have this diagnosed and treated.

Binky may be suffering from mites, as may your other rabbit. Patchy fur loss with flaking along the rabbit's back is typical for the mite Cheyletiella parasitovorax, Your veterinarian may examine a sticky tape preparation or skin scraping under the microscope for the presence of mites, however, might sometimes not find any, even though they are present on the rabbit. Mites are usually eradicated easily. Classic treatment is with injectable or oral ivermectin, or a selamectin spot on given in treatments two weeks apart. As mites live in the environment of your rabbit, it is essential to thoroughly clean your rabbit's cage and disinfect areas after each treatment to control reinfestation, since fur and dander in the environment may contain mite eggs. You will need to treat all rabits in your household.

Unless Lucy has underlying skin diseases or infection, her hair should grow back normally. If she is itchy or if the skin becomes red, she should go to her vet for testing. Otherwise, continue monitoring for hair regrowth! :-)

If the skin looks normal where the hair is missing then it is possible that the other bunny is pulling it out OR Snow White could be self mutilating as well. Also mites and ringworm are common in rabbits as well. I would encourage you to have her evaluated by a veterinarian. In the meantime please practice good hygiene after handling her as ring worm is contagious to people as well. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.