# Bald Spot Problem



## kherrmann3 (Oct 21, 2008)

OK, so, I decided to groom Toby this evening. He has been super-fluff lately, so I figured a little grooming would be OK. There was one patch of fur on his right hip that just keep coming and coming. I kept brushing it, and before I knew it, Toby has a bald spot. What the heck?! I wasn't YANKING on his fur, either. I was just gently brushing from his shoulders and down to his bunny-butt. Why would all the hair fall out of that ONE area so easily? It was coming out in tufts! I mean, I know he's shedding and some areas come out before others, but should he have gone bald in that spot? I got a lot of hair off of him, though. Here are some pictures of the grooming session!

Before:




After:




You can see where his hair has been brushed... The darkest area around his bum is where the bald spot is.




Extra fluff (my poor bathtub!) You should have seen the amount that came off my clothes! :shock:




Close-ups of the bald spot...








Any suggestions? I swear I didn't yank his fur out! The skin is white and healthy-looking, no blood or redness (I saw one TINY little area, but nothing even note-worthy), and he did not seem to care. The bald spot is less than the size of a nickel.


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 21, 2008)

I don't know about his breed, but Bo gets bald spots now and then where he's molting. You should see hair return there in a couple of days ... keep an eye on it.


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 21, 2008)

*sigh* This morning, you can totally tell where I brushed him. The fluff didn't want to come out of his upper body, so he looks pear-shaped. He's got a tiny-butt and a huge upper body. I might start calling him "Sven" in reference to those ginormous Swedish body-builders that you see on T.V. (and cringe). I can see it now...
:muscleman:

*Dramatic male-announcer voice*

"Toby: The Bun with the Exploding Fur", tonight at 9:00 on the Discovery Channel.ullhair:

*eyeroll*


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 21, 2008)

Did _Sven_ already molt out there? or is he molting back to front? Bo molts front to back, and Clover molts top to bottom. Tony molts everywhere.......


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 21, 2008)

There's no set "area" where he molts first. I tend to notice him ONLY molting on his sides to his bum. I would assume he would shed from his spine, then outward. As I said, I only notice the tufts around his bum.


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## degrassi (Oct 21, 2008)

My bunny molts this way. He actually has a bald spot right now. His butt was looking all ratty, with big tufts of hair sticking out. So I groomed him yesterday just by hand. I was pulling out the tufts(the came out without any real pulling, basically they fell out when I touched them). The hair kept coming and coming and soon there was a bald spot. 

He only really sheds this way close to his butt/tail. He has never had a bald spot anywhere else. Doesn't seem to affect him and the hair starts growing back in a few days. 

Just becareful not to tug too hard when pulling the hair out. You dont' want to damage the skin if the hair isn't ready to come out.


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## slavetoabunny (Oct 21, 2008)

I did that to my poor Scooter a while back. She had two HUGE bald spots when I was done with her. I think she was a little embarrased. Don't worry - it grows back fast!


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 21, 2008)

I think sometimes the softer the fur the more likely to get bald spots when molting.

Clover and Bo get them but Tony really doesn't. He has 2 big uneven patches on his neck right now tho LOL!


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## tonyshuman (Oct 21, 2008)

yeah that happens to Muffin all the time. I get that shed ender going and don't know when to stop until it's too late! if it looks red or inflamed, put a little triple antibiotic ointment on it (like neosporin, no pain killer).


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 22, 2008)

YES! The antibiotic ointment helped Bo when he got a couple of spots that were looking a little too pink. I overzoomed with the zoomgroom.

Now, I try not to brush as much or often when they are shedding.


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 22, 2008)

I know I am going to get yelled at for this one...  I normally don't brush Toby, because it is a dangerous and sometimes bloody affair. He HATES all the brushes I have, and will even hide when he hears the grooming storage box open (it's the same stupid storage box as the treats... but HE KNOWS!). I grabbed him and put him in the empty tub on my lap and brushed away! I think I might try to do so again today (just work on his upper body). He looks so funny right now!


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## LedaHartwood (Oct 22, 2008)

This won't be helpful in the least, but i must know what breed you toby is. He's quite the dashing fellow.


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 22, 2008)

Thanks, LedaHartwood! He is a Netherland Dwarf. He's a "big", one, though. He's just not quite as round-faced as other Nethies


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 22, 2008)

He's POIFEC!! 

Have you tried the rubber mitten groomers? We have them for scrubbing the horses during baths and they LOVE them..... Now granted, our horses, bunnies, dogs, cats, and even the goat and sheep love to be brushed...... 

anyhow, maybe if he thought you were petting him?


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## ec (Oct 22, 2008)

Just wanted to add that my little Dutch, Nibbles, has patchy molts (with small bare spots) like this, too. The 1st time she started shedding that way, I was very worried, but it turned out not to be mites - just the way she sheds. I do keep a close eye on the little bald spots, though - and have noticed that I can see the pink spots turning dark (because new fur is about to come in) within a couple of days. (Like your guy, she's black with some stray white patches.) It's when fur *doesn't* seem to be coming in that I get worried... has only happened once, and it turned out to be OK (no mites or other problems).

It's best to keep a lookout for potential trouble spots, but it sure sounds like you're doing the right things... and (like Bo said), if you can fool him into thinking that he's being petted, that's more than half the battle!


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 22, 2008)

Or..... she could just ship him and Berry Boo to me and they'd be fine....... :biggrin2:


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 22, 2008)

Haha! You could have Berry-Boo, by Toby is my little baby boy!  I'm Mama and no one else compares to me!  He may be small, but he is four pounds of fluffy fury!


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 22, 2008)

I wish I could have her! My niece is going to Wisconsin this coming week too!!! Wahhhhhhhhhhhhh I have a meanie hubby who says NO MORE! :X


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 22, 2008)

lol, make a deal with hubby. No more bunnies after four! lol Indiana isn't far from here lol Just a couple hours!

(Will's sisters live North of Detroit, MI, and it takes us 3-ish hours to get to the Illinois/Indiana border when we go there.) 

Just a road trip away! lol :bow *taunting*


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## Bo B Bunny (Oct 22, 2008)

We were almost killed when he came home to find a kitten..... 

of course now he plays with Diesel....... LOL!


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## kherrmann3 (Oct 23, 2008)

Haha! Will has been so good about not killing me OR all the critters I bring home... When we first moved into the apartment, we had A hamster and Will's betta-fishy (Toby was still residing at my parent's house until we were settled in). We didn't JUST have a hamster, though, she was a three-legged hamster lol. Then, after we moved Toby over, we moved my two fish tanks over to the apartment from my parents house (one 46-gallon freshwater, and a 38-gallon saltwater). We also accumulated another betta-fishy, and another hamster (the three-legged one's younger brother, who has a squishy face). THEN, we bought two Roborovskii dwarf hamsters. In June (a few days after having my tonsils out) we adopted two zebra finches from the Humane Society. Will loves them *eyeroll*. THEN I mentioned that I would like to foster a bunny. Will put his foot down (as he did for all the other additions). He saw the picture of Berry-Boo that Julie sent us (when she was at the shelter, still) and he instantly agreed. 

Poor Will. Out of the seven mammal & bird pets, only three are "his". Berry-Boo is moreso his than mine (even though I play with her), and he has one finch and a Robo-ham. Tell your hubby that my boyfriend knows the feeling!  (Plus, a "foot down" on a subject doesn't necessarily mean "no"!) lol


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## LedaHartwood (Oct 23, 2008)

He's got a beautiful coat color. Must have! *dips Orion in easter egg dye* I've got a Netherland mix, that looks the Netherland. But he (or she, too young to sex) is the otter coloration.


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