Poppy is a Lionhead cross & if you’re familiar with the Lionhead breed, you will know that they are supposed to have a mane like a lion does, sometimes they have a skirt too. While this is aesthetically pleasing for us humans, Poppy does pay a price for this look.  The price is the grass seeds from the hay get stuck in her mane & skirt.  When she was a youngster it wasn’t so much an issue but now she has matured & is sporting her full coat, the  grass seeds have the potential to cause injury.

If you look closely at the photo above you can see the strands of hay stuck to her chest.  Her mane goes all the way down.  She isn’t fully mature in the photo above but this highlights the issue to come when her mane becomes thicker & lengthier.

The way the seeds cause injury, is that they can often weave their way through the fur & get to the skin.  They then irritate or scratch the skin potentially causing injury, in extreme cases if the seed is left it could cause an abscess or at the very least a thick matt.

So the solution to this problem is quite simple – grooming.  You cannot withhold hay as it’s a staple part of a bunnies diet. They need to have hay for the health of the digestive system. Also, certainly for my bunnies, it’s important over winter they can have play days in the shed which always involves the bales of hay. Quite simply they’re a fun thing! It’s a bit of trial & error as to how often you need to groom to keep things at bay. There is no need to have a panic attack at the sight of a seed sitting in their fur as soon as you see it. Poppy’s fur/seed issue is kept under control with twice weekly grooming, most of the seeds come out with a brush, the stubborn ones need to be teased. On the rare occasion I have had to cut out a seed as it’s simply been too entwined. Twice weekly works well for her & I have so far, touch wood, not had any issues with her health because of it. I am also lucky that Poppy is quite tolerant of me brushing her & digging around in her fur looking for seeds, this in part is due to the fact I did it at an early age.

So for the sake of your lovely looking fluffy bunny, do a little grooming.