Buttons’ undercoat is so thick that he is extremely warm on the coolest days. I’ve been trying to figure out what to do about it. Combs like the Furmninator rip the undercoat out from the skin, and that is disgusting – and a lot of people are turning away from it for that reason – Buttons’ undercoat is like a thick woollen blanket, and the poor rabbit really feels it.

Kmart Grooming pack

I went to a shop and found this set of pet tools. I thought the brush would be good for Nova, because her hair is so thin and fine that I haven’t found a good solution for her either.

Kmart Grooming pack

I then noticed the pack had thinning scissors. Suddenly my brain thought about Butty’s butt…

Of course the following morning I used them on his butt. He came out looking like something chewed his hair, but he was much happier when I finished trimming him.

I’m going to use the scissors on him twice a day for a good few days, that way I can start to trim the rest of his body, too.

Buttons untrimmed

This is his butt before I trimmed it.

Buttons trimmed

You can see where I trimmed his butt. The longer guard hairs in the middle are gone.

Buttons trimmed

It looks a bit shabby, but he is much happier. You can see his thick undercoat at the bottom-left near his tail. It’s like a thick wool.

I ended up trimming him twice over three weeks. I waited until his hair started to grow back before I did it again. The second time I trimmed it, it looked much better.