4wk old kit with fur loss

[Maplerabbits]

4week old New Zealand buck with fur loss on chest and inner leg/thigh areas. Do not visibly see any dandruff/mites/scabs on him. No other kits in litter or the mother have fur loss so far and their skin all looks healthy. No dandruff or scaling. Any input on what you all think may be causing this? I did dose them all with ivermectin just to be on safe side if it is mites. They were scratching and grooming some but nothing excessive from what I can tell. Thanks for any suggestions

 

[RabbitsOfTheCreek]

Could be overgrooming

 

[judymac]

Generally, I find that in my herd, overgrooming (by the rabbit itself, but more usually by a littermate) results in cut-short hair, instead of naked. Usually the entire belly isn't affected like this. However, I have a wild theory. Look at the part of the lower neck above the belly that still has intact hair. See how it lays in locks with a slight curl, instead of laying as a single coat?

That seems like there may be some of the curly 'Astrex' gene involved. The funny thing about curly (which is a recessive gene, coded wa, usually associated with Rex) is that the kits with the gene often end up with bald patches while growing up. There can be a wide variety in the amount of curl, from a faint trace to a full curl. There's a thread here about the baldness in curlies at https://rabbittalk.com/threads/astrex-genes-what-do-you-know-about-em.21202/ This is a normal happening with kits born with the curly gene, and the hair usually grows back. Sometimes the hair will grow back in curly, often it comes back as normal hair.

 

[Scooter1A]

4week old New Zealand buck with fur loss on chest and inner leg/thigh areas. Do not visibly see any dandruff/mites/scabs on him. No other kits in litter or the mother have fur loss so far and their skin all looks healthy. No dandruff or scaling. Any input on what you all think may be causing this? I did dose them all with ivermectin just to be on safe side if it is mites. They were scratching and grooming some but nothing excessive from what I can tell. Thanks for any suggestions View attachment 43068View attachment 43069View attachment 43070

That is one cute bunny.