hair falling out in clumps?

Question
My 1-yr old Holland Lop has just started losing his fur.  Instead of being soft
and shiny black, his coat is dull, lifeless, and if you pull gently you get a
handful of fur!  He seems to be happily running around like always...doesn't
look sick...is eating and drinking....is this some kind of molting?  Like a
chicken molts and his feathers fall out and he looks like he's dying but it's
normal.  Thank you for your help!

Answer
Dear Lorna,

It's shedding season!

The old coat that's falling out now will generally look dull and ugly--and that's why he's replacing it with his new fall coat, which will be beautiful again. But while he's shedding, you must groom off as much of the loose fur as you can, so he won't ingest it.  Supply him with plenty of fresh timothy hay, fresh water and wet greens to keep his intestines healthy and able to push through any ingested hair.

Please see:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/furloss.html

As long as the fur underneath is growing in normally, and you see no bald spots, just groom him daily until his shed cycle is over, and all will be well.

Hope this helps.

Dana