Keeping Peaches Clean

Question
Hi,

I have a fuzzy lop who is quite long haired.  Frequently his stool catches and accumulates in the hair near his hind end.  Sometimes his urine mixes with the stool causing it to become more sticky.  Intermittently, I will lay him on his back and clip his hair in the area with a clipper and clean him the best I can.  I also apply a vasaline based neosprorin to the area after I clip him. Needless to say, he is less than fond of the procedure (although he is a good boy and behaves for it) and it is difficult to completely clean him or remove all the matts without damaging sensitive skin.

His diet consists of unlimited Timothy hay, small amounts of alfalfa hay, peleted feed, and twice per day he gets salad - usually romaine lettuce with parsley or other greens - and occasional treats of carrots, apple or a few raisins.  

I'd like to know if perhaps I'm feeding him incorrectly.  He seems healthy otherwise - he is happy, perky, curious and and sometimes playful.

I'd greatly appreciate any suggestions to help resolve this problem.

Thank you!
Fran Nawrocki

Answer
Some rabbits get poopy butt from alfalfa, some from vegetables, and some from unknown causes.  You might try eliminating the alfalfa hay first.  Then check the pellets and see if they contain alfalfa (most do).  There are timothy-based pellets you can get to try, Oxbow and American Pet Diner both make them.  If that doesn't work, then the next thing would be to try eliminating treats and veggies one at a time.

If all that fails, then he'd need to see a vet to check out why.

You might also check out this article on bathing bunnies at http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/buttbath.html to see if there's anything you can use.

Kim