# Why is my black rabbit's fur turning brown?



## EmilyClick28

i got a black mini lop buck a while back, and when i got him he was around 4 months old. when i got him his fur was pure black and now he's almost a year old, and his fur is turning brown! right now just the ends of his ears and his back/rear area is turning a red/brown. I am fairly new to rabbits but was hoping to show this buck this year, and now i'm wondering if he would still be showable with brown fur on his rear and ears? or would he still be showable but just not do well because of this color? why is his fur turning brown? maybe just from turning older? too much sun? he is fed well and plenty of water all the time. he always ALWAYS has shade available to him and was never kept in too harsh weather. do rabbit's colors change as they age maybe? what can i do to maybe keep him black or is it a bad thing for blacks to have some brown fur on them


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## promiseacres

Sun definitely is a problem and will cause this. Also before they molt their coats can get dingy. For the best coats a shed or barn is usually best. I am not familiar with the mini lops SOP but should be a fault when showing and not a DQ


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## samssimonsays

Sun bleaching is a common issue in black rabbits as well as molting can cause the discoloring. I had one do it every spring and summer before blowing her coat.


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## Bunnylady

Since this is a buck, you probably also have some urine staining going on as well. Bucks spray, and it's almost inevitable that some of the urine gets back on them when they rub up against any surface they may have sprayed. As others have said, this would be a fault at a show, not a DQ.


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## EmilyClick28

oh well yeah i would love to use a barn or a shed but i unfortunately don't have those available. i'm working on getting him litter trained and if i can he can just live in a room in the house, which i'm sure would help a lot with the color. and oooookay well as long as its just a fault and not a disqualification thats good at least i can still show him. and really? well when do they usually molt and get their new coat? and oh dont worry this buck never sprays. in all the time i've had him ive held and worked with him but ive never once seen him spray. so im not too worried about urine stains. but the cage i have him setup in, he pretty much is in the shade 100% of the time. its kind of stacked slightly under another shade and cage so pretty much no sunlight can get in. however i do have a homade cage i made a long time ago, that is a low cage that only opens from the top and has solid walls, and u put a board over it so its completely closed in. but i always felt bad for using it because no sunlight got in at all so i havent used it in a while. should i maybe use it for my black buck? if i moved him to it, do you think his fur would turn all the way back to black? also, is it bad for the rabbit to be living in total darkness and does it do any damage to their health? of course i would let him out for playtime a lot


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## samssimonsays

I wouldn't want them in complete darkness but that is just me. I am not sure how it would be to him but not being able to see things making noises may spook him. or it could get too warm.


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## Bunnylady

Actually, it_ is_ harmful to a rabbit for it to be in total darkness. Just like humans, rabbits manufacture vitamin D when exposed to sunlight; unlike humans, they also manufacture vitamin C as well. 

Rabbits usually molt during the summer, though exposure to varying amounts of artificial light can trigger a molt. Usually you can see when a rabbit molts; it starts at the nose, and works back over the rabbit's body to the tail. The new hair is shiny and richer in color; the new coat is considered "prime" so the line between the old and new coat is referred to as a "prime line." As I said, changing light levels or other stresses can trigger a molt, sometimes you can see more than one prime line on a rabbit at the same time. Some rabbits have an annoying tendency to not complete a molt; they may have patches of old, dull faded hair that never sheds out (usually on the flanks and backside). That tendency seems to be genetic, so a lot of people who show don't breed a rabbit that does that.


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## EmilyClick28

ahhhhhhh okay good to know. maybe if he just had a nice airy cage but with plenty of shade all the time? and okay well i hope his molt comes before the show! because he's a good show quality buck


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