Changes

*'''Guard hairs'''

*'''Guard hairs'''

[[image: Rex rabbit.jpg|thumb|175px|left|The short, fine and tightly packed guard hairs of a rex rabbit giving the coat a "velvet" appearance.  Copyright Rachael Wallace2008]]

[[image: Rex rabbit.jpg|thumb|175px|left|The short, fine and densely packed guard hairs of a rex rabbit giving the coat a "velvet" appearance.  Copyright Rachael Wallace2008]]

These are generally stiff and straight and form the outer haircoat of an animal.  They are uniformly distributed across the skin surface and give the haircoat a smooth appearance.  The smoothness of the coat is important in allowing rain to fall from the surface without penetrating deeper to the epidermis and causing loss of body temperature.  The oily coating of the haircoat comes from the secretions of the sebaceous glands in the epidermis, associated with the hair follicle.  This also contributes to the ‘waterproofing’ of the haircoat.  Each hair consists of an outer cuticle, with a cortex and innermost medulla.  It is composed of highly keratinised, dead epithelial cells, with the arrangement into the 3 layers conferring flexibility.

These are generally stiff and straight and form the outer haircoat of an animal.  They are uniformly distributed across the skin surface and give the haircoat a smooth appearance.  The smoothness of the coat is important in allowing rain to fall from the surface without penetrating deeper to the epidermis and causing loss of body temperature.  The oily coating of the haircoat comes from the secretions of the sebaceous glands in the epidermis, associated with the hair follicle.  This also contributes to the ‘waterproofing’ of the haircoat.  Each hair consists of an outer cuticle, with a cortex and innermost medulla.  It is composed of highly keratinised, dead epithelial cells, with the arrangement into the 3 layers conferring flexibility.