Actually, if mats are your big concern, I'd go with a well-bred jersey wooly or an american fuzzy lop (cashmere lop) instead of a lionhead. They have less wool, yes, but it is much softer in texture (like that of an english angora), and it mats easily. A good jersey wooly or american fuzzy lop coat rarely needs brushed more than wice a week, and many can easily get away with once a week or once every other week. You just have to get past the baby coat, which is softer and mats easier. You might even go with an adult of one of these breeds (I'd recommend jersey wooly, personally...their coats seem to be more consistant whereas fuzzy lops are too often interbred with
holland lops and it really does mess up the coat, making it hard to manage...plus I prefer the temperament of jersey woolies, myself) so that the baby coat is already past. Just get one that is used to being groomed already.
You don't HAVE to blow out the coat of any longhaired breed, but many people with angoras (especially giant angoras and english angoras, which have a softer, longer coat) do so because it seperates out the hairs and makes it easier to find mats that are just starting. Many show breeders of all longhair breeds blow out the coats, too, because it makes for a better coat presentation when they are up on the show table. Makes them nice and fluffy.
The best tools I've found for wooled breeds is a comb with rotating teeth and a letter opener. The letter opener is great for splitting tough mats into smaller, more managable mats (so the rabbit doesn't get hurt while you are working out the mats...smaller mats pull on the skin much less than big ones) and the comb with the rotating teeth really seperates out the hair. I mostly only use a slicker brush for the final brushing to fluff everything out and double check to make sure all the mats are gone.
Also make sure to brush the bottoms of the feet once a week. If the rabbit gets a mat there, it can cause some painful foot sores because it forces the rabbit to walk differently than it usually would.
