Litter training!

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Ally Ayala

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Aug 11, 2019
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My bunny has a litter box in her pin but she only pees in it, she poops everywhere and I can't keep cleaning up at night. How do I train her to look in the litterbox too not just pee! Please and thank you
 
It's great that she's peeing in the litter box, because that's the biggest hassle to clean, haha!

To start, it's almost impossible for a rabbit to go 100% in the litter box all the time. Pooping, with how frequently they do it, is going to happen at least occasionally out of the box. Rabbits tend to do their business in a designated spot (in which case, we place a litter box), but they aren't necessarily wired to path to that toilet every time they need to go.

If she is not spayed, the pooping is most likely territorial -- she's marking her territory so she feels more secure. Unfortunately, this is a natural instinct that can't really be trained out of a rabbit.

Is she spayed?
 
It's great that she's peeing in the litter box, because that's the biggest hassle to clean, haha!

To start, it's almost impossible for a rabbit to go 100% in the litter box all the time. Pooping, with how frequently they do it, is going to happen at least occasionally out of the box. Rabbits tend to do their business in a designated spot (in which case, we place a litter box), but they aren't necessarily wired to path to that toilet every time they need to go.

If she is not spayed, the pooping is most likely territorial -- she's marking her territory so she feels more secure. Unfortunately, this is a natural instinct that can't really be trained out of a rabbit.

Is she spayed?
No she is not spayed I'm to scared to take the risk because I know some people have lost their bunnys having them spayed.
 
It is absolutely understandable, and I think any owner who has had their rabbit spayed or neutered has the same reservation until their rabbit returns home safely. Thankfully, spays are much more common now among rabbit vets, so as long as your rabbit is healthy and you find a rabbit-vet who is experienced with doing successful spays (not all rabbit-vets do spays often, so asking is a great idea), your rabbit will most likely make it through A-OK. It's also good to keep in mind that online, people are more likely to post when things go wrong (i.e. the spay leads to an unfortunate passing) than when things go right (i.e. the spay when smoothly and nothing of note happened), so reading through those posts can give a false perspective on how often those complications actually happen. I also think that in many of those cases, the passings can unfortunately be tracked back to an inexperienced vet or an underlying medical condition not discovered until the operation. There are exceptions, but again, if your rabbit is healthy and you find an experienced vet to do the procedure, it's relatively safe. Most vets wait until the rabbit is 6mo to spay, due to developmental reasons.

There are also great benefits to having a female spayed. In addition to reducing those territorial markings, it can also reduce any territorial/destructive behaviors that can be rooted in rabbits' natural hormones, such as being defensive/aggressive about territory. Also, if you eventually want to get a friend for her, she will need to be spayed for that to happen. Females can also experience false pregnancies if they are not spayed, and from what I've heard, this can be frustrating for both the owner and rabbit. There's nesting and fur pulling involved. I've heard it doesn't happen too often (though it varies), but that's something to keep in mind as well. Most prominently, spaying prevents the development of uterine cancer in females, which has a very high chance of developing by the age of 4. Many rabbits go through emergency spays when this is discovered, so it's a good preventative measure. The likelihood of uterine cancer varies depending where you look, but percentages go from 60% to 80% chance of a 3-4 year old female rabbit to develop uterine cancer.
 
Wow thanks that was very helpful information. I rescued my rabbit from a litter in an abanond lot that somone posted on facebook, so I have 0 idea how old she is can vets tell just by looking at her? And I dont know the cost of these precudures considering money is tight and I wasn't expecting her to be costly other than the necessary. I also will not be planning on getting a secound there are a lot of risks and I dont have the room right now. On a nother note she pees just fine in her area goes straight to the Litter box but when I let her out she pees everwhere will spaying her help that too?
 
Yes, peeing will probably be reduced as well since that's driven territorially as well! Spay prices will vary depending where you go, so don't hesitate to ask vets as you research your best options.

Litter box adherence will not be automatic after a spay, but it will make the training process more smooth.

A vet will be able to give an approximate age, yes. How accurate it will be is unclear, but if the rabbit is not young adult sized, that will be clear and is a good bet for a spaying age!

I would also recommend doing a vet visit regardless. While finances can be tight, it's much better to get a health assessment of a new rabbit sooner than later so any concerns can be found and treated early. Hypothetically if there is a health issue, it's always cheaper to treat earlier than later (usually). And obviously it's better outcomes for the rabbit as well.
 
Okay thank you so much I appreciate it and I look into rabbit vets around my area and take her for a assessment and to check out spaying her. I really just want to know how old she is she is still young, but I don't know how many months. So I hope they can give me a acurate age
 

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