Litter Training Woes!

Hi there! New forum member and house rabbit owner here.

I have two sweet Netherland dwarfs, both female, named Sour Cream and Potato. They live in a cage most of the time because Potato isn't litterbox trained. Her previous owner said she was, but since bringing her home, she does her business wherever she pleases. I have tried every suggestion I've found, from moving her poops to the litterbox so she knows that's where they're supposed to go, to changing the type of bedding in the litterbox, to moving the litterbox to the corner she likes to go in. No luck. She'll go so far as to shove the litterbox aside so she can do her business in the corner she likes without having to use the litterbox. Stinker!

Sour Cream is usually good about using the litterbox, except when it comes to play time outside their cage. I let them run around my bedroom when I'm home, and I have a second litterbox they can use while they're out, but neither of them seem to use it. I've put it in the corner of my room where they tend to poop most often, but usually by the time play time is over, there are poops everywhere!

Any suggestions you might have to get them both to use the litterboxes would be greatly appreciated! TIA!

You only mentioned poos. Are they urinating in the box?
Are they both spayed?
How long have you had Potato?

I think they both urinate in the box in their cage most of the time. I haven't seen either of them urinate in the other box, but I just put the other box out for them a few days ago, so I'm not expecting them to know to use it during playtime right away.
I don't know if they're spayed, but I highly doubt they are. I haven't taken them in for the procedure, and I adopted both of them at 6 months old, so I doubt their previous owner spayed them.
I adopted both of them from the same owner at the same time. I think it's been 3 months, maybe 4. Their previous owner kept them in separate cages, but I've bonded them since then and they now share the same cage.

Well that explains alot then. The poos are likely territory marking. Being intact they are far more likely to do this. The urine is the main concern and it sounds like they are doing well with that.

You can try a do-over with getting them to be better, but it is hit or miss as to whether they will be cooperative while intact.

The way to do this would be to confine them to their cage for several days till they get better at going in their litter box inside their cage. Then, when you let them out, it should be in a confined area around the cage. They should have constant access back to their cage so they can always return to it at will. An ex-pen can come in handy for this. They need to be limited in the space until they don't have accidents. An occasional stray poo is acceptable.

Most potty issues occur from being given too much space at one time. They really need to work up to a large area slowly, always ensuring they return as needed to potty. It is always more difficult to un-teach them a bad habit they started by being given too much freedom too soon. So try severely limiting their space, only increasing that space as they return to their box to potty (or at least are not having any accidents outside the occasional stray poos).

Another important aspect is how the litter box itself is set up. How is yours set up and what size is it? It should be large enough that both rabbits can fit in there at the same time. It should have the litter topped with hay. Having the right setup encourages them to use it more consistently and spend more time in there (to do those poos!).

That's all terrific advice! I will definitely be getting larger litterboxes, as the ones I have now are just the small corner boxes, and they barely have room for one rabbit. I have just started putting hay in their litterboxes as part of my research into training them, and I have noticed that they seem to like it. I'll certainly try limiting their space for a while.

Thanks so much!