Brat Rabbit won't use the litterbox :P

shop deals on amazon
Shop deals on ebay
Love your rabbit
Advertise with us
Rabbits Online Forum

Help Support Rabbits Online Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
J

jessie-lynn

Active Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2010
Messages
36
Reaction score
2
Location
, Ontario, Canada
Okayy so with the cold weather here Mr.buns has beeen moved inside for the winter. I feel bad, he's in a 5x6 pen but has run of the house during the day most days. He has however stopped using his litter box. I have hay in. hung above it I put it in the corner he was going in. I moved it when he switched corneers. I put his mess in it and washed the rest of the cage. Any advice on re-training my bratty bunny? :)
 
Maybe add a second litter pan in the area he's peeing, temporarily? Then take it away once he chooses one over the other. Clean up the pee with an enzyme spray to remove all the smell. Maybe he's marking his territory because of the change to his environment?
 
Sorry, guess more info would help lol. I would guess he's about 3. I rescued him from a backyard breeder who had him in a very tiny cage with an abcess on his face from chewing the bars. was eating only hay :( poor baby. Anyways. He is not neutered as the only vet who will do it around here wants $150 for an assessment before surgery, $226.00 for the surgery and he has to go back for 2 follow ups at $55.00 each so I've been trying to find someone else. He is literally going everywhere but the litter box. and if I move it to the corner he uses most he just switches to the other end. I tried natures miracle if that's the kind of spray you mean and I made one with lemon and orange peels, brown sugar, and water, you let it ferment ect. I don;t like using cleaners with my critters. I added a second litter pan already but just a corner one. He's used to using that one outside. any other things I can try?
 
Hi

Have you tried lining the walls with litter boxes? Sometimes you just have to put litter boxes everywhere and he'll have no choice but to go in one. So place litter boxes on all the corners and spares anywhere else you can think off. Once he gets the idea then start removing slowly.

Be more persistent that your bunny! You can do it!



You may train a bunny to do tricks, but a bunny teaches you patiences and the fragile beauty of silence.
 
So it sounds like you initially used a different (new) litter pan when you brought him in. Have you switched the litter too? Ideally it would have been good to bring inside the very same litter pan that he was accustomed to and have even left it somewhat dirty so he could recognize it and smell it.
For now, I would just put a litter box anywhere he goes. You can use the shallow plastic storage containers from wal-mart which are cheap. Once he gets the hang of it again, you should be able to start reducing the number of pans.
White vinegar diluted with water should be all you need to clean the floor. The vinegar removes the urine smell so that should help keep him from re-marking the same spots.
 
Blue eyes said:
So it sounds like you initially used a different (new) litter pan when you brought him in. Have you switched the litter too? Ideally it would have been good to bring inside the very same litter pan that he was accustomed to and have even left it somewhat dirty so he could recognize it and smell it.
For now, I would just put a litter box anywhere he goes. You can use the shallow plastic storage containers from wal-mart which are cheap. Once he gets the hang of it again, you should be able to start reducing the number of pans.
White vinegar diluted with water should be all you need to clean the floor. The vinegar removes the urine smell so that should help keep him from re-marking the same spots.
Click to expand...

It's the same litter box but he was trained with the corner one. the other one wasn't used a whole lot in his bigger outdoor/porch enclosure but I didn't want to have 2 in this cage. i have 4 in there now and he just keeps moving around. Shoudol I just keep adding them until he has no more floor space? LOL I use water and vinegar every coupple cage cleans :) I'll keep at it and hope he catches on :p




❤rew❤;1006819 said:
Hi

Have you tried lining the walls with litter boxes? Sometimes you just have to put litter boxes everywhere and he'll have no choice but to go in one. So place litter boxes on all the corners and spares anywhere else you can think off. Once he gets the idea then start removing slowly.

Be more persistent that your bunny! You can do it!



You may train a bunny to do tricks, but a bunny teaches you patiences and the fragile beauty of silence.
Click to expand...

I have 4 in there now I guess I'll buy more tm haha. little butthead >.< I'm going to train him yet haha
 
Are you just using the corner one? I've never been a fan of them since the bunny seems to have a harder time jamming itself in the corner. Could you get a cat one that's rectangle?
 
Kipcha said:
Are you just using the corner one? I've never been a fan of them since the bunny seems to have a harder time jamming itself in the corner. Could you get a cat one that's rectangle?
Click to expand...


He has 2 big corner ones and 2 big cat ones.... Like do I really need to add one?
 
So you're using four pans and he's still peeing in other areas? How big are these litter pans? I've read that if the pans are too small or too big they may not want to use them....not sure if that's the case or not. I know that personally the first pan I used for Sophie was too small and she made a real mess of things lol. But she also didn't like the bigger one I had either so I use that for her supplies now and got a medium sized rectangular pan. That one for her size seems to be suitable. She weighs 4.5 pounds. I honestly don't know what to suggest for you other than make sure all the accidents are thoroughly cleaned so that no smell is left behind.
 
I have corners ones that are for a very large rabbit. Like my french lop used it with no issues and the rectangle ones are about 18x 12.. he's a 4 pound mini rex lol I think they're morre then big enough. I'm thinking it might be because I used hiim for breeding.Everything seemed to start around then. could that change it?
 
I don't think you mentioned what type of litter you are using and if you recently changed the kind you use or not?

Also 12 x 18 really isn't that big for a 4 lb rabbit. I have a 14 x 20 for my 4 lb rabbit and that just barely seems to be big enough for her. She sometimes likes to sack out in her litter box, and just barely fits when all stretched out.

Have you also ruled out a health issue as being the cause of the sudden loss of litter habits? UTI, bladder sludge, e. cuniculi, kidney problems, arthritis, and joint or back problems, can cause a rabbit to suddenly start having peeing accidents. If you are unable to narrow it down to behavioral, and the problem continues, it would be a good idea to take your rabbit to the vet to get checked.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/urinary.html
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Uro_gen_diseases/Differentials/Incontinence.htm
 
they could be bigger? and I mean inches not sure.. I'll measure them tonight :) It was as soon as I brought him home from breeding. within hours of being home I noticed. I use pine shavings in his cage and I have just hay in one box, yesterdays news in another. boxo in the other 2, hoping maybe he has a preference but he's used them all before. I constantly switched his whole life and he didn't care.
 
It is possible that breeding him caused an injury or medical problem that is now affecting his urinary system and litter habits. It could be that he picked up something from the breeding. Have you noticed any swelling or crustiness around his nose, mouth, or genitals? It would be a good idea to get a urinalysis done.

It's possible that it's not medical related, but when there is a complete loss of litter habits, there is something that has caused this to happen. Whether a medical problem, or something changing or happening to disrupt the rabbits life and routine. Being bred and around the doe, could be a cause, but I would expect it to correct itself after a few weeks, when your bun gets back into his routine.
 
he was used for breeding in august.. It was within hours of bringing him home. I haven't noticed anything and he goes in certain spots.. like right along the litter box in the corner is where he pee's but I watched and he's not going in it and hanging over. purposely using that spot and he poops there and beside the other ones. II highly doubt it's anything medical in his case... And I know the doe is fine too. I have a guinea pig right by him who is being bred right now, and I always have a pair in there.. In my big breeding cage could that be upsetting him? He does thump at them a lot but I figured being different species it wouldn't be a problem.. The doe is at my dads by the way. His cage was set up inside while he was gone and it started when he came home so I knew being moved so much would cause some issues but I thought he would correct it ;like he always has before.
 
JBun said:
I don't think you mentioned what type of litter you are using and if you recently changed the kind you use or not?

Also 12 x 18 really isn't that big for a 4 lb rabbit. I have a 14 x 20 for my 4 lb rabbit and that just barely seems to be big enough for her. She sometimes likes to sack out in her litter box, and just barely fits when all stretched out.

Have you also ruled out a health issue as being the cause of the sudden loss of litter habits? UTI, bladder sludge, e. cuniculi, kidney problems, arthritis, and joint or back problems, can cause a rabbit to suddenly start having peeing accidents. If you are unable to narrow it down to behavioral, and the problem continues, it would be a good idea to take your rabbit to the vet to get checked.

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/urinary.html
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Uro_gen_diseases/Differentials/Incontinence.htm
Click to expand...

JBun said:
It is possible that breeding him caused an injury or medical problem that is now affecting his urinary system and litter habits. It could be that he picked up something from the breeding. Have you noticed any swelling or crustiness around his nose, mouth, or genitals? It would be a good idea to get a urinalysis done.

It's possible that it's not medical related, but when there is a complete loss of litter habits, there is something that has caused this to happen. Whether a medical problem, or something changing or happening to disrupt the rabbits life and routine. Being bred and around the doe, could be a cause, but I would expect it to correct itself after a few weeks, when your bun gets back into his routine.
Click to expand...

Okay so I finally got around to measuring. The litter pans are 16x31.5. he can stretch out in them and almost touch the two sides. He's a short 4 lb rabbit haha. Also he has been in for a check up and everything is fine. Ugh I'm at wits end with litter training again.
 
jessie-lynn said:
Okay so I finally got around to measuring. The litter pans are 16x31.5. he can stretch out in them and almost touch the two sides. He's a short 4 lb rabbit haha. Also he has been in for a check up and everything is fine. Ugh I'm at wits end with litter training again.
Click to expand...

Did he have a urine analysis done at the check up? I am just seriously wondering about an infection, especially if he was used for breeding.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top