Grooming

[bamabunny]

Our bunny, Snickers, is in a cage with a plastic bottom instead of wire, so every day he sits in his night droppings and it gets stuck to the bottom of his feet and his butt. We tried cleaning him with just a wet wash cloth, but we aren't able to get it all off. One reason is because he won't stay still long enough and the wet cloth just isn't doing it. Does anyone have any recommendations on how to bathe a bunny???
I've heard some say to use baby cornstarch and just comb it out, but I'm a little scared of it.

Also, is a wire cage better than a cage with the plastic bottom? For this reason, I thoguht maybe a wire bottom would be better...But I've heard that the wire bottom isn't good for their feet. What do you guys recommend? Thanks!

 

[bamabunny]

Looks like he had consumed his homemade treats this morning instead of hopping on them. That will save us from another day of paw cleanings!

 

[NorthernAutumn]

I do not have a clear concept of your setup...

If you are planning on using a plastic bottom cage with no litter box, and no shavings, you better plan to be picking up bunny poo at least once in AM and once at night. Otherwise, the rabbit will be sitting in its own waste.

If you have a litterbox filled with rabbit-safe aspen shavings or newspaper pellet litter, and the floor is bare, the rabbit ought to be going in the litter box (unless it is un-neutered or very young).

I am concerned when you are saying this "night poo" is sticking. The only sticky poo coming out of a bunny should be cecals, and the rabbit should be eating those poos almost immediately. You should rarely see a cecal.

Thus, does this rabbit have diarrhea? What is the rabbit's diet? Is he a new arrival(stress-related)?

From your description, I cannot tell if this is a diet problem or a housing problem. Please explain your situation further

 

[bamabunny]

Snickers has a plastic-bottom cage with bedding, however, he prefers to lay/sleep on the bare plastic. If we put bedding in his two flop spots, he quickly clears it out. We have a litterbox in his cage and he is learning to pee in it, but he still poos wherever he wants. He is 2 months old so we are being patient .

His poo looks normal and his diet consists of timothy hay and the same pellets that the breeder used before we picked him up. He is new to us but has warmed up quickly and eats well. These are no doubt cecals he mashes (brown shiny pellets clumped together liked grapes).

He eats them most days, but sometimes he does get them on his feet and we are looking for the easiest and safestsolution to cleaning them. Thank you for your reply!

 

[Wabbitdad12]

I have both type of cages. Which one you use is a personal preference and you will find proponents for each. The wire cages, I have carpet,EZ brand resting mat a plastic grate that allow the poops and pee to go through the wire but protects their feet. I also use drywall scraps for them to sit and lay on.

In my plastic bottom cages, I have a litter boxes. I have a couple of rabbits that do a very good job of using them, you still find some poo as this is a way of claiming the territory. However, I have one stubborn flemish buck who will pee in this litter box but will not poop in it. Occasionally, he will step in some soft poo and I will have to clean it off of his feet. I usually use non scented baby wipes to get off what I can on my stubborn boy, he will clean the rest off himself.

Just keep putting his poo back into the litter box and he will eventually get the idea. Do you use the same bedding in his litter box that you were putting in his flop spots? He might be a little confused if you are.

 

[bamabunny]

Thanks! No, we are not using the same bedding. We actually use litter for training rabbits in the litterbox and we use a soft bedding for the bottom of his cage. He is peeing and pooping in his litterbox most of the time. Occassionally, he will get lazy and just go wherever. When we find spot he has peed in, we pick up that bedding and stuff some of it into the litter box. We also try to pick up all the poop and put it in the litter box as well. Snickers is only 9 weeks, so we are hoping with some time he will get better. If not, I guess we will have to change to a cage with a metal bottom.

We were kind of afraid to use baby wipes. What about the alcohol and vitamin E and stuff they put in those? Is it okay as long as it isn't scented?

 

[NorthernAutumn]

There are some pet friendly wipes that you can purchase at pet stores (which I have used on a kitten)... however, I don't know if that is just clever marketing, or if they actually have a benefit.

I think you'll see a major change in litter box habits after the neuter... My little gal would pee and poo anywhere, and she is definitely more fastidious now, post-spay. The fact that he's already peeing there means you're a few steps ahead of the game... good for you!

As Wabbitdad noted, wire is managable, provided that there is lots of resting space. Sore hocks are pretty painful, and tend to be recurrent in some susceptible buns (owie!).

I would try the cornstarch first, btw. It is not advised to get a bun wet if at all avoidable...butt baths are OK if necessary though. He is so young; I'd expect this challange won't last too long.

 

[bamabunny]

Thank you for the replies and suggestions. We will try some of these out.

Snickers thanks you too. He doesn't like having poo feet!