Litter box woes...

[J.Bosley]

The title states it all! I am one frustrated bunny Mom! :hanging: And would appreciate any advice offered....

Litter training is driving me INASNE!! I currently have 2 bunnies, Chive who is roughly 9-10months and a Female Lionhead and Edgar who is 3 months and a Male English Lop.

Chive is 100% litter trained, and has been basically since we got her! The problem is now that she is digging in her litter :sigh: It makes a GIANT mess.... and is really getting to me. I have tried putting cookie cooling racks in her litter pan, which worked for a while until she figured out how to pull them out. I did have success with a small corner pan that had a grate in it! But it was a pain to clean, and waaaay to small. How do I get her to stop digging in her litter pan?!

Now onto my snuggle-bun, Edgar. He was not litter trained at all when I got him, he kept peeing in two spots in his cage. So I gave him two giant litter boxes in those spots, which definitely helped! He is now using them, which is fantastic. Problem is he keeps peeing in them, but it's like he is missing the pan and peeing outside of it while he is in it.... He also keeps peeing randomly when let out of his cage to romp around the "rabbit room". How do I get him to consistently pee IN his pans? I am thinking of getting a higher backed pan, would this help??

 

[JBun]

You could try some sort of clip, and clip the rack to the litter box. Or you could try a litter grate like this, though you may still need to clip this one if you have a very determined rabbit:
http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f69/stormhaven-litter-system-step-step-instructions-48510/

A plastic lighting grate is used for it. I used 1"x1/2" welded wire mesh for mine, and basically folded down edges of the mesh to make a riser out of it.

It does sound like you need a deeper litter box for Edgar. With peeing while he is out playing, you could try having a litter box out in his play area if you don't already, but it's something you may just have to put up with until you get him neutered. If you happen to catch him lifting his tail to pee, you can try to usher him to his litter box. After doing it often enough, he may get the hint.

 

[Azerane]

I agree that Edgar is probably hanging his bum over the edge of the pan, it means you either need a larger litter box, or one with higher sides. Getting one with high sides for Chive would work well too because even if she digs, it won't go flying everywhere! Bandit used to pee over the edge of his litter box too as he grew bigger, now I have a bigger litter tray with higher sides and it's never happened since

 

[J.Bosley]

Thanks for the suggestions! :biggrin2:

I ordered Chive a high backed pan because it will fit nicely in her cage. Hopefully that will help keep it contained! If not I will definitely try some sort of grid to get her to stop. Would providing a digging box help?

Guess I'll have to find a litter pan big enough for Edgar with a high back too! I never thought to put a litter pan out with him, I assume he would go back into his cage to use it. I feel a tad silly I didn't think of that! :idea

 

[PaGal]

As far as digging in a litter box. You can try providing her with a dig box. Basically fill a box with paper or a phone book with the cover removed and let her have fun. I have two outside of the buns cage for the girls and they love it. They get their fill of digging while out of their cage and no longer dig in the litter box.

Also to help prevent the mess when she digs in the litter box and also to prevent your male from peeing outside his box, you could get a plastic storage box with high sides. Then either cut one side low or just enough of one side for the bun in question to get in.

For the male, definitely try placing a litter box outside the cage for play time. If he still continues to pee outside his cage and does not use the litter box then you may have to limit his freedom until he is better with his litter habits.

Clean any spots where he pees outside of the litter box with a vinegar/water mixture. If it is carpet test a small spot first to ensure it will not stain.

 

[J.Bosley]

Thanks for all the advice!

I can't wait to put some of it into action Hopefully Edgar gets better with his litter habits, as I was thinking of allowing him free range of the room because he is going to be so large. And he also doesn't seem to be destructive!

Edgar will be fixed the minute he is old enough! Which is around the 4 month mark, so said my vet. Hopefully this will also help!

 

[Channahs]

Ugh! I just KNEW this was a common issue! Jovi has taken to digging out her litterbox everyday and my son has been removing it, which has created a whole new issue. Now she will hold it while she's in her condo, and as soon as he comes in and lets her out, she jumps up on his couch and pees and poops and pees and poops and pees and poops!!! So it looks like I'll be going out to find some grate and making her a new Stormhaven Litter/Hay System! I think perhaps a dig box is also in order...

 

[2mindless]

I live in a small apartment & my buns cage is in my living area so I don't have space for extra pans etc. I did used to put a spare litter box out on the floor for when he was out but it became a hassle as he started fooling around, hopping in & out & then digging in it & the litter would get scattered [it's a deep dish pan so it has high sides]. I put newspaper under the makeshift litter box but this didn't work after awhile. He wanted to lay on the paper so would nudge the litter box or just tug the paper toward him.

He has been trained for awhile to go in & out of his cage...he would freely go in & out to use his litter box but this has stopped awhile ago. He now poops where he lays...I have been trying to reinforce this is undesirable. He knows not to do it by the expression his face [yes, he has facial expressions]. I give a firm command "NO", but since this only serves to intimidate him or something. He gets anxious & skitters off the moment he's POOPED & I see it. He does immediately flee to his pen & dive in. This more a nuisance than anything & he hasn't ceased pooping on the floor where he's been laying out of "pure" laziness.

My more pressing concern is just the other day he entered into RUTT [like being in heat]. My bun is a 2 yr old male un-neutered. I don't consider neutering an option...The new annoyance is that he's begun urinating outside of his litter box. He's not done this since he's been trained, but last 3 days he is peeing in the shavings near the corner of the box. Prior to my cleaning his pen 3 days ago it was just bare cage for a little while. I didn't put any shavings in for 3 days because I was exasperated with his DIGGING. He was constantly scootching & scratching everything into a HUGE pile. But now since I've put the shavings back in the cage he's not only building MOUNTAINS he's peeing in the shavings. I've begun doing what I did when he was just a kit & litter training...I pick up the urine soaked shavings & put them IN the litter box. This is not PHASING him as he just gets in the litter pan, sniffs the soaked shavings & then gives me a CONTENTED look as though he's PLEASED it's his scent. Good grief...that & the 20 x's a day I now have to sweep the floor of a little bit of gravel cause he digs in his litter box as entertainment. I put a dish pan at the lip of his cage to catch the gravel spray that shoots between the bars of the cage [these open sided cages can be a pain]. I'm usually good at improvising...but I've done everything I can. I used twistie ties & nylon cutting boards attached to the side of the cage to block some of the mess but he can still get minimal scatter.

He's only started all the digging & shredding of his cage all night since fall set in & we no longer go outside. I think I'm gonna go BONKERS with 5 more months of this...he has this circular cloth recycling bag thing I bought that he can bop about, nose in & crawl in & out of...I don't have anything for him to dig...I don't mind he scootches the shavings around in his cage...but it's the roto-tilling in the litter pan that drives me nuts & the new behaviour with MARKING his cage....how do I get back to where we were when he wasn't doing this?onder:

 

[J.Bosley]

This litterbox was a life saver!
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12602763&lmdn=Brand&f=PAD/psNotAvailInCA/No

Edgar is now beautifully litter trained :hearts: