Litter training

[Nargle]

Is it possible to litter train a rabbit in more than one house? For instance, I visit my mom frequently, and she would really like it if I would bring my future rabbit over to visit, but she's not crazy about the idea of rabbit urine in her carpet. Is there any way that I can make it so that my rabbit will use her litter box even at my mom's house?

What if I bring her litter box to my mom's house, will she recognize her litter box and use it? The cage that I built is really large and is build out of a table and storage cube grids, so it's definitely not portable. Will the litter box alone be enough? Or will I need a second cage at my mom's house? I have a small travel sized carrier that I intend to use to transport my rabbit to my mom's house, should I put the litter box in there?

Any tips or advice you have to offer would be appreciated!

 

[MarisaAndToby]

I moved back to my parents house last summer. Toby was brought with me along with his cage. When we let Toby out for his runs, we kind of just watched him closely and noticed that he tended to pee and mostly poop in one corner. We put a litter box there and poof, 95% of his business is done in there.

I moved back to my own place for school in September, and I have a litter box in Toby's cage and one in a corner he tends to favour when he's let out. We have been back several times to my parents' house and we put a litter box in that same corner and he's still using it without any problems.

If you put one out, she'll likely use it. But if she seems to be favouring a different corner, then put the box there instead. Good luck!

 

[funnybunnymummy]

How long will you be staying at your mom's? If it's just an afternoon, bringinghis litter box (with the litter he's used to), should be just fine. Though we've taken Gus out for the afternoon and he won't use the litter box at all till we get home.

If it's for longer, you may want to get an X-pen (either store bought or built out of grids). When we go away, we often take Gus with us, including his litter box (actually, we take his travel litter box, since it's a bit smaller and more portable than his regular cat-sized box ). At any rate, we've never had a problem with him peeing anywhere but his litter box. We bring his X-pen with us and set that up with all his comforts of home inside and he seems to be just fine with that.

Hope that helps!

Rue

 

[Nargle]

Thank you guys for the advice! When I go visit my mom it's usually only for the morning or the afternoon, or sometimes just to have lunch and visit. Hopefully my future rabbit will be as well potty trained as you guys' rabbits!

By the way I like the xpen idea for longer stays at my mom's house, that way we won't have to buy/build another whole cage which my mom doesn't really have room to store long-term if there won't be a rabbit living there full time. So thanks! :biggrin:

By the way, out of curiosity.. you said that your rabbit holds it until you get back home, how long can rabbits typically hold it? Is it bad for them to go hours without using the litter box?

 

[funnybunnymummy]

I don't actually know how long a rabbit can go without having to pee, but when we take Gus to my dad's (an 8-9 hour trip from here), he holds it the whole way! However, if you canget your future rabbit to use the litter box at your mom's place, I'd recommend doing that. I'm sure, much like humans, holding their pee for too long on a regular basis can't be good for them.

Hope that helps!

Rue

 

[Nargle]

Oh yeah, I definitely intend on trying to get her to use the litter box at my mom's house! It's just that if she decides to hold it I want to be sure that she's not making herself sick or something. I actually wasn't aware that rabbits will hold it for that long! I used to have rats and mice when I was a kid and from what I remember they would just kind of dribble all over the place, lol!

 

[MarisaAndToby]

Generally they won't do their business if they feel uncomfortable. Toby won't pee or poop while we're driving somewhere, and he won't do it at the vets or if he's being held. But at my house or at my parents' house... Fair game

 

[elrohwen]

My rabbits have been to a number of houses (friends for pet sitting, our parents during holidays) and remain perfectly litter trained in the new situations. They've been using a litter box long enough to understand that it applies in new situations. I just travel with an xpen, not their entire cage plus flooring, and they don't have a problem.

As for how long they can hold it, I've seen Otto come into the living room for up to 12 hours at a time and never bother to go back to his cage and use the litter box (and he's never had an accident in the living room). That little guy can hold it forever! I think most buns prefer to go more often, but I'm sure they could hold it if they really wanted (they might not want to).