Rabbit peeing on bed

[Cati]

Hey all,

Looking for some tips on how to train Rune to stop peeing on a bed. He's otherwise very well litter-trained, his one problem is this one particular bed that he and my cats hang out on while I'm on the computer. No humans sleep in the bed or anything, it's just the cats and the rabbit. It's a twin bed with a couple of blankets and cat beds on it, and Rune keeps peeing on the blankets and cat beds -- doesn't do it to any other bed, just this one. Part of the problem I think is because I encouraged him to hang out on the bed before he was fixed (he was fixed last month) and reliable about this sort of thing, so now I think he's just confused.

So yeah, any suggestions to get him to break the habit? I've been washing all the sheets, blankets, etc. and treated them with both Nature's Miracle cage cleaner and the cat enzyme cleaner, and I've also covered the bed in washable puppy pads to protect it against accidents. Do I need to do more to get rid of the scent or to convince him not to go there? Should I perhaps go as far as replacing all the sheets and cat beds to get rid of any remaining scent?

I'd really prefer to not forbid him from being on the bed entirely because I enjoy hanging out with him there, and I don't really have any good ideas of how I'd stop him from getting up there anyway.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Sounds like a territory issue--the only way to stop is to not let him use it. The other remedy might be a blanket/cover and a plastic tarp under it so nothing can penetrate.

 

[Cati]

Darn, any chance he might be less territorial if I wait a bit longer for the hormones to get out of his system? It's been about a month.

When I check him peeing, is there something I can do to discourage him from doing it again? I'm not sure what (if anything) rabbits would respond to. I know about making high pitched sounds if he hurts me, but would that help with peeing issues?

 

[JBun]

If it's only been a month since his neuter, yes it is possible given a few more weeks for hormones to fade, that he'll be less inclined to do territorial marking. But some rabbits will want to pee on soft things regardless of hormones. Especially something like a pet bed shared with other animals where their scent is all over it. You could try putting a small blanket with your rabbits scent on it, on the bed to see if that stops the behavior. And a litter box for your rabbit next to the bed, so if your rabbit has to pee then he doesn't have far to go. And there are some other tips in the link below. Otherwise, you may need to restrict access, cover with a waterproof barrier, or just wash the bed frequently if you don't want to stop him from having access.

https://bunnyproof.com/stop-bunny-peeing-bed.html

 

[Ryes]

We had our 6 1/2 month old buck neutered about 2 1/2 months ago. He began jumping up on our bed three days ago. He began by mostly hopping around a little, then laying down toward the end of the bed. Until yesterday, he hadn't peed or pooped on it. I noticed that he was becoming more comfortable about roaming around and coming up to my wife and I while we were laying down watching TV. The first time, last night, I didn't realize he was peeing until he moved. After the third time (just small spots) and several poops, I put him back in his pen and litter box.

Reading the article that @JBun provided has given me some ideas. I'm going to start with putting his towel on the bed and keeping the pee scent cleaned. I hope it doesn't come to a plastic sheet and velcro! I appreciate all the experience on this forum.

 

[Bunster.love]

Our 4 year old (neutered) male started coming into our bedroom last year at night when we would go to bed & he would lay at the end , but come up for to us for visits and ended up peeing on the bed on two ocassions and we couldn't have that!!.. Likely marking and establishing this was a new area for him. We taught him now to go to his litter box RIGHT before we go to bed....we walk him over, give him a treat in it & wait for him to go. Now he knows to do it himself if we tell him or walk over to it and he hasn't peed since. Maybe (along with the other helpful advice) you can ecourage him to "go" before you sit down on the computer....start to get him used to that idea.

 

[MyGrandbunns]

Our 4 year old (neutered) male started coming into our bedroom last year at night when we would go to bed & he would lay at the end , but come up for to us for visits and ended up peeing on the bed on two ocassions and we couldn't have that!!.. Likely marking and establishing this was a new area for him. We taught him now to go to his litter box RIGHT before we go to bed....we walk him over, give him a treat in it & wait for him to go. Now he knows to do it himself if we tell him or walk over to it and he hasn't peed since. Maybe (along with the other helpful advice) you can ecourage him to "go" before you sit down on the computer....start to get him used to that idea.

aw that is so sweet that your bunn lies at the end of your bed!! my little doggy hogs my bed at night- i would love our bunn to share bed but they are not close to each other sadly.

 

[Cati]

Hey, so follow-up question on this!

It's been a few months and I'm still having the pee problem. He's otherwise been absolutely fantastic every other place in the house, even on other furniture, blankets, and beds. It's only this one particular bed.

Anyway, I am in the process of replacing that bed, mattress, and sheets completely.

Is there any chance he might stop after all of this is replaced, or would he still be interested because he likes the location?

 

[JBun]

It might be he's just reacting to smelling his urine scent embedded in it. So it is possible a new mattress could stop the behavior. But to be safe, I would suggest keeping a waterproof mattress cover on it.