Sassy bunny!

[Kim1218]

My rabbit, Shadow, used to be terrible about peeing on our couch. First the old one, then the new one. After a while, and lots of shooing her off, she seemed to stop. She hadn't peed on the couch in several months, and we got to the point that we could trust her to come up and sit by us or lay across the back of the couch (her "throne").

When she did used to pee on the couch we could usually tell when she was going to start because she'd kind of sniff out a spot and sit there a second before she started to go. Well, last night she jumped up by me and started peeing on my foot - Iwas sitting up withmy feet to my side. I think she must have started before she was completely landed on the couch because she started so quickly. What's up with this behavior? I can only guess that she's mad at me for something, but I have no idea what it could be. Her eating/drinking/litter habits haven't changed to indicate any medical issue.


ETA - She's 2 years old this month, and was spayed about 15 months ago.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Well, with ours it was all about territory. Neutering stopped the urination behavior.

 

[I_heart_Fraggles]

It did say she was spayed. Fraggles used to pee on the couch too. I have heard it has something to do with it smelling like people so much. Fraggles is not allowed on the couch anymore.

 

[juliew19673]

Sounds territorial.. I have Gabby that at the shelter where I got her from and from where I volunteered for a year before I took her in - she was SO clean with her potty box; pooing; she had the BEST CAGE EVER to clean, dream bunny.

After bringing her home to mine and bonding her to my boy Baxter! she is the WORST with bathroom behaviour. Its all, territorial as she is now the excepted ALPHA bun/animal.

I've thought that maybe I should limit her access to the house (along with her bonded BF) and maybe this would cut down on the peeing in corners, etc. Haven't done it yet, but might as I want/need new carpet.

Not sure if this is advice or "tell me what you figure out" lol! Wishing you the BEST of luck (and let me know how it goes)..

 

[Kim1218]

I'm thinking it's probably territorial, too, so I've decided to not try to keep her off the couch. If it smells like her (fur, body, etc, NOT pee), maybe she won't do it any more. Maybe that spot, or even my foot, smelled repulsive to her and she needed to make it smell "right". I think she might get angry and try to pee on it more if I don't allow her up. Maybe that's more of my "mom" mentality than anything, but it's just not practical for us to constantly shoo her off. She hasn't done it again...yet. I'm thinking she was just in a sassy/spunky mood that day.
Something else that occurred to me - I'm wondering if that spot may have smelled like another rabbit. A few weeks ago I was holding the bunnies at the pet store, and when Shadow smelled them on my shirt at home she promptly pooped all over me. It's possible that I laid down on the couch that day and the smell got on it. Maybe she just noticed it later? I have a small carpet cleaner with an attachment for furniture, so it's not the end of the world if I have to use it once in a while. It doesn't seem like she's paying any attention to that spot anymore.