Territorial pooping and stage fright

[indianavex]

Hey guys, I have a couple of questions!

My bun Cassie is incredibly shy and doesn't come out of her cage often or for very long. She's bonded pretty well to me, buy she appears to only want to hop out of the cage if I'm on the opposite side of the room or in another room entirely and forgot I'd left her cage door open. This is kind of annoying because no matter how hard I try, it's very difficult to get her to come out with me around unless I have some kind of super desirable treat bribe, and even then if I try to touch her at all, she hops away and hides in her cage again.

But today while I was across the room pulling out winter clothes, she left me a nice trio of poops in the middle of my carpet, plain as day. I chased her back into the cage (re: walked over and stood nearby, she did the rest), put the offending poops into her cage with her, and closed her door. I don't want to scare her off from coming out of the cage and I don't want to make this a battle of territory so the behavior only gets worse... so what do I do to discourage the pooping without making things worse?

 

[Blue eyes]

Don't worry about the poos. Seriously. That's just marking her roaming territory so I'd let her be. They're easy enough to sweep up later. It's better to let her come out and feel comfortable doing so.

Have you tried just ignoring her? When her cage is open, grab your laptop or a book and just sit down on the floor at her level. Eventually she'll come out and when she does, ignore her. Don't try to touch her or pet her. Let her get comfortable just being near you. Even if she puts her paws on you, don't try to pet her.

Some bunnies take a long time to learn to trust. During these sessions you can even keep a few treats nearby you or even on you to encourage her to come close and to associate you with good things.

 

[indianavex]

Hey! Thanks for replying!

I've tried to be slow about the whole touching her thing. I mostly just lie on the floor playing on my laptop and she sits in her cage watching my every move. On particularly adventurous days or when I have treats is when she'll come over. I know that part takes time. I just wish she weren't so quick to jump out of the cage when she thinks I'm not there or watching!

And as for the poop I'll try to tolerate it, but I'm hugely not a fan of it in the apartment. I have carpet and a dark rug and I really don't want to mash poop into the piling... that and I'm pretty sure my landlord wouldn't be quite so forgiving about it, either.

 

[Blue eyes]

Haha. The poos should be dry & clean so they shouldn't do anything to carpet- even if accidently stepped on. A dust broom will do the trick.

I know it can be frustrating dealing with a shy bunny. I've had a few myself. That's actually what prompted me once to find a companion bun for a shy girl I had. She never did get very affectionate with me, but the boy bun did.

 

[whitelop]

Did you get her from a breeder or a rescue?

I've read and probably commented on your other threads, but you haven't had her for that long right?
She is probably just a shy bun and it will probably take some time for her to get used to you.
I asked where she was from, because if she was from a breeder than she probably wasn't very socialized. She may not be used to people around her that often. If she is from a rescue, then who knows what happened to her in her life to make her shy away from people.
Don't get frustrated with her, just let her be. She'll come around eventually. It may not be on the time frame you want it, but it will happen.
I've had my bun for 3 years and she is still strange to me. There are days when she will come to me and sit in my lap, and then there are days that she won't have anything to do with me if I don't have food.

The poop shouldn't be an issue, sometimes you just have to let them poop it out. That way she'll know its her space and she'll become more comfortable being there. As Suzette said, the poops should be dry and they vacuum or sweep right up.

To be honest, when you followed her back to her cage and stood over her, you probably scared the crap out of her. She probably saw you as a scary predator at that moment in time.

Bunnies are strange animals and sometimes we all need to keep that in mind.

 

[Stormlark]

My bunny Stelio used to be like this, though he's gotten over it for the most part. As whitelop suggested, ignoring her should help. Try lying down on your back and reading a book or something. Just be calm and don't pay attention to her. It might not work the first time you try it, but keep it up and eventually she'll come out and start exploring, even hopping up on top of you. Don't try to pet her just yet. Let her get to the point where she feels safe around you, and try stroking her while giving her treats.

Stelio is still weird about being petted. He loves it when he's in the mood, and won't let you touch him when he's not. He's usually not, but still loves climbing all over us and begging for treats. Some rabbits are more shy than others, but they can still make great pets.

As for the poo, you'll just have to get used to it. It should be dry and clean (unless the bunny is sick), and has never stained our carpet. In the beginning, Stelio would leave a lot of droppings whenever he was out of his cage, but he really doesn't do that anymore. He hops back inside his cage to use the litter box, then returns to hang out some more. It seems to be a territorial thing, because having other rabbits in the house makes him leave droppings everywhere again.

 

[agnesthelion]

I remember your other thread. And yes, ignoring and time and patience are a definetely must.

Do NOT chase her back into her cage when she does that! You don't want to take 2 steps forward and 5 steps back,

As others have said, she is probably marking her territory, which will eventually stop. It was probably a good thing! She finally saw the outside of her cage and something she wanted to be "hers" and then you chased her back.

I agree to try get used to poops. Honestly, there are very few rabbits out there who are totally perfect with their litterbox with poop. Pee yes, but it's pretty common for poops here and there.

Poops are dry and odorless so I don't think it will effect your carpet or upset your landlord if kept picked up.

 

[Nancy McClelland]

Urine is the real problem. The poo can be cleaned up easily with a shop vac. We've only had one out of 27 that did everything in her hutch and she was our most "territorial" bunny.

 

[indianavex]

Hey guys, excuse any weird typos you might see, I'm responding on my phone since I'm at work!

Thank you all for replying. I'll learn to get over the poop then. It's always been easy to clean, but I'm just not a huge fan. But with animals you learn to pick your battles! Also i feel the need to clarify something, Cassie wasn't terrified then because all I did was walk over talking to her, no hovering or menacing, I promise! She heard and saw me the whole time and is used to seeing me standing, as her cage is on the floor in my bedroom and low. It's just human = cage right now. But once inside she turned back around and watched me. When I offered a hand, she pushe her head against it to be petted. Believe me, I know when she's scared! She's shy, but when startled/afraid she goes straight under her hide and thumps a couple times. If I thought I'd really scares her, I would've immediately gone in to comfort her.

I'm glad to see you're all concerned about that though!