I have a rabbit that I resuced from a shelter about 2 months ago. Her previous family did not keep her in a cage and she does very well in the house without one. She has never chewed or destroyed anything. The problem I have is with litter training. She seems to have problems grasping the concept and I am very tired of steam cleaning my carpet. Can anyone please give me suggestions or websites I can go to for answers. Getting rid of her is not an option, she's mine regardless of what she does wrong. She tends to panic and get stressed very easily when confined to a cage or any other small space. I just don't know what to do. Thank you in advance for you input and advice.
2007-06-08 15:17:25 · 8 answers · asked by 000000 2 in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
I just want to add a couple more things. She doesn't ever go in the same spot although it is usually in the general vicinity of the litter box. Sometimes she poops in the litter box and then hops out to pee and sometimes she pees in the litter box and hops out to poop. Does she want 2 litter boxes?
2007-06-08 15:51:42 · update #1
First of all make sure your bunny is fixed! Even older bunnies respond well to this. Your bunny does need something she identifies as a den or borrow to establish a dropping area. The cage works for this as not only will the bunny learn where to go but you will have a slide out tray to make clean up easier. I like to use coarse chopped corn cobs for bedding. First you must temporarily save an area of the house preferably with tile for your bunny such as an office(make sure your computer cords are out of the way!) or 3 season room. As much as she will initially hate this, keep her in the cage for a couple of days in this room. You should see her beginning to use a corner. Make sure not to clean the cage for a couple of days. She needs the scent of her own mound to establish where her potty is. Then for brief periods, an hour or so, allow her to come out and have hop time. Keep a jug of vinegar ready for if she marks, immediately clean it up. To make re entering the cage less traumatic, close the door after she hops in for a bite of food or drink. Gradually increase her hop time in this room exclusively. Let this go on for a couple of months till she is well established where her potty is. You should notice a huge change in her dropping behavior! Now she's ready for the next level. Close off all the doors and put up childproof gates in her "hot" areas, places she likes to hide and mark (like under the bed, etc). Allow her gradual time out for a hop. Again, keep it short! Close the door up without grabbing her by noticing when she's reentering for a bite of food or even a potty break! Congratulate her with a piece of carrot for potty breaks in her cage with the door closed. If she spots make sure you clean it up immediately with vinegar. Tough odors can also come out with hydrogen peroxide. If bunny smells these spots while she's out you'll undue all of her training! Some folks like to keep multiple litter boxes about the room. Again, you would need to train her how to use these in her bunny room. Once she shows starts making mini mounds in them, leave it so she has the scent then move it to an area in the big house. Place a treat inside the box so she may be rewarded for her actions. This is a lot of work but is well worth the effort!
2007-06-08 15:48:37 · answer #1 · answered by Pastor Gordon Blossom's Special Kind of Love Child 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I admire you for keeping her regardless! That says a lot about your character. :) I would just recommend the same type of training for a kitten. Put your bunny in the box after eating and right after she wakes up. **Keep the box clean at all times!** Change the type of litter (maybe she doesn't like the feel of it on her feet). Encourage her to go in the box by giving her treats. Never punish her after a mistake (you don't sound like you would, though.) And keep the box away from sleeping and eating areas. If this doesn't work, you might want to buy/build a nice large hutch (maybe she won't get nervous in a large hutch?) to keep outside on a shady porch. Good luck!!!
2007-06-08 15:23:41 · answer #2 · answered by Katiecat 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
pretty much you are stuck.
Rabbits either get the idea about litter training... or they don't. There's not much middle ground.
But by controlling WHEN the rabbit is fed and watered... you can pretty well control when the rabbit will need to go... So you can confine the rabbit at the appropriate time(s) every day.
2007-06-08 15:22:15 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Have you tried a litter box and when it is clean and fresh take some of her droppings and put them in the litter and set her in there? When she smells it it should encourage her to use it
2007-06-08 15:23:42 · answer #4 · answered by sego lily 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Much to the surprise of some people, rabbits can be easily trained to use a litter tray, sometimes with more reliability than your average cat!"
http://www.apbc.org.uk/article7.htm
All you'll need to know about litter training a rabbit.
2007-06-08 15:21:12 · answer #5 · answered by margecutter 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
i think i have to start with a question for you... does she go to the bathroom is the same place every time? if so put paper down where she goes and that should at least help with the mess good luck my rabbits poop everywhere if i let them out lol have fun
2007-06-08 15:36:26 · answer #6 · answered by lil_kitty_0879 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
fence her in a little hall or something and with no top and put a fence up on both sides or close a door and put a gate/fence on the other side then put a litter box down
2007-06-08 15:20:52 · answer #7 · answered by doll 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The House Rabbit Society is www.rabbit.org and has some excellent info.
2007-06-08 15:32:57 · answer #8 · answered by KimbeeJ 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋