Freedom?

[WildRabbitsRock]

Ok I’m guessing you all know Spirit is a New Zealand rabbit. Female, 4 months old, and NOT spayed. I was thinking about letting her run around in my room for 7 hours while I’m at school. (If my mom doesn’t say that gross and say no lol) So I would need to litter train her of course so what are your thoughts about litter training? And if she was litter trained would she always use the litter box. My mom would get mad if she peed and pooped Aton in a room. You all know how much droppings rabbits can leave in very little time lol. And would it be a good idea to let her stay out? She’s in a 2 story hutch all day that has no run. I do take her out on a leash though so she can eat some clovers and run around some. If I let her stay in my room, what all would I need to do besides litter training her. And are they gonna chew on my stuff, and all the other things rabbits do? Thanks.

[Hazel]

Well, you won’t be able to litter train her until she has been spayed. It’s almost impossible to litter train an intact rabbit, especially if she’s used to going in a hutch rather than a designated litter box. Moving her back and forth from the hutch to your room every day might also confuse her about where her territory is, and thus cause her to feel the need to mark.

It would be best if she could stay in your room or somewhere indoors full time, so that she knows where she belongs and won’t want to mark everywhere. And of course, spaying comes before litter training. Are you going to move her hutch into the basement like you were going to do with the dutch bunnies?

[emm_renn]

My rabbit is also four months old and she has not been fixed yet, but is potty trained (so far). I let her out but only supervised outings only. I realized the hard way that she loves to dig up the carpet and chew the walls.

[WildRabbitsRock]

Ok emm, so your rabbit is like mine! And Hazel, I might be able to if my mom and dad let me. But my room would probably be better if that’s where she would stay all day. Is that right?

[Hazel]

Posted By WildRabbitsRock on 11/05/2014 10:39 AM

Ok emm, so your rabbit is like mine! And Hazel, I might be able to if my mom and dad let me. But my room would probably be better if that’s where she would stay all day. Is that right?

Exactly. Your room would be much more suitable for her to stay in. It’s important to be close to your bunny and spend as much time around them as possible. They are very good at hiding illness and pain, so being able to detect even tiny changes in their behavior is critical so that you know right away if something is “off”.

And like I said, it would be best if she could stay indoors full time, weather in your room or the basement, so that she won’t become confused about where “her” space is. That could lead to territorial marking and you don’t want that, of course.

[WildRabbitsRock]

Ok thank you again The hutch she’s in is a 2 story hutch and the bottom level doesn’t have a bottom. So what could I use to put there so she won’t be getting droppings or pee on my carpet (if on accident, she always does her business at the top) I know my mom would want towels because she might chew them up. I just thought of this now lol but I have some old rugs that I used in my old dog’s cage. If she chewed of them would they hurt her?

[Eepster]

Litter training isn’t the only concern with free roaming bunnies. Chewing through things is usually a much much harder issue to deal with than litter training. Bunnies can get past “”bunny proofing” measures surprisingly fast and usually silently. The speed at which a bunny can chew through every cord on a computer faster than it takes to read this post.

[WildRabbitsRock]

Ok. I only have to cords and in my room and it’s behind my tv stand so she couldn’t get to them. And what about blankets? Like my bed spread…would she chew on that I if put out some cardboard boxes and chew sticks?

[Flopsie]

chewing cords are a concern because they can damage the property and equally importantly, hurt or even kill themsevles. You want to make sure you block off the area completely.

Carpet and rugs are also a concern because they have indigestible fibrous materials that if consumed, can cause blockage, or even wrap up internal organs and such. Can lead to expensive medical bills at best and possibly even serious injury/death.

Having cardboard boxes and chew sticks may not be the solution. This depends on your bunny. I’m sure with some, having alternative chew things is enough. However, for others, they may ignore it. My bunny, for example, has access to a plethora of chew things but she much rather chew on the baseboard, the couch, and my clothes. So sometimes the solution isn’t that easy. But I would imagine this depends on the individual bunny themselves.

[WildRabbitsRock]

Ok thank you. She never jumps on my bed when she’s on the floor so maybe the bed would be ok. And she doesn’t ever chew on the carpet, so hopefully that will be ok also. I’ll have to try it out if my parents say it’s ok.

[Eepster]

I wouldn’t count on her being unable to get behind your TV stand. They can squeeze into very very tight spaces. What looks like their width is mostly fluff. Last month in the picture thread someone posted the funniest video of a bunny going right through the bars of an xpen with barely 2 seconds pause.

[Thump]

Posted By Hazel on 11/04/2014 2:31 PM

Well, you won’t be able to litter train her until she has been spayed. It’s almost impossible to litter train an intact rabbit, especially if she’s used to going in a hutch rather than a designated litter box. Moving her back and forth from the hutch to your room every day might also confuse her about where her territory is, and thus cause her to feel the need to mark.

It would be best if she could stay in your room or somewhere indoors full time, so that she knows where she belongs and won’t want to mark everywhere. And of course, spaying comes before litter training. Are you going to move her hutch into the basement like you were going to do with the dutch bunnies?

What!? Who ever told you that you cant train an intact rabbit? Of course they can be litter trained! It may be harder depending on the rabbit but it isnt impossible and it certainly should not be held off until after surgery. Most prefer to go in one or two spots only and pick up on the litter box in no time. I’ve had a bonded pair of young unspayed females and all I had to do was give them a little box and they were using it by the next day no accidents. In fact, every bunny I’ve ever had has been litter box trained before surgery, some better than others. 

Freedom is always better than a hutch, but it doesnt have to be your entire room at first. You could section off a safe area and secure it with one of those tall wire playpen enclosures. When I first got my New Zealand, I set up an area like that in my room with a sheet of vinyl at the bottom to protect the carpet from all his accidents which he made a lot of. 

[Deleted User]

I can and am only sharing my personal bunny experience with you. Henry was great at using his litter box in HIS house – god forbid he didn’t want to mess his space up! But I am telling you now, as Hazel stated – Henry marked my room like a personal oversized toilet! When he went for his neuter I didn’t miss or worry about him – I was too busy, I had to scrub my WALLS, my furniture, wash all my bedding, and bath the dog’s! He even sprayed in my cup of tea! GASP! Poop? I could have fertilized my whole yard after him spending minutes on my bed. And I can assure you, when Henry turned his back on us, we closed our mouths and grabbed a pillow to protect us for what we knew was going to happen before we had the chance to push him off the bed. Yes, the hubby and I copped bunny pee in our mouths – GROSS! (spit, spit, splutter).

Not every bunny is like this – Eepster is a great example! Her Porky is not neutered and he has never caused her any grief in the toileting department, BUT, a lot of bunnies do! Having Henry neutered solved our issue (and if our vet didn’t charge us so much I would have sent him flowers as a thank you! Lol!) and we no longer have any concerns. Henry lives freely in our home (he doesn’t sleep in his house, he sleeps in our room) and he is such a joy now that we no longer have to cringe every time he spends time with us in bed.

By all means – try litter training your bunny without having it desexed, but if you aren’t lucky enough to own a Porky, you should seriously consider desexing as an alternative to make it easier on your bunny and YOU not having to endure something that may not come naturally to your bun. Your bunny is to be enjoyed, not a burden of stressing over if it’s urges to mark are to overwhelming or it just doesn’t get the gist of using a litter box due to hormones.

I swear, besides my new expensive modem – having Henry neutered was the best money I ever spent!

[WildRabbitsRock]

Thanks Thump and Henry! I was thinking about buying these gate things to put in my room (if my hutch can go in there) and keep the bottom door to the hutch open, that way she can go in and out as she pleases. My friend has these gates and they look like baby gates, but they connect and make a little playpen for a baby but she uses it for her bunny. Thought maybe I could get something like that.

[Hazel]

Posted By Thump on 11/07/2014 4:52 AM

What!? Who ever told you that you cant train an intact rabbit? Of course they can be litter trained! It may be harder depending on the rabbit but it isnt impossible and it certainly should not be held off until after surgery. Most prefer to go in one or two spots only and pick up on the litter box in no time. I’ve had a bonded pair of young unspayed females and all I had to do was give them a little box and they were using it by the next day no accidents. In fact, every bunny I’ve ever had has been litter box trained before surgery, some better than others. 

Freedom is always better than a hutch, but it doesnt have to be your entire room at first. You could section off a safe area and secure it with one of those tall wire playpen enclosures. When I first got my New Zealand, I set up an area like that in my room with a sheet of vinyl at the bottom to protect the carpet from all his accidents which he made a lot of. 

Well I did say “almost” impossible. I guess maybe I wasn’t specific enough in my post. I meant that it’s hard to litter train an intact rabbit in the long term, as in a rabbit that has hit maturity. I didn’t mean that the OP shouldn’t start litter training now. Baby rabbits can be litter trained quite easily, my own bunny Oscar was perfect with his litter box until he hit puberty at around 5-6 months. Then, I had the exact same experience as AndHenry. He was still great inside of his cage, but whenever I let him out, the floor would be covered in pee spots and poop within 10 minutes. He didn’t spray pee in our mouths though, Henry clearly outdid him there! 

Of course there are always exceptions like Porky as AndHenry mentioned, but generally it’s safe to say that most rabbits feel the need to mark their territory when they mature. Some mark very little, some turn into a pee spraying tornado. The OP has just recently decided to let her bunny live indoors, and I want to make sure she knows that a decline in litter box habits during puberty is totally normal and shouldn’t discourage her in this decision.

[WildRabbitsRock]

Ok Hazel And she’s about 4 months old. If a rabbit reaches maturity….does that mean they are full grown also? Cause mine is a New Zealand and she’s still small for her breed right now. I’m trying to look at play pens, and there if one for $10 that is 3 feet diameter….if that to small for a rabbit??

[Author]

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