Newbie Owner Cage Maintenance Question

[BunnyAlly]

Hi folks! I can’t tell you how pleased I am to be here. We have been planning our entrance into bunny ownership for over 4 months now and I’m pleased to say we recently brought home two of the sweetest buns you ever saw. I have always been an animal person and my son follows in my footsteps, but in a twist of cruel irony he is allergic to both dogs and some varieties of cats. We researched for a long time (and did a lot of allergy and exposure testing) before deciding to bring rabbits into our home. I feel like I have a weight off my shoulders now that I finally have some furry friends back in my house and thus far everyone is doing fantastic.

Ok so, gushing introductions aside, here is the meat of my question…

Preparing for bunny ownership, I read about the importance of not bodily removing them from their cage. I thought that made absolutely perfect sense and resolved never to do so. HOWEVER, once I got them home and placed them into the palatial 1.60 meter long cage, there was an explosion of pee and poop that I was unprepared for. In addition to that because of my son’s allergies I really need to be diligent about getting up stray hay and that sort of thing. 

I realize that the first night was largely marking. I had to clean it so I got them out and put them in their carrier to do a thorough cleaning. The next day was much the same. On the third day I made a few adjustments (bigger pan and a base of yesterday’s news) and since then we’ve had some great success in litter training. Peepee is nearing 100% with a few accidents on their blanket which is the far end of the cage under their house. Poops are also more than half in box now. I’m totally happy. 

The second time I HAD to remove them to clean I put them on the floor, and as soon as I did so they started exploring the bunny room. Already on that first night they seemed to master getting in and out again and I thought OK great I’ll never have to bodily get them out again. This has not proved to be the case. Since then I think we have had a little bit of a setback in their comfort level while out and I have no doubt this is because I have had to reach into their cage. I have tried removing them then cleaning, and tried doing touchups while they were already inside their house. If the good litterbox trend continues I will hopefully be able to extend the time between having to mess with their environment, but I at least have to get their fresh hay on their box.  

So my question is, does anyone have any tips to soften my “invasions” until they finally start hopping out on their own and letting me get down to some serious bunny cleaning? Is taking them out better or reaching in while they are already in house better? All pearls of bunny wisdom are welcome.  

[ArvadaLanee]

I am very new to owning a bunny. We got ours just a few day ago, so I don’t know if this is helpful, but I thought I’d share just in case. Happy comes out on her own without an issue, but at times, getting her to go back in is not so easy. I never wanted to pick her up and force her, so I use treats to tempt her slowly up her ramp. I use little bits of kale, which seems to be a favorite of hers, or even a blueberry. Maybe you could leave a little trail of the bunnies favorite foods down the ramp, and then close the door behind them? Just a thought.
Congratulations on your new bunnies! I’m glad you were able to find a pet that won’t make your son uncomfortable. Sharing the love of a pet is so amazing. I have 3 boys who all love animals just like me. My oldest son is the one who got our bunny for me as a gift.

[BunnyAlly]

Thank you so much for you response! I’m kind of embarrassed but in the like hour since I wrote this I finally had success in getting them to come out on their own. The key was I had to leave the room first. I’m not too keen on them being out unsupervised right now because we’re still in the process of bunny proofing the room (and learning how to bunny proof in general really.) I kept checking on them and when I saw they finally came out I slipped in, cleaned the stray poops and added their new hay then lay on the floor and we had some nice time together. I got my first bunny nose bumps on my arms and hand, yay!

Mine are currently really enjoying going in and out of their cage so it isn’t too hard to find a moment when they’re both in to shut the door. I really think that as time progresses and they enjoy being out more that will change, and I will definitely try out your tip. I’ve only had time to introduce two fresh foods at the moment- tiny banana nuggets and we’re on day 2 of arugula (Benni LOVES it.) They’re not very food oriented yet but I think that’ll also change once they get a bit older and I start limiting pellets. They eat a LOT of pellets.

[pinknfwuffy]

Welcome to bunville! So glad to hear you and your son are enjoying those two little munchkins. It can be hard when the rabbits are still getting used to their new space but you want to keep things tidy. Yes, it is good to not “invade” their space too much so they can consider it their own territory, but sometimes it is necessary.

I agree above with a treat or toy lure, at lease temporarily until they get used to coming out on their own. Also, consider the time of day. Rabbits are usually most active early mornings and around sundown, so I usually have more success getting my bun to hop out on his own when he is in an active, playful mood than in the middle of the day when he wants to snooze. Alternatively, some rabbits are pretty apathetic towards human tidying up while they are napping so maybe try both ways and see what works best for your buns.

Also, if your rabbits are very young and/or unfixed, it will all be much easier once they are neutered or spayed. A few weeks afterwards you’ll see a remarkable difference in clean habits and any territorial bahavior. Until then I would suggest distractions (treats, dinnertime) are the best way to get in and clean up while they’re busy. I will give my guy his greens and sweep up his pen while he’s busy munching.

I am slowly increasing my rabbits freedom as well and found that he had some litter training regression if I let him have too much space too soon. Sometimes they forget to go back into the cage to use the box or are too distracted to know that is the right thing to do. It might help to attach a pen to their cage so they can explore but not be overwhelmed by the abundance of freedom.

Good luck!

[Author]

Messages