Literbox trained but still leaving pills...

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BINKYBUNNY FORUMS

This topic has 7sd replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 11 months ago by jerseygirl.

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- 04/07/2011 at 2:37 AM
  Eva_M
  Participant
  51 posts
  I’m new at this forum and firstly I wanted to say hi to everyone and that I found some very useful information on this site.
  
  I have a question about my little girl Eva who’s now a five month old spayed bunny. She has a wonderful personality and is a very cuddly bunny – at times I spend hours rubbing her cheeks and tummy while she lies in my lap with feet straight in the air.
  
  When I’m home she’s outside her pen regularly and has a litter box in our bathroom in which she goes to urinate – she even prefers this one over the one in the cage and I only rarely see that she urinated in the cage litter box. Our problem are the little pills she like to leave around. If in the bathroom she will pee and then jump out and make little piles of feces on the floor. Not that she never leaves them in the box, she just likes to add a bit on the floor too. Another issue, which is my main concern since my husband is going nuts, is that the minute she jumps on the sofa or beds she leaves pills behind her.
  
  Any advice would be greatly appreciated since I really want to bring a boy for her so that she isn’t alone all the time but I first need to convince my husband that they can be taught to go just in the box. Mishaps are of course allowed but this is a regular deal with us.
  
  Apologies if a similar question is answered before, I just couldn’t find it.
  
  And if something seems a bit off to you, English is not my mother tongue so on that part apologies too.
- 04/07/2011 at 4:58 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  Some rabbits do this to mark their territory. Since she’s peeing in the box and only leaving an occasional poop, that is still considered littertrained. Was she recently spayed?
  
  Does your husband realize that if you were to bring home a second rabbit, litter habits would go out the door during the bonding process also since both buns would start trying to mark territory against the other. You could be facing a couple months of neither bunny using the box 100%
- 04/08/2011 at 1:21 AM
  Eva_M
  Participant
  51 posts
  Hi, yes she was spayed a little less than a month ago.
  
  I know that bringing a new bunny in the same territory will cause turbulence until things settle into their routine. And my husband is a reasonable person who’s learned to tolerate my sometimes a bit excessive love for all animals as I did his for plants. 🙂 He eventually always gives under the pressure but it’s different if I “present my case” with explanation that this marking is temporary or if he’s going to have to watch out for presents on the sofa for the next 10 to 15 years 🙂
  
  How long do they feel the need to mark their territory when alone? I even left pills a couple of times all over the floor as she left them and brought in her rug from the cage to leave a scent but she still prefers to place them all around the bathroom. Only time I see different behavior is when I sit with her in the bathroom – then she sits in her box for as long as I’m sitting still and does her business there. The moment I get up she jumps and follows me. This is ok but I can’t babysit her each time she decides to poop 🙂
- 04/08/2011 at 3:23 AM
  Beka27
  Participant
  16016 posts
  If the bathroom is a trigger zone, you might want to limit her access to it. As far as dropping occasional poops, some rabbits always do it. If pee is 100% and poops are 90%, this is really good and should be tolerable (in my opinion). Fortunately, rabbits poops are dry pebbles (not icky like dog/cat droppings!)
- 04/08/2011 at 5:09 AM
  Eva_M
  Participant
  51 posts
  Thank you for your answer It’s not actually the bathroom I’m concerned about, more the beds and living room sofa. I’ll try stopping her from jumping on them, although I think this will be a real challenge. I thought if I let her she’ll stop after a while when she marks the area but it’s too tempting for her 🙂
- 04/08/2011 at 11:11 PM
  jerseygirl
  Moderator
  22356 posts
  Welcome! I really like your bunnies name!
  
  Sofas and beds are problem areas even for long-term neutered rabbits. Your best bet is probably not allowing her up there.
  
  at times I spend hours rubbing her cheeks and tummy while she lies in my lap with feet straight in the air.
  
  Do be careful doing this. They actually go into a sort of trance when positioned like this. It’s unknown if it is actually bad for them or not. I myself am not convinced either way if it’s good or bad. But I do know that when they come out of trance-like state quickly they can jump up awkwardly and are more likely to injure themselves. Actually, my rabbit has an injury from just days ago and this was just from holding her right way up and when I positioned to let her go she somehow hurt her leg. It can happen so easily. It is useful to put them on their backs when you need to check them over, trim nails, clean scent glands but this is only for a short period and you hold them securely.
  Your bunny sounds like the kind than might stay on your lap (paws down) for a massage if you’re lucky!
- 04/11/2011 at 1:05 AM
  Eva_M
  Participant
  51 posts
  Thanks a lot for your advice I actually tried looking for answers on this a while ago but could not find anything that would relate. I noticed that when lying on her back she look completely unaware of her surroundings (even when our dog came and sniffed her head ) but I eventually took it as unusual, but pleasant for her
  Just to explain, I do not roll her on her back except when clipping her nails or checking her tummy (spay scars), she has a procedure she repeats regularly
  1. she jumps in my lap and sits with her legs under her, head down, rear end up and lets me stroke her back
  2. Then she slowly starts stretching and ends up on her side completely stretched out – only when I’m lying so that she has space to do so
  3. If I put my finger under her front legs (armpit) and massage her there she just rolls on the back and brings her feet in the air – if she has a hold (if my body is slightly elevated with pillows) she stretches her hind legs also looks pretty ridiculous
  All this is interrupted from time to time with her licking my hand
  
  I usually bring her from her “coma” by rolling her gently on her feet again but I really don’t want to do something that will cause injury so we will avoid this from now on…
  
  Thanks again!
- 04/11/2011 at 6:25 PM
  jerseygirl
  Moderator
  22356 posts
  Wow. That sounds pretty darn cute! Maybe you’ve found some accupressure point or something. It almost sounds like she goes into a “flop-mode”. When they flop themselves onto the side or back, they can zone out then also you may have noticed.
  
  If this is something you & her have as routine, then I’m sure you know what to expect with her. My caution was more for those times we put them on their (i.e. for nails etc). Those times they are less willing and escape at first opportunity!
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