BUNNY SMELLS

[MyPets101]

 Pipin is a male holland lop. I got him neutered when he was 7 months old, and now hes 14 months old. I change his litter box 2 times a day, I use horse stall pellets in it, and wash it with soap, water, and a scrub brush once or twice a week. I have a corner litter box without wires. I know for sure that he’s not peeing somewhere else in his cage other than his litter box. I give him a small pet dry shampoo bath once a week so that he doesn’t smell. He’s never around a girl bunny. It’s kind of a spicy pee smell. My mom might make me get rid of him because he smells so bad and I can’t figure out how to keep the smell down. Help!

[sarahthegemini]

What exactly does a dry shampoo bath entail?

I’ve never known either of my rabbits to smell. Their pee smells sure, but not them themselves :-/ Getting rid of him just because he smells seems a tad harsh tbh.

[joea64]

Have you tried using a different kind of litter? You might be using a brand that doesn’t have good odor absorption. If you’re in the U.S., I suggest trying Carefresh, which is very good at soaking up both urine and odors. I only ever smell the characteristic urinal odor (which, as you note, has a spicy tinge to it) when I empty out the litterbox. Healthy rabbits don’t have an unpleasant odor otherwise; they do have a characteristic smell to their fur which I can only define as “rabbity”, but, to me anyway, it’s quite light and pleasant and in fact I’ve come to enjoy it when I give one of my buns a nose boop on the forehead.

[MyPets101]

The dry shampoo bath is Kaytee Small Pet dry shampoo spray, and brushing him. It’s mainly his litterbox that smells. But I take really good care of his litterbox. The smells getting so bad that i can’t sleep in my room anymore because of it, so I’d really like to figure out the smell

[MyPets101]

Posted By joea64 on 10/30/2017 1:31 PM

Have you tried using a different kind of litter? You might be using a brand that doesn’t have good odor absorption. If you’re in the U.S., I suggest trying Carefresh, which is very good at soaking up both urine and odors. I only ever smell the characteristic urinal odor (which, as you note, has a spicy tinge to it) when I empty out the litterbox. Healthy rabbits don’t have an unpleasant odor otherwise; they do have a characteristic smell to their fur which I can only define as “rabbity”, but, to me anyway, it’s quite light and pleasant and in fact I’ve come to enjoy it when I give one of my buns a nose boop on the forehead.

I use regular horse stall pellets as litter. I think I’ll try a different litter. I am in the US, do you think I should try carefresh or Kaytee Critter Litter? Pipin has a good rabbity smell on the back of his neck that I enjoy, but the pee smell I don’t.

[sarahthegemini]

Hmm. Are you sure he’s’s not peeing elsewhere? I have two buns and change their litter trays once a day. Yours must be really clean if you change it twice for just one bun. Is the litter tray small? I ask because you mentioned it’s ask corner tray and those can sometimes be a little small so perhaps he is peeing elsewhere?

[sarahthegemini]

Oh in regards to carefresh vs stall pellets – I would stick with the stall pellets. I used to use carefresh and it does a good job at absorbing but it isn’t as good at keeping smells down. Pellets do a much better job in my experience.

[Wick & Fable]

If you put a splash of -apple cider vinegar with the mother- in his water, his urine odor will be neutralized. This will reduce the smell. Make sure its apple cider vinegar RAW, WITH THE MOTHER. It’ll have floaty stuff in it, which is fine. It’s healthy bacteria to have in his stomach.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[Mikey]

I would stop with the shampoo thing. Rabbits have special oils in their fur to keep their fur and skin safe and scent free. The shampoo stuff can very much be reacting badly to his natural oils and can be harmful to his health.

As for the smell, my Bombur has horrible smelling pee. It was more obvious of a smell in a smaller litter box. After getting an XL cat litter box and cleaning it once a day, I cant smell it any more. Every time I clean it, I cut a lime or lemon and use one half to wipe down the litter box. The lime/lemon really helps a lot with the smell stuck in the box

[Ellie from The Netherlands]

I wonder: could his anal scent glands have anything to do with the smell problem? Not an expert on these, do others have experience with it?

[MyPets101]

I was wondering about the Kaytee Critter Litter, for all small pets. Has anyone tried this?

[MyPets101]

Posted By sarahthegemini on 10/30/2017 2:04 PM

Hmm. Are you sure he’s’s not peeing elsewhere? I have two buns and change their litter trays once a day. Yours must be really clean if you change it twice for just one bun. Is the litter tray small? I ask because you mentioned it’s ask corner tray and those can sometimes be a little small so perhaps he is peeing elsewhere?

 I check everyday to see if there’s pee anywhere else, and I don’t see it. So I dont think he’s doing that. Pipin weighs 2 pounds and has a jumbo corner litter box that doesnt have wire over it, its 7×10 I think, is that to small?

[MyPets101]

Posted By Wick on 10/30/2017 2:16 PM

If you put a splash of -apple cider vinegar with the mother- in his water, his urine odor will be neutralized. This will reduce the smell. Make sure its apple cider vinegar RAW, WITH THE MOTHER. It’ll have floaty stuff in it, which is fine. It’s healthy bacteria to have in his stomach.

Ok, thank you, I’ll have to try this out!

[sarahthegemini]

Posted By PolkaDotPets on 10/30/2017 7:24 PM

Posted By sarahthegemini on 10/30/2017 2:04 PM

Hmm. Are you sure he’s’s not peeing elsewhere? I have two buns and change their litter trays once a day. Yours must be really clean if you change it twice for just one bun. Is the litter tray small? I ask because you mentioned it’s ask corner tray and those can sometimes be a little small so perhaps he is peeing elsewhere?

 I check everyday to see if there’s pee anywhere else, and I don’t see it. So I dont think he’s doing that. Pipin weighs 2 pounds and has a jumbo corner litter box that doesnt have wire over it, its 7×10 I think, is that to small?

It sounds gross but have you tried the ‘felt and smelt’ method for detecting pee? If you feel the carpet, smell your hand afterwards. I’ve had to use that technique myself – even if the pee has dried, you should be able to smell it on your hand. Sorry, I don’t mean to question you so much about this, it’s just a mystery to me!

Bunnies do tend to prefer larger litter boxes so they can get comfy. I use large rectangular cat litter boxes for mine so I would try upgrading to something slightly bigger

[MyPets101]

Posted By sarahthegemini on 10/30/2017 7:53 PM

Posted By PolkaDotPets on 10/30/2017 7:24 PM

Posted By sarahthegemini on 10/30/2017 2:04 PM

Hmm. Are you sure he’s’s not peeing elsewhere? I have two buns and change their litter trays once a day. Yours must be really clean if you change it twice for just one bun. Is the litter tray small? I ask because you mentioned it’s ask corner tray and those can sometimes be a little small so perhaps he is peeing elsewhere?

 I check everyday to see if there’s pee anywhere else, and I don’t see it. So I dont think he’s doing that. Pipin weighs 2 pounds and has a jumbo corner litter box that doesnt have wire over it, its 7×10 I think, is that to small?

It sounds gross but have you tried the ‘felt and smelt’ method for detecting pee? If you feel the carpet, smell your hand afterwards. I’ve had to use that technique myself – even if the pee has dried, you should be able to smell it on your hand. Sorry, I don’t mean to question you so much about this, it’s just a mystery to me!

Bunnies do tend to prefer larger litter boxes so they can get comfy. I use large rectangular cat litter boxes for mine so I would try upgrading to something slightly bigger

Ok, I felt the floor of his cage and I don’t smell anything Ok, I think he might like his litter box ok, he does bunny flops in it and doesn’t stick out I know that sounds gross because its a litter box but oh well he likes doing that Does that sound big enough?

[sarahthegemini]

If it’s big enough to flop, it’s big enough Mine used to like flopping in their litter trays too! Silly animals.

Just noticed Ellie mentioned anal scent glands. Could it be that?

[Mikey]

Agreeing that his scent glands might be clogged. When any of my three have clogged scent glands, the smell fills the room where they are otherwise scentless. You can check their scent glands by tipping them onto their back for a quick second (make sure the bunny is secure and not wiggling). If right by their crotch you see black spots, it means the scent glands are clogged. You can remove them yourself (recommending: How To Cast, the video about rabbit scent glands) or take your bun to a vet to have them removed.

[sarahthegemini]

Are blocked scent glands a common problem?

[joea64]

Posted By sarahthegemini on 10/31/2017 2:20 PM

Are blocked scent glands a common problem?

I rather hope not.  My own two don’t have that issue…yet. *knocks wood* One more thing to consult with the vet about Saturday morning.

[Wick & Fable]

For a typical rabbit who does a good job with grooming, it’s never really a problem I hear. As Mary Cotter says, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[jerseygirl]

PolkaDotPets, you mention spicy pee smell. It made me wonder if perhaps it’s the poop, not the pee that is producing a smell. Rabbit poop doesn’t normally smell but when a rabbit does territorial poops, there is a slight sheen on them that causes a smell. Lots of people think it smells like corn chips or frajitas.

For scent glands, Ive heard it described as a burnt coffee smell, but this is more from when a rabbit opens the glands when they have the tail really high and are reacting to another rabbit. Not so much that smell from the waxy stuff that sometimes needs to be cleaned out from the glands. Not sure how to describe that smell but it’s potent!

Spicy also made me think of some woods. Are the wood pellets you’re currently using different to ones you’ve had before?

A new litter box as mentioned is worth a go. Sometimes the plastic of well used one harbours a smell and it can become strong each time it becomes wet.

If all the things mentioned to try solve this issue do not help, I suggest you get Pipin checked out by a vet to rule out urinary infection.

[MyPets101]

Thanks everyone! I’ll be sure to check that, I’ll let you all know how it goes tomorrow!

[MyPets101]

Ok everyone, so Pipin did have the scent gland issue, so I cleaned him out BUT it leaked or something somehow onto his fur, and matted his butt fur really bad. I’ve tried brushing and cutting the mats off, but it won’t work. We’re thinking of shaving the mats off, would that be ok? Also, cleaning them out didn’t make the smell go away. I think I’ll do a full cage clean out when the new litter gets here. I’m also going to try a litter box with a wire on it, so that he wont be sitting on/in his pee, making him smell bad too.

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