Bunny weeing on husband

[PoppiesinJuly]

My bunny, Sebastian, is just over 3 months old. 

He lives in a pen in our front room, but when we are in there we open it up and let him come to us if he wants to. He’s very friendly and affectionate, he’ll spend a long time licking us and sometimes nudges me for a head rub. Up until now he has been happily using his litter tray; without fail for wee, but he sometimes poos around his hay box. When he’s out and about, he runs home to use it.

However, for the last few days he’s been weeing on my husband. We thought at first that he’d just got confused or was too comfortable where he was to go home. Last night, I was stroking him, he jumped onto my husband, weed and jumped straight off to finish getting his head rubbed. It’s as though he’s identified him as his ‘out of the pen’ litter box.

So, obviously, we’d like Sebastian to stop using a person for a toilet! I’m not sure how to positively reinforce using the litter box and discourage using the man. Sebastian eats hay and pellets, we’re very slowly introducing fresh veg in very small portions so I’m not sure giving treats when he’s in the litter tray is a possibility (or even advisable). We don’t want to stop him coming out of the pen or hanging out on the sofa with us in the evening as we’d lose the lovely bond that’s developing.

I assume that Sebastian is approaching sexual maturity (he’s started smelling a bit musty). He’s unneutered and, as he’s a small netherland cross, the vet has advised us not to neuter him unless we really can’t avoid it. This behaviour doesn’t seem to be linked to any aggression towards my husband (Sebastian licks him endlessly). 

I’d be very grateful for any advice. 

[Mikey]

Hes claiming your husband as his territory My nethie used to claim my lap and feet whenever he could before he was neutered. The best you can do until he is neutered is for your husband to bring him to the litter box every time he jumps onto his lap

[PoppiesinJuly]

Thanks, Mikey!
I hope you don’t mind me asking: how did you decide to get your bunny neutered? I’m very worried about the risk on such a small rabbit. The peeing might decide the issue though…

[Mikey]

Getting your buns neutered/spayed is always the best option unless the vet states otherwise. It helps with hormonal issues of course, but also helps against cancers of that area. Make sure you find a vet that is certified and has worked on rabbits before. You want a vet who has a 1 percent or less rate of failure on the table. Make sure to get a blood test done beforehand as well to ensure that your bun will be able to handle the anesthia correctly. Beforehand, youll also want to know if the vet will send you home with pain meds, and how long those meds will last. Males go through the surgery easier than females, and usually bounce back after a day or two, if not instantly. Make sure your bun is eating, drinking, and toileting normal

For my nethie, he almost needed an emergency neuter. His testicles kept swelling and turning all shades of red. He would grind his teeth in pain and refuse to eat some days. It was pretty scary. We couldnt get him neutered at that point though because his liver values on the blood tests kept coming back abnormal, but the vet said if the swelling and pain continues, we would have to fight through it for him. But, with pain meds and less pellets and more greens for a week, his liver values went back to normal and we were able to get him neutered. My mini rex had a normal neuter done when he turned six months. He was a little extra tired and lazy, but after a day he was back to normal. My third is a mini dutch and not yet neutered, but is ready to be neutered at any time whenever we have the time and funds

[Hazel]

I agree, his hormones have kicked in. The only thing that will fix this is to have him neutered. If you have a rabbit savvy vet, spaying/neutering is a very safe procedure, no matter the size of the bunny. This goes especially for neutering, since it is much less invasive than a spay. The fact that your vet advised against this is a bit of a red flag and makes me think that he doesn’t have much experience with rabbits and thus feels uncomfortable doing the surgery. If you do decide to neuter him, I would advise you to find a more experienced vet.

[PoppiesinJuly]

Thank you both for hte advice. I’ll start looking around for rabbit-friendly vet recommendations. Should I wait until he’s 6 months old and fully grown before going for the op or would there be any advantage to doing it when he’s younger?

[Mikey]

As soon as his testicles have descended, he is ready to be neutered. Younger is definitely safer than older, but ive heard any time up to 2 years is considered a safe age unless there are health risks specific to your rabbit

[Author]

Messages