Doing mushy, smelly poops out side of the litter box then lays in them

[BunnyLuv]

Hey, my 10 week old bun (Buddy), that I have had for almost 2 weeks, seems to be doing some abnormal behavior when it comes to poops and litter box training.

He I am pretty sure that he is 100% peeing in his litter box (not sure if he has peed elsewhere and I haven’t noticed it but I don’t believe so). However, he is really struggling getting his poops in the litter box. I go into work Tues, Thurs and work from home Mon, Wed, Fri. When I work from home I work in his running area right out side/around his Xpen/crate area where his litter box is and let him run around for about 30 mins – 1 hour at a time while I am working (he mostly just finds a place to sleep, which I know is normal that buns sleep during the day). I have noticed that he poops almost every time he wakes up or right after he eats his pellets. I am wondering if letting him out to run in the bigger area might be too much too soon because he seems to be pooping some in the litter box but a lot (if not all) of his mushy smelly poops (which seems to be a lot more than normal from what I have read) are being done everywhere but the litter box. He will even poop those poops right out side his litter box then lay in it to take a nap (maybe some of it is pooping in his sleep?). That seems very abnormal for a bunny because from what I have heard they are very clean animals and don’t like to lay where they poop. On days that I have to go into work he is just in his Xpen/crate area and I will come home to find him still pooping those out side of his litter box.

I have already done several things to try to stop this craziness.. haha

1. I have made his Xpen smaller 2 times to try to give him limited space out side of the litter box for pooping.
2. I have up graded the size of the litter box twice because I felt like he needed more space to go. Now I feel like it is plenty of space.
3. I moved the hay from a thing outside of his litter box to inside of his litter box.
4. I have tried cleaning up the litter box more often thinking that it gets to messy for him to want to go in any more.
5. I have tried putting hay across the litter box because he seemed to like going in the hay on one side of the box.
6. I have tried 2 litter boxes but he would still just go all around them both.
7. I have tried cleaning up the area he goes in right after I notice it.

I feel like I have read and tried just about every thing and nothing is changing this. It is mostly just the stinky poops which is pretty annoying too because they are way harder to clean up. It seems like there is no real rhyme or reason to the madness of where he is doing it and why. I just don’t know what I am doing wrong… Am I not giving him enough time to learn since I have only had him for about 2 weeks? Should I make the entire crate into a litter box? Is there something else I should be doing that I am not? It is just getting really frustrating and I feel sad for him because he is laying in mushy poop and now his pen seems a little to small.. ANY HELP OR SUGGESTIONS ARE WELCOME, I WILL DO ANYTHING! Ha

Pictures: (the one that is the smallest size Xpen and biggest grey litter box is what I have right now)(and 2 cute pictures because he is just so adorable!)

 

[HipHopBunny]

Oh, what an adorable boy you have! 😀

What this sounds like to me, is a neuter problem. Judging how old you said he was, I’m guessing he isn’t neutered. Unneutered/spayed rabbits do, unfortunately, tend to poop smelly and mushy poops outside their litterbox as a way of marking territory, so if that is the case, you will just have to bear it for a few months. 🙁

Another thing is, what is his diet? That could be a cause of smelly, mushy poops if it isn’t just a territorial thing. 🙁

Or, this could all just boil down to him being too young to understand what you are trying to tell him. You are following all the advice that I would give, so all I really have to say is just continue what you are doing, and wait until he catches on. 🙂

Wishing patience your way! 🙂 😛

[DanaNM]

Is he making normal poops as well? Or are they all mushy?

My concern with a rabbit that young is that he could have coccidea. It is hard for me to tell in the picture you posted, but that looks like it could be diarrhea. Or is it mashed up cecotropes? Coccidea (a parasite) poops are very smelly and completely unformed… they smell almost like a barn yard. It could also be excess cecals that he isn’t eating. Cecals/cecotropes are also smelly when they get mashed up. What is is diet like?

Here’s a handy photo guide to bunny poops that might help pinpoint what’s going on:

Guide to bunny poops

. . . 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.  

[BunnyLuv]

Thank you for the responses! I have been pretty stressed thinking I am doing something wrong. Its nice to be apart of this where I can get some help so I am not just alone figuring all of this out.

His diet is Manna Pro GRO Pellets. I pretty much just make sure that he always has some since he is still growing. He also always has a mix of Timothy and Orchard Grass/Hay. And he always has water. He has been out running around and chewing on a lot of cardboard, I am not sure how much he has actually ingested but I have heard that carboard is fine so I didn’t think it was that.

He has normal poops too. The mushy poops are just like the Cecotropes in the picture. Some might be more like diarrhea but its hard to tell since he lays in it and smashes it. I am pretty sure that they are all formed by Cecotropes. I don’t understand the eating it..

No he is not neutered since he is to young. I should be waiting until 6 months right?

So it seems like this is just normal and he just needs time?

Also, is the Xpen to small or is it ok while he is learning?

[HipHopBunny]

Okay, sounds good! 🙂

For eating cecotropes, that is completely normal. 😆 Healthy even! There is this funny saying I heard here somewhere “Cat lovers learn about felines, and rabbit lovers learn about poop!” Nice huh? 😛

The Xpen for litter training him is great! You are doing an awesome job at caring for him! 😀

[BunnyLuv]

Thank you so much for the help and encouragement! I am so glad that 101rabits lead me to this page!

That is pretty hilarious! But its so true I have found myself worrying about his poop more than anything else. haha

[DanaNM]

Yes it sounds like he is normal and just a baby. Babies can be messy, just like human babies!

Eating the cecotropes is actually a very important part of the rabbit diet, they get certain things from them that they can’t get otherwise. But some young bunnies will not eat them all. I think it’s a combo of getting more pellets (so they produce more cecals than they need), and learning how to be a bunny LOL.

I saw this video recently about how cecals are formed and thought it was so cool:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?<wbr />v=7s-GhDknV1A&feature=emb_<wbr />logo&ab_channel=<wbr />OxbowAnimalHealth

I think his set-up looks good, but he would probably appreciate some time to run around in a larger space for a several hours a day. If you could give him at least 4 hours of roam in a larger space he could get his zoomies out. 🙂

Neutering can be done between 4-6 months, depending on when his testes drop, his weight, and your vet’s preference.

 

. . . 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.  

[Wick & Fable]

A slight aside, as I think Dana covered everything I would have mentioned: the water bowl that you’re using. I have the same one, as one of my rabbits drinks a ton of water. Be sure to clean that very regularly, as it gets build up quickly. All three parts (the bottle, the black screw attachment, and the basin). I have a toothbrush at my kitchen sink specifically to clean it every day when I refill it. I never refill all the way, as by the time it would all be used, the water and bowl would be nasty.

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.

[LBJ10]

Yep, it’s not unusual for babies to produce extras and not eat them. And yes, if they are somewhere they will get stepped on then they will get stepped on and they will make a mess. LOL

[BunnyLuv]

Awesome! Thank you all so much for your help!

I am definitely letting him out in a decent size part of the basement so he can just run and do whatever he wants (I boarded up every wall with cardboard and I watch him pretty closely). 🙂

Thank you for the cleaning recommendation. I didn’t really think to much about cleaning the whole water dispenser. I was wiping out the bowl every time I found something in it or refilled it but I didn’t think about all of the build up that could occur around the other parts. I have been giving him filtered water from our reverse osmosis water system and we have soft water so I think it is helping it stay clean as well.

I am loving this forum. Thank you all!

[BunnyLuv]

I just thought of another question related to this: Is there anything I can do to help stop Buddy from dragging or flicking poop out of his litter box when he jumps out?

[BunnyLuv]

Hey, Buddy is doing great at pooping in his litter box now but he is still doing small amounts of cecals out side of his litter box. It seems kinda strange. I have seen some cecals in the litter box. Is this just a nother waiting game or is it normal for them to do some cecals out side of the box so they can eat them? Is there something I can do to prevent this, like maybe making sure there is more hay in the box so he can poop in the hay easer for the cecals so he can eat them better? It seems like he is pooping them outside of the litter box so that he can eat them and he doesn’t really want to eat them within the pellets in the litter box, is that a thing?

[Bu20055]

Could be that but my guess is just where he was when the cecals were ready. When my girl eats her cecals she just eats them wherever she is when she gets the signal that they’re ready

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