Help he wont stop pooing in the living room

[Deleted User]

Ok, heres the deal…. i seem to have tried every approach to stop Teddy doing this, if anyone has any suggestions apart from the obvious regular usual technics then please…… please…… please i need your help.

Ive tried the insult of having my back to him and he’s given in twice but then does a poo straight away in front of me…. im at my wits end as he used to be 99% perfect!

Helpppppppppppppppppppp

Teddy’s distraught mom. x
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[dmh426]

hmm….rabbits normally mark their territory like that when they feel someone else has been in there…do you have any other animals that would cause Teddy to want to remark his territory? Has another bunny been there?

Is he neutered, now that’s a big question!!! Neutering alters behaviors.

[Deleted User]

Well……… im pretty convinced he’s a an ex boyfriend reincarnated that i dumped or something now lol… he definately doesnt respond to normal rabbit things… he didnt even react to a fox barking in the garden the other night… he just carried on eating.

 

No other animals have been in our flat and he was neutured before I got him at the rescue centre so ive ruled those two things out.

 

These are the things ive tried……

Shutting him in the kitchen for a few days to make sure he uses his toilet box (which he does and is good at)

Turning my back on him when he poos in the lounge to show im insulted (which he gave in… twice)

Giving him short running time around the same time in the eves (but he just runs in and 5 minutes later does a poo)

Stopped picking him up about a week ago (coz that was when his pooing in the lounge started so thought id stop)

 

……. and none of these things work.

[MooBunnay]

Is he pooing all over the place or just in certain areas?  If it is certain areas, you might want to try getting another litter box to put out just when he is hanging out in the living room (maybe even just a cardboard box with some hay) and that way the poops will go in there instead of on the floor, which might help him understand thats where ALL the poops should be!  Also, if you put a litterbox in the living room when he is out, you can pick up the poops he puts in other places, and put them into the temporary box to help him get the understanding that this is where ALL the poops go!

[poopy]

do you have a picture of what your litter box looks like w/ all the stuff in it?

when i first got Medusa she was marking alot. so when i gave her her veggies, i gave them in her litterbox instead of on the floor, which she very quickly learned to jump in obediently. some buns just need extra incentive to become loyal to their litterboxes. after a month or so she was alot better at it. now she is fine, but will start marking from stressful things like after being picked up, etc.

[Deleted User]

Yeah heres where his toilet is which is in my tiny kitchen, I can onlyu have him in there coz my lounge gets too hot in the summer so he would bake. Sadly he hates it when i cook (my cooking isnt that bad really lol) but he dont care when im crashing about washing up.

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[Deleted User]

P.S. Thats Ted i gave him for company.. he washes him lol!

[poopy]

Oh that is a very cute box! As I said, making it enticing by doing the veggie feeding there and piling it with hay might really help. Good luck.

[Gravehearted]

I’d recommend trying to limit his roaming territory and adding some more litter boxes. Once his litter habits improve, then you can slowly increase his roaming area. Also – Poopy’s suggestion of adding hay / some little treats may help too.

[Deleted User]

Thanks, im now currently trying the veggie feeding in his box, and as for the hay… he already has hay in there as thats what i use instead of a form of litter. He likes hanging out in there and sleeping in there in the day so its not like he hates the place so no idea why he’s still pooing in the Lounge.

[Deleted User]

Well he does seem to prefer one area of the rug (he wont step off the rug as hes too chicken to go on the laminate) but if i lie down in that area he just chooses somewhere else to poo ie in the middle of the rug.. he’s not fussy! but if i take my eye off him for a second he gets straight on the sofa and does a wee on there. A couple of days age he pooed in the middle of the rug and i went to pick them up after he’d moved and he lunged for me and bit me for the first time.. he actually drew blood! so he wont even let me pick them up! lol!

[BinkyBunny]

So what I think is happening is he is trying to tell you that he is now the boss and going to dominate the living room and is willing to fight you for it.

One reason bunnies pee on the couch is because that is where :"our scent" is, and a dominant bunny will try to scent over yours.  (Another reason bunnies also do this is to say they are part of group, but because he tried to bite and become aggressive, I am thinking he is just trying to dominate)

So here is my suggestion.   Do not allow him in the lounge for 2 weeks.  Is there a way you can block him out?  Like a pen or ?? I know it will be a pain for you.  But I can’t imagine it would be more of pain then a peed on couch and rug and a domineering bunny.

Then after the 2 weeks, he’s only allowed in the lounge for short spurts with close supervision,(even if he does well, don’t let him get too comfortable and settle back in his old way – so 15 minutes or so and slowly increase time) \

As soon as he jumps on the couch, you get him off.   Don’t even allow him up there at all for now.  Wear thick gloves, so that if he lunges and bites, you won’t pull away, and you won’t be affected.  He will learn that lunging and biting will have zero affect.

Don’t scream or yell, just firmly say no or clap, and gently and quickly push him off.    

My Bailey used to be a very stubborn marker, but this method really helped, plus, I found that if I lay on the ground with her and rub my hands and feet all over the rug to get my scent on it, she began to get the message. But she only got the message once I established I was boss and that my scent meant she couldn’t mark there. 

Also during the 2 week period try to get your bunny’s scent out the best you can.   I know a 50/50 vinegar and water mix can work well, and there are some products out there that you leave in and when they dry the scent dissipates.  (of course you have to make sure they won’t stain your stuff.

With Bailey it took about a month as she is either stubborn or dense. (I’m thinking stubborn!)  With the other two, in the very beginning they tried the couch thing, but after training them not to go up on the couch, they rarely go up there even when I’m not sitting there.  When they do, they play and act like they are doing something naughty like jumping on the bed, but they don’t mark.  I can’t remember how long it took them, but if I remember right, it was less than two weeks.

 

[Deleted User]

LOL… oh my god… im a weak mummy… ive been letting my Teddy be top bunny lol!…. actually my friend said i wasnt tough enough with him… i think she’s right now.

 

Ok so I am going to take your sound advice and put it into practice. I have to admit i feel really mean for keeping him in the kitchen for 2 weeks but if it works it must be worth it.

 

I have already stopped letting him on the couch as my friend suggested it. Thankfully he’s stopped pee-ing on the couch but is still pooing anywhere he feels like leaving a pile in the lounge which is also never in exactly the same place… he just thinks if he’s not allowed to do it in his preferred place he’l just settle for doing it in another place that he’s not allowed to, but he hasnt lunged for me again when ive cleaned up thankfully, and I am able to keep him out of the lounge for a period of about 2 weeks as you suggest as i have a stair gate to the doorway so that wont be a problem to keep him out for now.

 

Im hoping my Teddy’s scent is out of the couch already as i use an all purpose pet cleaner from the pet store which says its designed for small animals specifically and fortunately my couch is scotchguarded so any bunny pee’s have just sat on top and not soaked in.

 

I made a mistake of forgetting to wash off my shoe when i came home from my friends yesterday, i forgot her bunny had chinned my shoe. Teddy then proceeded to poo outside of his toilet box that night, so that probably hasnt helped lol!

[BinkyBunny]

Good Luck, Be strong!   And keep us updated!

The other thing about keeping him in the one area is to help him understand what area is considered "his"and what areas are more neutral (everyone’s) so he will mark in "his" place only.

[Author]

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