It’s been over a year since we rescued Sandy…

[dude.the.rabbit]

Sandy is a female Holland Lop and is approximately 2 years old and we bonded her with our approximately 4 year old part Dutch male named Dude. They were both rescue rabbits and both have been neutered and spayed. My problem is Sandy pees on everything. We had an outdoor hutch in our kitchen with a dog pen around it approximately 2×6 ft. I always laid towels inside the hutch so they would feel nice and cozy and changed them daily because she pees on them. Of course I have a huge litter box that they both use and also a hay box that they use as a litter box also. I’ve taken Sandy to the vet and had her checked for an infection, but the vet said she is fine and offers no clue to why Sandy has to mark everything. I have a signed document from the shelter saying she was spayed. I had to take the hutch out yesterday because she had been digging and moving the towels around and the urine has soaked into the wood making an awful smell. Now both rabbits are sad because they miss their hutch and cozy bedding. I thought rabbits didn’t pee where they slept. Any advice? My house smells

[Sarita]

Oh, they definitely will pee where they sleep and some rabbits really are just better than others about their litter box.

I would take anything soft out for now. If you can put something over the wood like linoleum that would be good – that is the problem with those hutch things made for the outdoors, the wood bottom…it’s not the best thing for rabbits.

Have you considered just getting rid of the hutch and just using the exercise pen?

[dude.the.rabbit]

Yes, we took the hutch out. I don’t know how to make a soft place for them to sleep and still be able to keep it clean. Any ideas? They are mad at me right now.

[Sarita]

My rabbits have always just laid out on the carpet and been just fine. Never had success with any of those bed things – they don’t really understand that they are beds like cats, dogs, and humans.

[JackRabbit]

Mine seem to prefer fleece so I just buy it by the yard at a fabric store.

[dude.the.rabbit]

Do they keep the fleece relatively clean? How big a piece would two rabbits need (they love to snuggle with each other) Do you put anything under it or in a litter type box?Thanks for all the replies!

[LBJ10]

Is there linoleum or tile in the kitchen? If you just have an exercise pen and it is on a nonporous surface, then you could try putting a small fleece blanket on the floor for them to push around.

However, as Sarita suggested, it might be a better idea to keep anything soft out of the area for awhile to see if that helps. For some buns, anything soft = litter.

[Stickerbunny]

Mine just pee on anything soft. The only thing I have had success with is a cat condo with a fleece top, which my two sleep on top of and haven’t peed on yet.

[dude.the.rabbit]

This is a very sad update. After I took away the hutch, Sandy was peeing in the litter box lined with newspapers and covered in hay. I didn’t notice too much difference except the smell grew stronger every day. As it turned out, Sandy was soaking up alot of the urine and wasn’t able to clean herself properly. I took her to the vet last Saturday and she had to be shaved and put on an antibiotic. With all the changes, our other bunny Dude started down the path of GI Stasis. I didn’t notice until yesterday when he totally refused to eat. I started giving him syringes of food and water and looked all over the internet for self help. Well, I should have gone immediately to the vet, but my vet bill was already at $300. Long story short, Dude didn’t make it, he died of bloat. I should have put him in the animal hospital but we couldn’t afford to. The vet said he only had a 10% chance of making it, but I wish I had enough money to get him the help he needed. Now Sandy is miserable without him and my heart is broken. I wish I had just kept things the way they were

[litheandgraphic]

Posted By dude.the.rabbit on 9/04/2014 9:31 PM

This is a very sad update. After I took away the hutch, Sandy was peeing in the litter box lined with newspapers and covered in hay. I didn’t notice too much difference except the smell grew stronger every day. As it turned out, Sandy was soaking up alot of the urine and wasn’t able to clean herself properly. I took her to the vet last Saturday and she had to be shaved and put on an antibiotic. With all the changes, our other bunny Dude started down the path of GI Stasis. I didn’t notice until yesterday when he totally refused to eat. I started giving him syringes of food and water and looked all over the internet for self help. Well, I should have gone immediately to the vet, but my vet bill was already at $300. Long story short, Dude didn’t make it, he died of bloat. I should have put him in the animal hospital but we couldn’t afford to. The vet said he only had a 10% chance of making it, but I wish I had enough money to get him the help he needed. Now Sandy is miserable without him and my heart is broken. I wish I had just kept things the way they were

I’m so, so sorry for your loss. This is a terrible thing to happen to anyone and I’m so sorry to hear it happened to you. You did everything you thought was best for them, so please don’t be terribly hard on yourself.

I’m going to suggest a couple of things for you now, and I hope they won’t come across as callous or uncaring; these things are intended to help you in the future.

Firstly, consider beginning a savings fund solely for the rabbits. You never know when something horrible like this may happen again, and it’s good to always have at very least $500 stored away for emergencies. I also recommend looking into CareCredit and PetAssure. These are good alternatives to pet insurance, which can be needlessly costly and often ineffective. Consider these options, to help safeguard against the health needs of Sandy in the future and, should you decide, another rabbit.

Secondly, rabbit litterboxes, especially those that only include newspaper and hay, need to be changed every day or every other day at least, to prevent urine scald. I’m sure this is a lesson you’ve already learned the hard way, and I’m sorry for that. I recommend looking into using additional litter substrates such as Yesterday’s News or CareFresh, which can help absorb the urine, and/or changing the litterbox every day or every other day. I’m not sure why Sandy was unable to clean herself properly, as you mentioned, but urine scald happens even to rabbits who are capable of cleaning themselves, and it is something we all must be vigilant about.

I’m terribly sorry, once again, that you’re going through this exceptionally difficult time, and that Sandy is experiencing such emotional hardship. For now, I suggest you tend to her as best you can with lots of love, attention, affection, and maybe some extra treats, to help her cope with the shock of losing her partner and the stress of the antibiotics and vet visits.

I wish you all the best.

[dude.the.rabbit]

Thanks for the above post. I had the money, just didn’t bring Dude to the vet because it was (in my mind) so far away (about 30 minutes) and very stressful on him. I did complain to the vet when I brought Sandy in last week about the cost. Every time they get sick it costs me $700. I had no idea when I adopted Sandy how difficult it would be to tell who was pooping and peeing. Just taking them to the vet for a checkup has made my buns ill. I was changing the newspaper in the litter box morning and night and giving fresh hay at the same times. I don’t know why she wasn’t cleaning herself. I do know that if the vet was closer I would have taken Dude on Wednesday instead of trying home remedies. If I had Cisapride he would still be here. I had the hospital printout from last year when he went to the hospital. They gave him 10ml of cisapride four times a day plus pain meds and hydrated him. He was ok. I thought I could help him through this, but waited too long to go to the vet. I could have saved him if I had just taken him in on Wednesday instead of waiting. Self help lead to disaster. Yesterday when I took him in I felt like they gave me all this information about the cost. Is it really always about the money?? If they had just tried to save him instead of laying out the odds and showing me the cost I would have gone along with it. Why should I have to choose between being responsible with money and the life of my pet? They put that on me, making me choose. Today I decided I needed a vet closer to me. I’m not sure why I changed vets since one was nearby that I liked. Somebody in the pet shelter convinced me to drive further and get a quality vet. I should add that both vets have the same training in exotics. I am now waiting for a call from the new vet. They are waiting to get my records from the old vet. And everyone wants to make sure I have all my bills paid Does anyone really care about the animals anymore??

[dude.the.rabbit]

I really can’t blame the vet. It was my fault that I waited too long whatever the reason. I am just sick about the whole thing and wish I could do it all over

[litheandgraphic]

Again, I’m so sorry that you’re going through all of this. But again, don’t be too hard on yourself. We all make mistakes, and the best thing we can do is learn from those going forward. It can be really, really daunting to have a vet (or doctor) continue to reiterate the costs of medical care, as though a friend’s life can be quantified in money.

I’m kind of glad to hear you’re trying a new vet, though. Perhaps you can voice some of your concerns you had with the last vet, and this new vet will then understand how to proceed with you to make sure you get the best care you possibly can.

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