Litter Training

[Dana]

Hi

The search isn’t working so please forgive me for posting something that has probably been answered 100 times. 

I have a bunny, she’s 7 months old and I”ve had her about 2 weeks. We are working on litter training. I bought a larger litter pan because she wasn’t using the one she had, and I thought based on what I read here it may be too small. 

It has kitty litter and Timothy hay in it, i’ve added her poop and a paper towel of pee I dried up. I have a hay box on the side of the cage. 

She sits beside the litter box and eats the hay out of the litter box, and obviously poops and pees outside the litter box.  I don’t have any bedding in the cage, I think I read it can confuse them, but I don’t want her all messy from her pee (yuck). 

How do I get her to lay in the box or just get in the box? 

thanks!

Dana

[Asriel and Bombur]

First, remove the kitty litter, as it is very dangerous to bunnies. You can use carefresh or paper bedding or equine pellets, but not kitty litter. The kitty litter can bother their respiratory systems, and it’s very dangerous if they ingest it.

As for going to the bathroom, is she spayed? If not, get her spayed as it will help with her litter habits and you’ll help prevent the risk or reproductive cancers. For actually training, having the hay in the box is great. How tall is it? She may be having an issue jumping into the box. If you notice her going to the bathroom next to it you can try to guide her into it by lightly tapping her bum until she goes in.

[Wick & Fable]

We do encourage members to post any and all questions (within our forum’s scope), even if they are duplicates! There’s constantly new experiences and knowledge in the rabbit world, so having more and more recent topics is a positive. Never hesitate to ask a question!

You note that she is able to eat the hay from outside the box, so I wonder if you can arrange it so she has to go in the box to eat it. As a budget friendly option, maybe attaching cardboard to the litter box sides so she can only enter from one way to get the hay.

Litter box training can take time. My Wick is a rabbit that requires more engaged training, where I need to physically move him to the box because he isn’t tuned into the poops and pees appearing there. Some rabbits need this.

You are two weeks in, so it can take time! Plus it’s a new environment so the instinct to mark is pretty strong.

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.

[Dana]

Thanks for the reply. She is now going in it, but not using as a potty yet.  Pills everywhere.  She is not spayed yet. We are scheduling that in the next couple of weeks.  We’ll keep working on it.  Should I put bedding on the floor of the cage or is that confusing to them?

[Wick & Fable]

Bedding does make it confusing as rabbits like marking fluffy things! It’s good that she’s going in. At the moment, giving her time and being vigilant in moving her droppings into the litterbox so she makes the connection to go in there is what’s needed. Some rabbits get it right away, others may not. And that’s ok! Time is a tool you can always use, because it’ll always be there as you strengthen communications with your rabbit.

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.

[dnelle]

if she doesn’t chew it, you can always use a towel or fleece blanket in the bottom of the cage that you can change out to help her stay clean

[Author]

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