Litterbox Training

[Anna Demas]

When I first got my bunny Marshmallow, he was really quick to litterbox train. He would have VERY few poop mistakes outside of his box. I had a paperish bedding in his litter box, and a different color, different brand paperish bedding in his cage. About a month and a half after I got him, he had some digestive problems, he stoped drinking for a day, and his poops became small. He randomly decided that he no longer could figure out how to eat hay out of his manger. It’s the kind, where its outside of the cage and they pull the hay through the bars to get at it. He had never had a problem before. So I moved his had into a pile in his cage, he ate it all, and his poops went back to normal and he started drinking water. He hasn’t had any digestive problems since, but since that day he poops everywhere. Most of his poops are in his litterbox, but there are about 50 little guys randomly around his cage. I changed his to  fleece lining the cage, got a basket to put his hay in, so he sits in his litter box, eats the hay. He drinks from inside his litter box too, and can eat his grain from in there. He just lost his good bathroom habits. Is there anything else that I can do that says POOP HERE when it comes to his litter box? It’s not horrible, whenever I see them I pick them up and put them in his box, but its starting to get old, exspecially since I KNOW he knows how to only go in his litter box.

 

Thanks!

[KatnipCrzy]

Is Marshmallow neutered?  What type of grain are you giving him?  Does he leave poos outside his cage when he is out?

[Sarita]

You are putting bedding in his cage as well? I would not do that as I think it’s not necessary and it confuses the rabbit.

[Beka27]

if he is not neutered yet, that’s probably the reason for the loss in habits. when those hormones kick in, they can suddenly become very erratic. when does he go in to have that done?

in the meantime, keep picking up the poos and putting them back in his box. make sure he can only eat hay when he is in his litterbox. some will always drop poops around their territory even post-altering, it’s called marking. the major thing is that the pee and majority of poops are in the box. also, having bedding in teh cage can be too confusing. try doing just the solid plastic bottom. soft material tends to get marked up more than a solid bottom.

[Anna Demas]

He isn’t neutered yet, He is isn’t quite old enough. I give him ZuPreem Nature’s Promise Premium Rabbit Food Made From Timothy Hay. I no longer use bedding in his cage, just the fleece. He doesn’t poop outside his cage, only randomly inside of it.

[Alicia Conklin]

I agree it might be the bedding in more then one place.  Drue has the ability to be meticulously litter trained.  However..he is easily confused lol.  I can’t put boxes that have bottoms (that then resemble litter boxes) anywhere in his cage without him pooping in them.   I also can’t put hay in something (I tried putting it in a basket that was about 3 inches by 7 inches..he got himself INTO it and pooped there..and he’s not a tiny bun).  So I have found that there has to be just flooring down and hay ONLY in his litter box.  This gets him to be a pretty consistently good pooper.  He still sometimes goes on the carpet on his second floor though so I think carpet might confuse him too and I’m going to get him some linoleum to put there next weekend to see if that does the trick.

 

[Beka27]

i would remove the fleece also, see if it improves. how old is he? they can be neutered at about 4 months old.

[Sarita]

Is he peeing in his litterbox?

[Anna Demas]

I guess I should bring him in to be fixed then. I was waiting until he was 6 months, because I had read that boys can be fixed at 6 months girls at 4 months. He is currently 5 months, so if he can be fixed now, I guess I’ll bring him in. This all started about a month ago, so that would make sense that it was all the hormones.

[Sarita]

Actually it’s the other way around. Boys at 4 months if there testicles drop and girls should wait until 6 months so it’s definitely time for his neuter.

[Beka27]

you had the right ages, just had them flip-flopped! don’t worry, it’s easy to do!

if you need any help with locating a vet or have any other questions, please ask!

[Anna Demas]

Well, atleast I was close!

I am in Upstate NY, and am looking for a vet. I called one place, and they said that he needed a checkup first, and that would be $56.00, and then would need shots on top of that, and then we would make the appointment for him to get fixed and it would be $208.00. Does that sound right? I have horses and those prices seem more than I would usually pay for my horse!

Thanks!

[BunnyMuffin]

What would he need shots for? I got my bun spayed for $200 (in North Dakota), but neuters are typically less expensive because they’re less invasive. But prices might be higher in NY too. I’d call around and do some checking first. Here’s a link to recommended rabbit vets by state:

http://www.rabbit.org/vets/vets.html

[Anna Demas]

Yea, I wasn’t sure about the shots, that seemed strange to me

[Beka27]

here is a listing of recommended vets in upstate NY. click on your location for further info… http://www.therabbitresource.org/recommendedvets.html

it is necessary to have an exam beforehand, that is required wherever you go. there are no vaccinations that are required in the US… can you call back and get more clarification on that? is it possible they said that he needed bloodwork, not shots? or what shots did they say he needs?

definitely call around. it might be worth the money to drive further (up to an hour away) if the cost is much less. i am in ohio and paid 185 for a spay for my female, but different regions have different price ranges. also, you can contact a rabbit rescue near you and see if they have recommendations for low-cost neuters. here is the HRS chapter in upstate NY… http://www.therabbitresource.org/

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