Marking territory all over!

[berrystreet]

Hi everyone– I’m new to the forum! (And sorry if this post is a duplicate!) Just two weeks ago, we got a 10-month old Giant French English angora. He is free range some of the time, though we surpervise his time out of the cage. We keep his litterbox ina corner of his cage, and he uses it when he is inside the cage. But when he’s out, he pees and poops all over the floor. He is an explorer and is always on the move. When we catch him in the act, we put him back in his cage (and clean up with vinegar, apple bitters, etc). My question is, since the cage isn’t supposed to be seen as a punishment, when we put him in like that, he clearly hates it (he pushes against the door, pouts, etc). So isn’t he seeing the cage = punishment?

He hasn’t been neutered yet. We make a point of keeping toys and hay in the cage, and letting him come and go from the cage without picking him up (except for when he pees and poops outside the cage).

Is he just marking his territory? Will neutering make him stop? Help! This morning he created a giant poop pile within minutes of coming out of his cage. He seems to enjoy doing it, too — often when I’m talking to him he’s crouched there looking at me, and then once he hops off I can see what he’s left behind! Honestly he’s so furry, it’s hard to see if he lifts his tail in anticipation of going…

[Beka27]

welcome here! marking is normal with bunnies in new territory, or when there are new animals around, but some do it more than others. marking can be reduced by spay/neuter, and that is your first step. waiting too long to neuter can actually make these bad habits permanent… he’s ready (been ready for about 6 months), so i’d suggest you do this ASAP. do you have a rabbit savvy vet yet?

did you start him in a small area and slowly expand the territory? do you have additional litterboxes outside of his space? what kind of cage/pen/condo are you using right now and what kind of litterboxes/litter?

i deleted the other thread with the name Natalie K. is berrystreet the right name you will be going by on the forum?

[berrystreet]

Oddly, the vet said one of his testicles hasn’t dropped yet… So he wanted to wait a few weeks. Anyway I have a call in to him about it. Barrington’s cage is 24 x 36 x 24. When we open the door, he hops all over a large room. We had been letting him out for extended periods, but now we’re doing 15-minute sessions of “freedom.” We want him to be free range, ultimately.

So to put him back in the cage tells him he’s being punished, no? He really doesn’t care about apple bitters — he’ll return to those spots anyway.

Thanks for the deletion! Yes, name is berrystreet.

[Beka27]

well i would def. keep up with the vet about getting this done.

free range is nice, but it’s still important for bunnies to have a space they can call their own. not all bunnies can safely be free range, at least not 24/7. many of us have our buns out all day, sometimes restricted to a few bunny-proofed rooms, but they get penned at night.

for a very large breed like that, i’d recommend that you not use a cage at all, those dimensions are not large enough for even a small breed bunny (2×4 feet is the smallest *i think* you should go regardless of bun size).

have you considered an exercise pen? they are 4×4 feet when made square, and that, along with daily exercise will give him plenty of room to move around. another option is the NIC grid condo, but i personally prefer xpens due to the ease at which you can set up and take down to clean. also xpens are not very expensive, but the materials for condos can become expensive once you start making levels…

apple bitters don’t do much in the way of deterring. the smell does not last long enough to make an impact. you can cover hot spots with phone books, cardboard, or litterboxes.

[MooBunnay]

Welcome to the forums! I love giant bunnies good choice!

The marking IS a pain, I agree, I have multiple bunnies so the ones that are not bonded like to mark their territory to protect it from the other ones Neutering should help with that, especially if you don’t have any other animals in the house.

Concerning his current free time. I definitely agree with Beka about upgrading him to an exercise pen. In order to keep the floor clean I just purchase cheap rugs at discount stores like Big Lots or a place like that, and cover the floor with that. What is the floor of his current pen like? It sounds like he does need a bit of litter training though in addition to the marking. I would recommend putting a couple more litterboxes in that larger area so that he has more options when he is outside the cage. I know it is frustrating, but being very consistent about putting the poops back into the litter box, and cleaning up the pee spots with vinegar will help him to understand that the floor is supposed to stay CLEAN! If he tends to mark in the same areas, put the litterboxes right in those areas so he can’t avoid them.

I don’t know how well putting a bunny in a cage as a punishment works, part of me thinks that they may not really make the connection between what they did and being in the cage, so it might not work. I think neutering and training are the best two ways to fix the issue. I also think that getting him a larger cage is a good idea, even when he becomes free range you will want a large cage that he can hang out in during the day when you are at work or out of the house for awhile.

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