Projectile peeing?

[Tichelibun]

My bun, Frank, always pees by the door of his cage. In the past he would only have small spills over the edge of his litter tray. However, recently, he has been backing up against the door, raising his butt as high as he possibly can (much higher than metal guards would reach) and peeing OUT of his cage. He pees up to about 6 inches out of his cage. It makes a mess. I have taken to putting puppy training pads outside of his cage, but these are not very smell absorbent and with the amount Frank pees, they need to be changed daily. They are not cheap considering how many I will use if this continues!! Is there anything I can do to make him stop this habit? What could have started this? I have saved up the money to have him neutered and plan on having it done in May once the college semester ends (I don’t have time during vet office hours to do it during school), but I don’t know if that will help!

[kimberleyanddarren]

have you considered a litter box with a high back? or one that is closed over, also you could move his litter tray slightly away from the door by an inch or two and this may reduce the amount it goes outside. Alternatively u could shout NO when he is lifting his butt up, but this may through his training altogether and so i wouldnt recommend it.. try a high back tray probably your best bet good luck keep us posted

[Tichelibun]

He has a high-back litter box for outside of his cage, but the space that his tray slides into, under the floor of the cage, does not allow for anything higher. He is lifting his butt about 4 inches off the floor of his cage (which is itself about two inches off the ground). I’m not sure there is anything high enough to block his fire.

[kimberleyanddarren]

how about putting a sheet of that cheap plastic down the back so that it wont go through the bars?

[Tichelibun]

He loves to stick his nose though and eat anything (especially plastic) within reach. That’s a really good idea, Frank just likes to make things as complicated as possible. :/

[kimberleyanddarren]

lol, is there room to move it over an inch or so, so he can still reach the door but the pee wont go everywhere?

[kimberleyanddarren]

does ur bun press his bum against the back of a certain side, like the highest one or anything? or is it always the one to the door whichever that side is?

[Tichelibun]

Frank has a dog crate as a cage because he is so big. The tray under the floor has a set place it slides into. It cannot be moved around the cage. It’s a tray that goes under the entire cage, not a litter box in the cage.

[kimberleyanddarren]

oh i see, is it not possible to put one in ontop of that tray?

[JK]

Mmmm I think neutering will certainly help. It sounds like you need to start all over with litter training. Does he get to roam around outside of this dog crate? Maybe you need to move him out of that crate and possibly into an xpen. Then you could put 2 litter boxes in there and start training him to use those. Put a piece of linoleum under the xpen and clean up is easier. He is such a cutie. I know how frustrating this all is. How big IS Frank?

[Tichelibun]

Frank is about 13 lbs. He is bigger than my sister’s cat and likes to chase him around. The thing is, I’m not sure litter training is going to make a difference, as he is trained to use a litter box outside of his cage when he gets play time, and is very good about it. He does not have a litter box IN his cage because there isn’t room for the size of box he would need. He uses a high-sided cat box when out of his cage, but if I were to put it in his cage, he would not have room to stretch out. I also live in an apartment with 3 other girls (and will for the next 2 years) so a pen inclosure only works for playtime.

[KatnipCrzy]

“He doesn’t have a litterbox inside his cage”???  If he does not have a place that is approp for him to urinate- no wonder he is trying to spray his urine as far away as possible from the cage.  Even though he is not neutered, I still can not image that he would like his small cage soiled.  Your post makes it hard to imagine what his cage is really like- and what size.  He is a big bunny- but still needs room for a litterbox and room to stretch out, AND be active.  By your own admission- you do not have time during the day (to take him to the vet)- are you letting him out during the day?  Can you build a NIC Condo that is higher with more levels that gives him more room?

It sounds like you really love your bunny- but it sounds like for him to be happy you are going to have to make some changes.

[Tichelibun]

I’m really not sure how else to describe his cage. He is not living with or sitting in soiled litter. This cage is actually the ONLY kind I have ever heard of for a rabbit this size. I’m going to try one more time. Maybe this will work. Think of an outdoor hutch for a rabbit. They do not live in their filth. Everything falls through the bottom of the cage. Frank’s cage is a large-dog sized box. Two inches BELOW the floor of his cage is a tray to catch everything, with litter in it. He does not stand in it. He is actually further way from living in flith than if he DID  have a litter box. He has selected a place in his cage where he goes. . . just like a rabbit does before you guys figure out where to put the box. I clean the tray daily.

Also, Frank is let out in the morning for an hour or more while I get ready for school. I let him out to play in between classes. He spends the entire evening (and I stay up late) with the entire apartment as his playground. I, however, do not have large chunks of time to drive alllll the way out to the vet when Frank is not sick or does not have a scheduled check up.  My classes are too close together. He gets out durning the day more than a rabbit whose owner is at work all day. I researched a lot before I bought a large rabbit and I can assure you his cage is even a little LARGER THAN the recommended size cage for a rabbit in his weight group. (He is in the “giant” class of rabbits, a French Lop)

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