Trouble with toilet training

[Lillika]

So I’ve managed to toilet train Jasper to use his litter box when he’s in his pen but when he’s out he seems to love doing his business on the couches and blankets. I have no idea how to get him to stop at all. He’s currently living inside but I’m about to move him out onto the deck but I would love to bring him inside in the evenings while we watch T.V and have him sit with us or just running around the house on weekends. What can I do? What do most people do when they’ve got an inside bunny? Jasper is almost 4 months old, will it get better when he gets older?

[Elrohwen]

Because he’s so young, I assume he’s not neutered yet? A lot of unneutered buns pee and poo outside their cages in order to mark territory. Some have fine litter habits, but some just can’t help the hormones that tell them to mark everywhere! Haha. I think neutering should help a lot.

Also, couches are a very popular place for buns to pee because it smells so much like humans that they want to claim it as their own. I would block off the couches for now because it might not be possible to stop him from marking there. If you kept him off the couch, do you think he would still pee all over?

ETA: Have you tried adding more litter boxes to your living room? (maybe even one on the couch) I would add some more, put some hay in them, and if he uses them (or even hops into them) praise him and give him a treat. He might figure out that the litter box applies even when he’s out of his cage.

[Lillika]

No he’s not neutered yet. He only does his business on one of the couches and I’ve tried to put a litter box there but he wont use it, I’ll put some hay in it and give that a go. He doesnt seem to do it anywhere else in the room unless I have a blanket lying around, he definitely seems to think bedding and blankets are his toilet spot. When I first got him he peed all over my pillow and kept coming back to use the same spot.

[Deleted User]

With some buns you can’t expect the clean litter habits at that young age. Some are great, some ‘go’ everywhere, especially on soft, diggable surfaces. No cause for alarm. I wonder too if Flemish buns don’t mature more slowly anyways. He should learn, though, to pee only in his boxes even before his neuter but it can be trying to teach a young rabbit if he has access to large areas. I would remove the blankets and offer more litterboxes.

[Lillika]

Do older rabbits need to go less as well? I do a fundraising for the SPCA every year and I was hoping next november I could take him along on a leash as a bit of a show stopper so people will stop and empty their wallets.

[Beka27]

I think younger buns will poop more frequently… not sure about urination tho… So he is a Flemish? (Jealous.) When is he going in to be neutered?

[Lillika]

Yes he is. He’s only 3 and half month old and my vet said it would be better if I waited till he’s 6 months. Is that true?

[BinkyBunny]

Males can be neutered as soon as their testicles drop around 3 1/2 months. But some vets do prefer to also wait 5 – 6 months to neuter. I am used to vets wanting to wait to spay females until 6 months, but I’m actually not sure why they would wait that long with males (unless the testicles haven’t dropped).

[Beka27]

Normally, males can be neutered much sooner than 6 months. It’s generally a good idea to do it sooner so the rabbit doesn’t get into the bad habit of spraying/marking. Vets may choose to wait with a smaller bun, but that is not an issue here of course! I’d try to talk to your vet again and if he won’t do it now, maybe ask if he will refer you to someone who will (assuming of course that his testicles have descended!)

[Lillika]

I had a look and his balls have dropped so I’ll talk to my vet. Will neutering him stop him from growing big? I’m actually a bit worried about his size,worried he’s too small, he’s not full grown at this age right? He’s bigger than my friend’s minilops but I dont know how much larger he’s suppose to be.

[Beka27]

No, neutering is not going to affect his size. Rabbits will continue to grow until about a year or so frame-wise, and even then, they might still fill out further. He is definitely not full-grown at 4 months.

And keep in mind, like with any animal, the ideal weight/size may not be realized in every bunny.  Depending on the size of his parents, he may be larger or smaller.  I think the normal for Flemmies is 15 pounds, but they can get up to 18-20… or he may top off at about 10-12….

[Lillika]

So another problem has come up, I followed the instructions on this site and made him a digging box. Except now he uses that as his litter box and doesnt use the litter box at all. What do I do?

[Sarita]

Try putting the litter box where the diggy box is and get rid of the diggy box for now because obviously that won’t work for him until he learns to use the litter box.

[Author]

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