Trying to litterbox train. Put 2 litterboxes, but she uses cuddle-cup to sleep and pee in it. She didnt use litterboxes at all.

[LittleDoll]

I am trying to litterbox train our bunny. She currently lives in a large cage in our living room, and I am planning to eventially switch it to an x-pan which would give her more room.

I received  some good advice on this forum and made the following changes. I covered the mesh floor with cardbord because I was told the mesh can be confusing, and she is used to go potty anywhere in the cage. I bought 2 litterboxes and filled them with bunny litter. I noticed that she likes to make a nest and bought her a soft cuddle-cup. She loved it. Once I put a cuddle cup in the cage, she got into it and seems to really enjoy it.

I wasnt sure where to position those things  and moved things around a few times. She always likes to sit and sleep in one of the corners. But she also goes pee in the same corner even when it is covered with a grass mat. In one of the other corners there was a litter box with a mesh but no filling.  She never uses it and she doesnt like to go into that corner at all. As I was advised, I removed the mesh and filled it with litter. I put the cuddle cup there and put the litter box where she sits. She immediately sat in the litterbox. So, I switched them. She slept in the cuddle cup all night but also peed in it and havent used any litterboxes. I even put a little bit of pee and poop into it. She went inside to dig in it but havent used it.

I am trying to figure out the correct positioning of these items. If I put the litterbox where she sleeps, she will probably end up sleeping in it and peeing in it at the same time.

Any advice.

[Monkeybun]

I would take away the cuddle cup then, until she is trained. It’s fine if she sleeps and goes potty in the litterbox.

[bunnyfriend]

I would also suggest making the set up so in order to eat her pellets and hay, she has to go into her litter box. This can be done by putting the hay directly in part of the litter box or in a hay rack above the litter box. When I was training my bunnies I would just put their bowl with pellets in a corner of the box too. It sounds gross but rabbits love eating and going to the bathroom at the same time. Sorry if this is something you’ve already tried!

[kinggoblin]

It took me a day to figure out which corner my bunny liked to pee/poop in. I have his cage set up where its litterbox in the corner, and hay bin right in front of it so he can eat & poop. He sleeps on the other side of the hay bin now, or in a box outside the cage or on top of the cage. I’d put the litterbox where she has peed and pooped before. He spends a lot of time sitting in his box and eating hay.

When he was a baby he liked sleeping in his litterbox though so I gave him one box filled with litter with a hay rack in front and another with just hay to sleep in ( he never liked cuddle cups or other pet beds ).

[bmt87]

My Lola has a cuddle cup as well! It’s literally her bestest friend (besides her humans of course!). After she pees in it – make sure you toss it in the washer or she is going to smell it and keep peeing! I used to throw Lo’s in alone on hot with some white vinegar.

I would second what bunnyfriend said about the hay/pellets. I even went as far to get a food bowl that attaches to the wire bars so she literally has no choice but to eat in her potty box and even though she is potty trained now it’s in her routine so I haven’t moved it out.

I don’t know how old your bun is but it was a lot of trial and error for awhile until Lola got it right. Lots of yellow puddles, messed up white fur, and stray poos. Before she is spayed it really is hit or miss with potty training – one day it works…the next there’s pee in the cuddle cup again!

The good news is – I feel like the cuddle cup is really going to be your best friend if you ever have to take your bun anywhere! I just stick it in her carrier and put her in there with is and she nuzzles down in there with it. It’s something that smells like her and I really do feel like it helps on the car rides!

EDIT TO ADD: I read your profile and saw that she is ~7 years old and had a topic about enjoyable indoor living with rabbits….has she been spayed?  Even if you don’t plan on getting another rabbit or having her anywhere she could possibly get pregnant, it really does make life easier once they are spayed.  It’s like night and day and well worth the money if you take into account how much damage they can (/will) do damaging furniture and carpets by digging and peeing.  After her spay, my bun no longer pees to mark every single place my boyfriend touches….SCORE!   And it does help potty habits 110%!  If she is already spayed you can disregard but thought I’d just ramble on and let you know.

[jackikal]

I tried this in the past before my bun was litter box trained, and I found that she would use the bathroom by her food bowls when I moved them out. Maybe it’s just mine…. She’s a weird one, after all!

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