Urinating on the floor

[Pippa]

     So, since I’ve never posted on the forum before, I’ll give you guys a bit of information on Peter. He’s currently a 5 year old neutered Holland Lop who I’ve had for a few years now. A few weeks ago I took him to the vet to get groomed since he’s not really that great at it and he won’t let me do it (he has an attitude). Two days before the appointment, he started peeing outside of his litter pan. Now, he’s usually pretty good at his litter habits, only getting a few stray droppings here and there. The only time he peed outside the litter pan was when he had a bladder infection in January. I knew it could be a flare up of that again, so I mentioned it to my vet and he did an exam, but he couldn’t find anything wrong, so I figured it was a behavior problem even though I hadn’t changed anything around. The only thing I can think of is that I took him outside a few times on the days it was really nice out. Perhaps he could have smelled another rabbit which made him territorial? That’s the only thing I can think of. He gets veggies every day, unlimited hay (though he’s a picky hay eater, for sure), and unlimited water. His urine looks fine, but if this continues, I’m going to definitely take him to the vet again. I’m just not sure what it is. 

[JackRabbit]

When the vet did an exam, did he take a urine sample? If not, and this continues, when you take him back to the vet make sure a sample is taken abd discuss a urine culture. Without a urine sample, an exam can only tell if it is likely or unlikely that there’s a bladder stone, etc. It could be calcium grit irritating his bladder, the start or continuation of a UTI, etc. When he had the UTI back in January, was it confirmed that it had cleared up?

In the mean time, make sure to clean any pee spots outside the litterbox with white vinegar/water to get rid of any remaining pee scent in case this is behavioral.

[Pippa]

No, he didn’t. He noticed that Peter was dehydrated and gave him fluids, but I will for sure mention it to him next time. I think I’ll call him up and discuss it with him since, like I said, we talked about it when he had his exam. It was never cleared up that it went away – and that’s my fault, I’ll admit, because it seemed like it went away, but I should know better to take him in and check. Oh, and I forgot to mention that he’s a free roam rabbit which means he has an enclosure, but it’s always open so he’s able to roam around my room all of the time. Thank you! I’ll definitely be checking in with the vet.

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