Chewing on his litter pan - Paw Talk

pet_paradise_lp · #1 06-09-2009, 08:35 AM

for the longest time turbo has been chewing something in his cage that i was unable to figure out. what a gross sound almost like he was popping through something ... well sure enough ... i found him chewing on his litter pan today and i can't get him to stop.

any suggestions: how to stop him? will it harm him? why does he chew it?

Jennicat · #2 06-09-2009, 08:37 AM

He's probably extremely bored and hungry. Did you ever give him the correct type of hay?

pet_paradise_lp · #3 06-09-2009, 08:41 AM

yeah. he has timmothy. exactly what the pet store gave me. he has food i gave him a treat he has all the hay he could need he has toys in his cage and he never plays with them.

Jennicat · #4 06-09-2009, 08:42 AM

What kinds of toys does he have?

pet_paradise_lp · #5 06-09-2009, 08:46 AM

he has a blanket that covers his house that has a rattle in it. he has 3 little balls that have bells in them that he never plays with. he has a few little wooden toys that look like corn something green and a carrot.

Jennicat · #6 06-09-2009, 08:48 AM

It sounds like he needs more bunny appropriate toys. Rattles and things like that aren't generally stuff that bunnies like. Cardboard boxes, grass mats, and organic baskets that they can chew on and destroy are much more fun for rabbits. Chewing is how they amuse themselves, and he doesn't have much to chew for fun.

**Dragonrain** · #7 06-09-2009, 08:49 AM

Does he have other things to chew on? Wooden toys, untreated willow, apple branches, untreated rabbit safe wood...anything like that? My rabbits looooove to chew on unpeeled willow toys.

Also, do you give him time out of his cage to exercise and play? He should get at least a couple of hours of out of cages time a day to let him streach his legs and help keep him from getting bored.

pet_paradise_lp · #8 06-09-2009, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dragonrain


	Does he have other things to chew on? Wooden toys, untreated willow, apple branches, untreated rabbit safe wood...anything like that? My rabbits looooove to chew on unpeeled willow toys. Also, do you give him time out of his cage to exercise and play? He should get at least a couple of hours of out of cages time a day to let him streach his legs and help keep him from getting bored.

yes he has 3 rabbit safe wooden toys, they are untreated. he hates them, or at least he leads me to believe it. he gets 3 hours of floor time with 30 minute breaks to potty and get water or food or hay. thats normally from 12-3.

pet_paradise_lp · #9 06-09-2009, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jennicat


	It sounds like he needs more bunny appropriate toys. Rattles and things like that aren't generally stuff that bunnies like. Cardboard boxes, grass mats, and organic baskets that they can chew on and destroy are much more fun for rabbits. Chewing is how they amuse themselves, and he doesn't have much to chew for fun.

where can i buy these baskets, he loved destroying my easter basket but where can i get one thats safe for him?

pet_paradise_lp · #10 06-09-2009, 09:05 AM

is it SAFE for him to chew this litter pan or should i try to stop it.

Jennicat · #11 06-09-2009, 01:40 PM

No, it's not ideal, he can ingest the plastic on the litterbox.

Many online places have bunny safe baskets and willow for sale. I like BinkyBunny:

www.binkybunny.com

pet_paradise_lp · #12 06-09-2009, 02:11 PM

thank you soo much i'll buy some stuff now so it'll be in soon

kathydip · #13 06-09-2009, 09:04 PM

I gave Oliver a a heavy (for a bunny) piece of scrap wood my hubby had in his scrap pile. He likes to pick it up and drop it so it bangs on the floor. We can hear it when we are watching TV downstairs or when we are in bed at night.
They also like plastic cat toys they can pick up and throw. Teddy loves to use old blankies as his "burrow" and makes "tunnels" under them. I throw toys under them for him. We also have some cardboard tubes used for making cement pillars. They like to run through them.
I have various toys tied to the baby gate of Teddy's room. I used sisal rope or zip ties to attach a baby toy, wooden bunner toys, I have even shoved toilet paper rolls through it so he can tug on them.
Good luck!

Oh and you can try using ivory bar soap on the edges of the box to discourage the chewing. It needs to be reapplied often. I used to use it on the baseboards but gave up! The buns won - I (and the baseboards) lost.

pet_paradise_lp · #14 06-10-2009, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kathydip


	I gave Oliver a a heavy (for a bunny) piece of scrap wood my hubby had in his scrap pile. He likes to pick it up and drop it so it bangs on the floor. We can hear it when we are watching TV downstairs or when we are in bed at night. They also like plastic cat toys they can pick up and throw. Teddy loves to use old blankies as his "burrow" and makes "tunnels" under them. I throw toys under them for him. We also have some cardboard tubes used for making cement pillars. They like to run through them. I have various toys tied to the baby gate of Teddy's room. I used sisal rope or zip ties to attach a baby toy, wooden bunner toys, I have even shoved toilet paper rolls through it so he can tug on them. Good luck! Oh and you can try using ivory bar soap on the edges of the box to discourage the chewing. It needs to be reapplied often. I used to use it on the baseboards but gave up! The buns won - I (and the baseboards) lost.

i would have never thought of ivory soap ...
and turbo has a peice of wood to play with he doesn't
he has cat toys called "midnight crazies" ... which is very ironic.
he liked the easter basket i had but i was afraid that the wood was treated so i didn't let him chew on it. it was an average colored basket from walmart. not really sure.

turbo isn't himself today though, he's tired. i assume its because of out late night playing and humidity and heat outside.

i'll let him rest and if it becomes a problem i think i'll have to take him to the vet

marmalade · #15 06-15-2009, 03:51 PM

Yeah, be careful with that litter box chewing. My old bunny LOVED plastics and rubbers, but they can be pretty dangerous if they're ingested. Sometimes the plastics break down in their stomach and can release dangerous chemicals that stop everything from moving, which in turn creates a pretty crazy vet bill. Maybe you could have like a wooden corner box built? Or you could buy some Bitter Apple- its non toxic and its a spray, it smells and tastes terrible. We bought a bottle a couple years ago for my dog and its about 14.00 in canada but it goes a long way.