Just adopted a bunny - Paw Talk

beccalj · #1 03-28-2008, 12:05 AM

I just adopted a bunny and he (I think) is about a year old or so. I read what Kibblesmom wrote and I was wondering how I can train my bunny. he poops ALL over, not just one corner of the cage, in the house ALL over. He doesn't let us pick him up but we can pet him, he won't come to us when we call him and offer healthy treats. I have tried litter in the cage and outside the cage, sometimes he uses it in cage but not always. HELP, I want to enjoy my bunny; not just look at him all day!!

Kendalle · #2 03-28-2008, 12:10 AM

part of his pooping everywhere might be hes nervous, since you just got him give him time. put all his poops in a litter box and maybe start out in a smaller room

I know alot of bunnies don't like being picked up and you must have their trust to be able to so with out stressing you both out

Luckybunny · #3 03-28-2008, 12:24 AM

If your bunny is about one year old he may be marking his territory. Both my buns were pretty good at using the litterbox in the beginning. As they got to be 6 - 7 months things changed and they started going everywhere. The male was a lot better though. As soon as he was neutered he had returned to using the litterbox perfectly (it is strongly recommended). We had a litterbox in the cage and one outside the cage. For a while it seemed he did not use the inside litterbox all through the night and would be tugging on the cage door early in the morning to be let out so he could use the outside litterbox. Eventually we moved the outside litterbox almost beside the indoor box (just the cage wire separated them) and he started using the indoor one all of the time. Only one is used now. I would try loading the litterbox full of hay to entice him in. It is also suggested to limit the area the bunny has to play in until they are litter trained. Once they are more successful then you allow them more access.

What kind of litter are you using? My buns prefer yesterday's news...paper pellets. It is pretty economical.

beccalj · #4 03-29-2008, 12:49 AM

ok, so should we be using like a real litter box like for cats? because i just have a small "dish" in the corners of the cage with litter pellets and I put another small "dish" outside the cage witht the same stuff in it.

Luckybunny · #5 03-29-2008, 01:20 AM

I use a plastic dish pan that goes in the sink. I think cat litterboxes/plastic dish tubs work better because they can turn around in there, dig and munch hay. There is not much room in the corner pans. Lucky used to spend the night trying to flip it over all of the time, that is why I switched to a dish pan.

Angelnstuff · #6 03-29-2008, 01:24 AM

As Kendalle said.. the dropping poos everywhere is prolly him marking his space and it should settle down after awhile. our rabbit didnt do it much until we moved to a new house, then she started doing it all over again, but after a week or two she got more comfortable and only does it once in awhile.

Ours mostly just has a litter box in her cage. We have a big catbox type one that we set up when shes out, but mostly she uses the little one in her cage.. its a little corner one sorta like this.. http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=2753367 we didnt used the little pellet things that came with it, We use Aspen chips. which work pretty well. and the scoop is cute, but doesnt do much good. But the little box works great for ours. In reality her little box should be bigger. Ive been told a lot of rabbits like to sit or sleep in there litter pan so it should be big enough for that, and it should always have some hay in it, to make it more appealing.. rabbits like to eat a bit as they go. A bit of advice tho, you should look for a litter box with a higher back on it.. which is why i like the corner ones.. because some rabbits sorta back into a corner to go, and will sometimes miss the box

This is the kind we got for when shes out playing http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=3052368 the white part comes off, which was kinda nice since its a bit high with it on, so we left it off until she was used to the litter box but with it on it helps keep the hay and litter from being kicked out and spread all over

**Dragonrain** · #7 03-29-2008, 10:02 AM

Everyone here is giving great advice!

I just thought I'd point out that there is another recent discussion about litter training that you might find helpful to read. Here it is!

http://www.paw-talk.net/forums/showthread.php?t=47184

oreyo · #8 03-29-2008, 01:04 PM

u should not worry most new bunnies do that for territorial things and because their scared or nervous my bunnies did that just give him sometime and he'll get used to u. IDK iv never met a bunny who doesnt like to be held but i know theirs alot but let him get used to u and trust and then he will probably let u hold him. just give him sometime to get used to u and then he will become ur bestfriend..... thats what happened to all or most of us. but the most important thing to do is let him get ur trust if a rabbit doesnt trust u then he willl not let u do anything to him.

Mommy of 9 · #9 04-01-2008, 10:20 AM

I was told that bunnies will poop where ever whenever!

My buns are trained to pee in the box and they poop but they still poop everywhere in cage!

I can really train them to poop in ONLY there liter pan? I have a corner box which I think is now to small for Aphrodite! But she is still using it! I just have to built them a bigger cage for them to have a bigger liter box!

I will keep trying now that I know they will maybe use only there liter box!!

beccalj · #10 04-02-2008, 01:48 AM

Awesome! I got rid of the corner pans and just put one big pan in the cage and he's using it a lot more! Thanks so much!
Now, about training? When it is time to put him back into the cage we are chasing him around the house looking like weirdos! And he'll kick like crazy if we try to pick him up. I tried coaxing him with treats but it doesn't work. Advise needed!!!!

**Dragonrain** · #11 04-02-2008, 07:34 AM

Quote:


	I can really train them to poop in ONLY there liter pan?

Yup! Great, isn't it? It's usually much easier to completly litter train them when they're fixed though.

Quote:


	When it is time to put him back into the cage we are chasing him around the house looking like weirdos! And he'll kick like crazy if we try to pick him up. I tried coaxing him with treats but it doesn't work. Advise needed!!!!

If he doesn't like being picked up, you should try not to do it unless you really have too. And you probably shouldn't be chasing him around everyday, because I imagion that frightens him and you want to be working on gaining his trust.

Start out by only letting him out in a small area of the house, near his cage. He should see his cage as a safe zone so that he'll return to it. Let him out in the small area, and when you want him to go back into his cage, put something really tastey in his cage for him. If he's only in a small area, he should eventually notice the treat and go back into his cage to eat it. It might take some time, but wait for him to return himself. You can teach him a command for when you want him to go in his cage, like I tell my bunnies that it's time for bed, and they know that means that if they go in their cage they'll get a treat. When he goes in his cage, close the door and give him another small treat, and say the command.

After awhile he should get it, and you can let him run around the whole house instead of just the small area. But make sure the area he runs around in is bunny proofed, because he'll get into trouble if it isn't!

Luckybunny · #12 04-02-2008, 10:38 AM

Yup! We used the treat to lure him back in. He would grab it as quickly as he could and run back out before we could get the cage closed to eat it in the middle of the room. Then we made him go to the top level of his cage to get the treat (harder to escape then). Now he just goes in for his pellets as his treat. He knows that when the pellets come out that it is time to go in. I really believe that rabbits crave routine. Like I said, if his playtime was cut short he was very stubborn about going back. He just seems to know.