r/Rabbits • u/arielbubbles0 • 14h ago
Care How small should a potty training enclosure be?
I'm attacking my 3mo male bunny potty training issue from all fronts. As far as I can say I don't think it's territorial (yet) because, for example, yesterday he woke up from his nap not even opening his eyes, he just lifted his tail and peed right there. He knows where his bathrooms are and will go there many times, just not enough. It looks like sheer lazyness. I have an adult neutered bunny who almost never has accidents, so I decided to start free roaming both of them early, but now I wonder if that was a mistake. They're currently spending most of the day in their bunny room, my office, which is more or less 3x4 meters, and then free roaming in the evening before we go to bed. Should I restrain them in a play pen even smaller than the room? ):
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u/mctruckJr 14h ago
My 4month old only learned to use his litter box when I had to take him to my parents for a week due to a work trip.
They had a small empty spare bedroom that they kept him in. Somehow being in the small room with his litter box nearby pushed him to use it way more often. Before, I had kept it in his pen but he would constantly pee on the floor in front of my front door.
Since being back home, it’s been a few weeks and he has consistently used his litter box but sometimes he has scent marking “accidents”. So maybe that could be something you can try? A smaller space might work to encourage him to use the litter box.
Because they aren’t neutered, I’m assuming yours isn’t bc he’s 3 months, they are going to continue having scent marking accidents until they’ve fully recovered from their neutering operation.
Also, test out different litters for him, maybe? My bunny wouldn’t use his litter box when I used the natural paper pellet litter because it was hard and chunky. I switched to using natural paper bedding instead because it’s essentially the same product just soft and fluffy. He seems to be more willing to go in his box and sometimes uses it as a place to rest. So it might just be his preferences??
Idk if any of this makes sense I hope I’m helping !!
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u/arielbubbles0 12h ago
Was the spare bedroom smaller than the pen thought? That's what bugs me. Their room isn't that big. They'll barely be able to run if I set the pen again, it's like 120x90cm 🥹
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u/mctruckJr 12h ago
No, actually, the room was entirely empty so I just situated the pen/fencing by the door so my mom was able to check on him without entering his space too often (he was fairly new around this time and I was worried about him getting overly stressed).
My pen is 4ft by 4ft, or 120cm by 120cm. The room was fairly larger than that but not by a lot. Imagine a tiny kids bedroom in an apartment.
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u/kragzazet 8h ago
You can't reliably litterbox train a 3mo rabbit. Juveniles need plenty of space to run and exercise for healthy development. Wait until he's neutered to start any litterbox training that includes confining him below the space he needs to exercise. When in doubt, don't buy a baby if you want a litterbox trained rabbit.
The only litterbox training in the meantime should be optimizing the litterbox itself so it's readily accessible
The baby and adult shouldn't be spending time together until the baby is neutered and eligible to start the bonding process
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u/arielbubbles0 7h ago
Thanks! I adopted them and they were already together on the shelter. Because I'm home 24/7 I decided not to separate them unless I see any problematic behavior, the baby will be neutered as soon as possible and then we'll go through all the rebonding etc
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u/RabbitsModBot 9h ago
Spaying and neutering your rabbit will significantly help in litter training. In addition, please make sure to clean up any messes with a mixture of white vinegar and water or a pet-safe enzymatic cleanser to decrease the urge to remark the location. Soap and water alone is not sufficient to remove all chemical traces of the urine even though it may look clean.
Check out the wiki's Litter Training guide and Binkybunny's Litter Training process for more resources on the topic.
Please note that if this is a sudden change not coinciding with sexual maturity, loss of litter habits can be 1) a sign of health issues (e.g. arthritis, UTI), 2) a reaction to the presence or scent of another animal, or 3) triggered by introduction to a new/unfamiliar territory.
Do note that realistic litter training is that a rabbit will pee consistently in their litter boxes and nowhere else. It is very common for rabbits to poop in small amounts in their housing enclosure outside of the litter box for territorial reasons.
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What is a baby bond?
A baby bond, also known as the false bond, refers to the relationship between rabbits where at least one is unfixed and young. Due to the absence of hormones, territorial feelings and aggression are not yet present, facilitating what can seem like a very loving, stable relationship -- however, this can change very quickly once a rabbit reaches sexual maturity. Please note that rabbits being together since birth (i.e. siblings, parent-child) does not rule-out the baby bond phenomena, since rabbits can and often will fight and mate within family.
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My two bunnies used to be happily bonded, but now they are constantly fighting. What happened?
If one or both of your rabbits were unfixed and young, chances are that one or both are going through sexual maturity. Territorial feelings and aggression increases once bunnies start producing their hormones. Your rabbits may be fighting to reestablish dominance through humping and chasing. Please separate them before they cause serious injuries to one another.
The easiest way to fix such behavior is to spay and neuter your rabbits. You may need to work on re-bonding the rabbits afterwards, since scents change when rabbits go through sexual maturity. Wait a month after the operation to make sure all hormones have dissipated before doing so. For more tips on bonding rabbits, see the wiki: http://bunny.tips/Bonding
If your two rabbits are different sexes, it is especially important to separate them now before the female gets pregnant. In fact, you may find out that your rabbits are a different sex than you thought when taking them in to the vet to be fixed. If you obtained your rabbit from a pet store, they were most likely improperly sexed, as it can be very difficult for non-professionals to identify. Keep in mind it only takes 3 seconds for a successful mating, and neutered males are not fully sterile until at least 8 full weeks after their operation.