NEED HELP ASAP!! Sudden change in litter habits

[elliekim91]

 Hi guys  I’ve had my bunny for almost two years now…he’s the only pet in the house, neutered, and fully litter trained. Always uses the litter box in his cage and outside his cage, I’ve never had problems with accidents after he was potty trained and neutered. I also just took him to the vet about a week ago, and he has no health problems or parasites or anything like that.

So my problem is…I recently moved to a new house about a week ago. I know rabbits are territorial and hate changes in their environment, so I’m thinking this is the reason why his litter habits have drastically changed. He’s been peeing EVERYWHERE in his cage EXCEPT his litter box…to the point where the cage will be completely soaked and his feet and fur near his bottom are matted when I take him out. I’ve been trying to change the newspaper and bedding as often as I can during the day, but I can’t keep watch overnight, y’know? It’s always soaked in the morning when I wake up. His litter box is in the right corner of the cage, but he’s recently taken to peeing on the left side of the cage right near his food, something he’s never done.
He’s also been peeing around the house…I’ve let him have free reign of the living room and kitchen, as the rooms aren’t that big, and he had free reign at the old house anyway. He’s peed in various spots around these rooms (I know he’s probably just marking his territory in a new place) so I’ve just cleaned those up as well as quickly as possible. The strange thing is that he uses his litter box outside of the cage pretty consistently…but still pees around the house. Not exactly spots either, more like puddles, so I don’t know if that’s still considered marking.

I don’t know what to do anymore though…I’m really anxious about him. It’s been more than a week and nothing has improved. His eating habits and times are all the same, food is the same, everything in the cage is set up the same way (I tried moving the litter box to the left corner to see if he liked it, but he ended up peeing in the right corner where the box used to be  he seems to just want to avoid it) and the only thing that has changed is the new house, and I guess the placement of the cage (it used to be in front of the fireplace at the old house, now it’s against a wall next to the fireplace). Also, he used to spend a lot of time with my mom but she doesn’t live in the new place so maybe that’s why he’s extra stressed out? I understand rabbits hate changes in their environment and get stressed easily, but I’m wondering how much time I need to give him to get used to his new home. Should I not let him run around the living room and kitchen at first until he’s used to the cage? Or continue to let him have free reign of the rooms? And is there any way I can persuade him to start using his litter box in the cage?

Sorry, I’m kind of freaking out because I don’t know what to do…I just hate leaving him in the cage when he’s sitting on soaked bedding and getting dirty  If anyone has any ideas or solutions or any advice, please let me know!! It would be much appreciated 
 

[RabbitPam]

Sorry I didn’t see this until today, but I hope I can help.
First, yes, he is marking his new territory, and you are right about their resistance to change. My first suggestion is to remove all newspaper and bedding from his cage, as this is never a good idea when getting them to use a litter box. It is confusing, even if he’s used to it from before. I would remove it, clean his cage, and bear with him a bit longer when he pees in the cage without the bedding.
I would also suggest a bigger, new litter pan. It may not seem right to change his stuff now, but he might use it more, especially if it has fresh litter that he likes. Be sure you’re using what he is used to and likes for litter. Put it in the left corner, and if he still goes in the right corner, you can try putting the other one in that corner for a little while. (I know it will cramp him, but it’s one option.) That way he will probably get the message that the place to go is only in the litter pan(s). When you mop up pee in his cage, use a paper towel and put it, or a piece of it, into his litter pans. That puts his scent in there and is also a message to go there.

Did the new house have a pet in it? Because sometimes he can smell a former animal and is very busy marking, as well as afraid there may be one in the house. I would clean your house where he’s peed with a 50/50% mix of white vinegar and water, from a spray bottle. It will eliminate any other animal odor and also clean his own pee odor. It is mildly distasteful to bunnies, so will keep him from peeing in those spots again. (Hopefully). Clean his cage with it, then rinse well with water, in case he got something there that is upsetting him and he can’t mask with his pee.

I would only let him out for supervised free time while you’re with him and put him back or into his outer litter pan the second you see his tail go up. This should help him learn that he needs to pee only in litter pans. You’re basically starting over, but he is stressed and he needs to know what is his. He can stay in his cage longer until he gets settled into good habits again. I would do this for the next week at least.

FInally, be mindful that this may be due to an illness even though he’s seen a vet. I am glad you already had him examined so that makes it unlikely. I also agree that he is missing your mother. It’s harder for some bunnies to adapt to change than others, but all need to keep their stuff, their routines, their food and time of eating the same for a smooth transition. He can explore the new house once it is free of strange odors, but remember that it’s more scary to him than fun at first, and let him explore one room at a time slowly. He can also hear strange noises outside that you can’t, so he may be frightened by dogs barking or trucks or birds on occasion that you don’t notice. It all leads to bad litter habits.
Keep us posted on how it goes.

[RabbitPam]

P.S. I think 2 pans in one cage may be difficult, so if you get a bigger, more comfortable one you could just switch sides if he switches sides again. Otherwise, a second one that is the same size as his old one can be in each corner. I advocate going up a size as they get older, because they often like to just hang out in it, and it gives them room to use different corners within the pan itself. My Sammy looks like she’s in a boat now, it’s so big, but she turns around and uses each corner and obviously loves it.

[elliekim91]

First of all, thank you so much for your reply, much appreciated

I did everything you suggested above for the past few days…good news is, he’s greatly improved on using his litter box outside the cage. He’s pretty much stopped marking around the house so I think we’re good there. The vinegar and water mix worked!
As for using the litter box inside the cage, he is still having problems I tried moving it to the left corner where he always goes, but then he peed in the right corner! It’s almost as if he’s intentionally avoiding the litter box for some reason. I put the wet paper towel and some of his pellets in there as well, but nothing. I also spoke with the previous tenant and she said there weren’t any pets in the house.
I forgot to mention one thing in my first post – the first two nights in the new house, his cage was in my room because there was no space to put it in the living room. Those first two nights didn’t present a problem, he was using his litter box like he normally does. The problem only started when we moved him into the living room on the third night…could this have something to do with it? Maybe he doesn’t like to be alone in a new environment, or he feels anxious?

It’s almost been two weeks in the new place so I’m very much hoping he fixes his litter habits soon as he gets used to the place. If there is still no improvement, I guess I have no choice than to get him a bigger litter box for the cage even if it crowds him.

If you have any other suggestions please let me know!

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