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BUNNY 911 – If your rabbit hasn’t eaten or pooped in 12-24 hours, call a vet immediately!  Don’t have a vet? Check out VET RESOURCES 

The subject of intentional breeding or meat rabbits is prohibited. The answers provided on this board are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet.  It is your responsibility to assess the information being given and seek professional advice/second opinion from your veterinarian and/or qualified behaviorist.

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    • Mylin
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        Typically I visit the forums in times of need and now is certainly a time. I’ve been having all sorts of behavoiral problems with my little Pistachio. She will be turning four months in the next two days and is currently not spayed which I understand can be an attribute to some of the issues I am facing. However I cannot wait for another two months to hope things are fixed, I need some sort of solution now. 

        I’ve been back and forth in regards of litter training and bad habits that she has picked up in the course of time I have had her and with my last visit here I thought I had a break through. Turns out, not so much. Progress had been made in regards to her litter training and all was well when something suddenly flipped a switch. Little Pistachio has now taking to peeing everywhere! She is constantly soiling my pillows, bed, carpet, blankets, clothes, school books and she would have nearly had my laptop had I not lunged in and took the hit in my hand. (Ick). I don’t know what has come over hee. Typically cupping my hand under her bum to usher her to her litter box would work but now she goes regardless of my hand being there or not. It’s a complete nightmare. I’m constantly having more and more soiled items and I really can’t afford to allow this behavior. Its so bad, I can’t even keep up with laundry. My bed has been stripped of all my sheets and I”m sleeping in a sleeping bag on my bed. (Which she managed to pee on as well. Fortunately the sleeping bag is waterproof and it wipes right off). 

        Another problem I have been having is with her constant escapes. Recently, I had invested in a pen too allow her space outside of the cage. I made this decision after suffering through nights of her rattling her cage door in demands to be set free. Just as I was led on with the litter training, I thought this was the great and powerful answer to my troubles. She was able to go in and out of her cage as she pleased and had extra room to exercise for when I was away during the day. I was even able to sleep at night! Then it happened one late night/early morning. I woke up to some movement at the foot of my bed. You can imagine the slight panic attack I had when I saw something black dash across my room. Blind with my glasses and squinting in the dark, I started where I last saw something when she suddenly revealed herself to be the movement but jumping on my face. It was cute at first ( once I gotten over the initial scare ) since she would sit on her hind legs and put her front paws on my cheek but then it started happening every night/early morning. I made sure to locate her escape route (she learned to hop on top of her cage so she can then hop over the gate) and I blocked it off. Only she has learned to even hop over the wall I set up using a yoga mat and board. I’m really at a lost. Regards of how I fortify the pen, she learns to escape. I’ve seen her wall jump to get out, no kidding! 

        Adding her ninja escape artist skills with the flood gates of her bladder and I’m stuck with a serious problem. I’ve come home several times to her outside of her pen, only to play a long scavenger hunt to find all the items she managed to pee or chew on. The only solution I have managed to come across is to lock her back up in the cage which takes me back to square one. Her habit to rattle the cage door nonstop until she is set free. I’m really at the end of my rope. She is an adorable rabbit who doesn’t mind my constant picture taking and can often be found laying at my feet spread out on her stomach/side. I mean, when she isn’t driving me crazy, I truly enjoy her company and the fact that we can just lay there for a good half hour or more while I just pet her. But with all this negative behavior, cute as she may be there isn’t much I can do. What’s worse is I am beginning to question whether or not the rabbit is the pet for me. I’ve never given up on an animal, but if I don’t solve this issue I don’t know what else I can do. I risk my stuff being ruined and upsetting my landlord with the mess she is making. 

        Please help me! I’ve also included a link to my last thread which elaborates a bit more. (   https://binkybunny.com/tabid/54/…fault.aspx   

        EDITED , Sorry saw lots of typos when I initially wrote it up. Should be good now.


      • Sarita
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        18851 posts Send Private Message

          It sounds to me that she is not ready to have free roam and you must for now keep her in a small space and retrain her.

          Tell me more about the pen – what kind and what is the height – perhaps that is the problem.


        • Sindri
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          1515 posts Send Private Message

            It would be helpful to see picture of your cage/pen set up to give you some more advice.


          • Beka27
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              When you’re not home to supervise or sleeping, can you cover the pen with a sheet clipped to the top to keep her contained? You may need to just severely reduce her access until she can be spayed. So either pick up EVERYTHING in your room so there isn’t anything for her to pee on, or consider relocating her to another area where you have more control over the surroundings (like a kitchen with tile/linoleum floors for example).

              At 4 months old, she’s just now becoming hormonal, so unfortunately, it’s really just a matter of being creative and finding solutions to protect your stuff until she can be spayed.


            • Mylin
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                The pen I bought her is two feet tall, and I bought it from PetSmart. I was originally looking for one that is taller however I wasn’t able to find one so I settled with this. I have never seen her escape over the fence. She puts her focus on escape by jumping on top of her cage. When I first realized she can hop on her cage, I then put the Board with the yoga mat over it so it blocked off her exit by the top of the cage which still managed to get through. So far the last revision to the wall set up is added an extra board to make sure she cannot go around the first board anymore and I’be connected the curtain to the wall as well so she can’t pass on the otherside. I have also added height to the wall with flattened box. I have started just making sure she was away in her pen whenever I am not present simply because I don’t want to leave the chance of her escaping. When I am present I let her out in the pen and when I’m trying to play with her I open the pen so that she has access to more space but I still block off my TV and Clothes. However during this time she has access to my bed which I monitor however still find she is fixated on peeing on it. 

                I did my best to include a picture showing the pen set up. Since she’s being hormonal I’m guessing the only solution is to keep her in the pen until spayed? And I might try covering the top of the cage. Relocating is off the table unfortunately though. I rent a small room so we both share the space. The current set gives her about one third of the room. It’s also the reason why my bed is in such close quarters. 

                https://db.tt/pWzpd9Aw


              • Beka27
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                  The picture is very helpful, thank you.

                  I think you’ve come up with the best solution. The cage is a large size and appears to meet the minimum requirements, big enough for her to be closed in at night and when you’re not home. The extended pen makes her area quite a bit larger and should be fine for her exercise space for the next few months until you can get her habits under control.

                  She may not be able to be on your bed, even after spaying. Rabbits like to mark beds/couches b/c they smell so strongly of us. This is a bridge you can cross when you get there.

                  Have you considered building a NIC condo? It looks like the wall that the cage is on is empty. You could make the condo base the same size as the cage is now and build up 3-4 levels. That would increase the vertical space and she wouldn’t be able to hop on top of it to get over the pen. Just a thought…

                  Or… Have you tried rotating the cage and moving it against the other wall there? Next to your NIC storage cubes but in the corner? She wouldn’t be able to use it to hop the fence that way either.


                • Sindri
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                  1515 posts Send Private Message

                    I agree with Beka27 on this. A NIC condo would be a good idea as well. I wish I could be of further help. She does look like she has good area to play in.


                  • Mylin
                    Participant
                    20 posts Send Private Message

                      I originally had the cage against the other wall but that left her very little room to run around in because as soon as she hopped out of the cage my bed would be right there. Back then we didn’t have any escape problems but she also didn’t really have the ability to run around freely.

                      I’ve been keeping her in the pen for the last few days which bas made me happier but now I’m not sure how happy she is. I don’t see her playing with any of her toys, besides the general shredding of newspapers, nor is she binkying, which was a normal occurrence when she is outside the pen? Should I be worried about this? All the activity she seems to do now is eat. She doesn’t even bother laying on her side now. I really can’t have her ruining more of my furniture and belongings but I was hoping that keeping her in the pen would not have to come at her expense.

                      I have also considered the building of a NIC condo but I don’t have much space in her pen. Or my room as a matter of fact. I’m sure she would like it but I’m trying to avoid too much stuff in my room. It is something I have in my mind to build once I have a bigger living space which I am hoping will be in the new future.

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                  Forum BEHAVIOR Why you do that bunbun?