Loss of litterbox habits

[jeszenszky.dori]

I have a 9 months old female rabbit, for more than half a year now. She is a wonderful rabbit, I love her. We do lots of excersising together, she has very good litterbox habits from a very little age. When I got her, it didn’t take more than a week to make her completely litter trained. Now, our problems started around a month ago and it’s getting worse and worse… She started to hump my leg. All day, all night, whenever I let her out of her cage. (yes, she is a female rabbit…) and than, she is started to poop everywhere. And now, we’re at a stage where she pees literally everywhere. She has a very big, home made cage with two floors. Nothing on the side, the cage sits on a wood “floor” made for her, and she has a second floor as well. It was not a problem, her cage was always nice and clean. But now, even inside her cage she refuses to use her litter box. Instead, she pees on the floor and then SITS in it. I’m so concerned. I already washed the whole cage twice with vinegar+water to get the smell away, so maybe she wont pee there… Didn’t work. I’m so frustrated, it’s getting out of hand. Please, if you have any idea what to do, tell me! I’m trying everything, I’m thinking of completely changing her cage, but I don’t know what I need to make it stop. 

(Please excuse my English, I’m not a native speaker.)

[BanditCamp]

This is territorial behavior that comes with not spaying or neutering your rabbit. She’s announcing that everything she pees is hers and wants to let other rabbits know it. I would make an appointment to get her spayed and in two weeks everything should settle down

[pinknfwuffy]

Hi Jeszenszky, I’m sorry to hear that your rabbit it having a hard time with her litter box. I have to ask – Is she spayed? This behavior, as well as the humping, is often because an unfixed rabbit is hormonal. Spaying her will help calm down her marking and help prevent accidents.

Beyond getting her spayed, I would suggest adding another littler box to her cage (if possible). Does she pee in the same place pretty often? She might be telling you that she prefers to go there and you should move the litter box to that spot. Does she seem otherwise like herself – eating, drinking, and acting normally? A infection or urinary problem could be making her incontinent. It might be worth a trip to the vet to be sure it is just her bad habits and not a medical problem.

You are right to use the vinegar to get rid of the smell. Keep cleaning the area and put any poops into the litter box as soon as you see them (the rabbit, too, if you catch her in the act). It could be a phase and she needs more reminders to get it right. If she is fixed and any medical issues is ruled out, keep trying and give it time. They can be stubborn.

[jeszenszky.dori]

Thank you for your answers! No, she is not spayed yet, and I’m a bit afraid of it to be honest. I’ve read lots of bad experiences with the surgery, and even my vet said it’s not necessary if she is the only rabbit I have. But now I’m not sure, it doesn’t seem fine to her either, she looks pretty frustrated. I got her checked, no medical issues, she is very healthy. and, 100% female, vet approved. I’d like to sort this problem out really soon, and let her free roam in the house again! What are your experiences with spaying/neutering? Is it really that common, a rabbit to not wake up after the surgery?

[flemishwhite]

Posted By jeszenszky.dori on 4/11/2017 3:41 PM


and even my vet said it’s not necessary if she is the only rabbit I have. What are your experiences with spaying/neutering? Is it really that common, a rabbit to not wake up after the surgery?

For a female rabbit, spaying is a necessity. If your vet said it’s not necessary, I can’t believe he/she is familiar with rabbits.  Female rabbits have a 90%+ probability of developing uterine cancer by the age of 5 years.  We had our first girl spayed when she was five and the vet said she had several tumors in her uteris.  Fortunately the cancer had not spread (metastasized).   Rabbits need a special anesthesia gas.  I’ve had three female rabbits spayed with no problems, but the vet we use has training to work with rabbits.  Rabbit teeth are always growing and if the teeth get too long, they need to be anesthetized for the vet to grind their teeth down.

If rabbit’s teeth become to long, chewing becomes painful, they won’t properly chew their food, and the improperly chewed food will clog their stomach resulting in death…it’s called gastrointestinal statis, more commonly called GI statis. 

[Wick & Fable]

Honestly, if that’s what your vet said, I would see if there are more experienced vets in rabbit surgery around you. You want someone with intimate knowledge and experience with spaying/neutering rabbits, and someone who says a female rabbit shouldn’t be spayed is a bit questionable. They may have surface level knowledge, but a vet familiar with rabbits would know about the chances of uterine cancer and how sexually frustrated rabbits can turn to self-destructive and detrimental behavior, both to themselves and others.

Wick just had his first procedure done; it was his first molar grinding (back molars were getting too long, had to cut them). Wick is a 5mo Netherland Dwarf, so he’s young and small. Additionally, he’s a runt, so he’s smaller and less-developed than others his age. He has also been on antibiotic medications since 9wo, taking dosages twice a day, every day, in addition to receiving injections every 3 days. He had an episode of being underweight, so he went through syringe feeding as well…. point is, Wick is by no means a 100% healthy rabbit. That being said, when I mentioned to my vet about changes in his fecal size and sudden resurgence of pees and water consumption, she immediately said after a brief look, “It’s probably his teeth. If you’d like, we can grind the molars down now, since I won’t be able to get a clear look until he’s asleep.” We went back a week later to have it done, and aside from being a wagon without its back wheels for 2 minutes (vet told us his butt would wake up after his front, haha; it really did!), he was back to being chipper and great. He was fed one syringe of food for a boost of nutrients before leaving. And actually, he’s happier than ever. Once he got home, he practically melted when pet because he was so relieved and relaxed. Knowing Wick’s health conditions very well, my vet did not hesitate to advise a procedure that would put him under, because she knows he’ll be able to wake up.

If a vet does not have confidence (or a good track record), do not go to that vet for procedures. I’m sorry if this is bad for your vet’s business, but it’s true. Rabbit operations need to be performed by vets who have experience and expertise with rabbits.

The answers provided in this discussion are for general guideline purposes only. The information is not intended to diagnose or treat your pet. Seek the advice of your veterinarian or a qualified behaviorist.

[vanessa]

I agree with the rest. I’v had 2 females spayed and 2 males neutered, and I adopted a freshly neutered male. Surgery complications might be scary, but they are rare. Today’s medical knowledge has made it more safe to use anesthesia on rabbits. And like the others said, you’ll need to have your rabbit’s teeth checked too – so definitely the possibility of more anesthesia. And find a different vet. This one has no idea what he/she is talking about. Depending on the source, 80-90% chance of a female rabbit getting uterine cancer by age 5 if not spayed. Spaying will calm down the hormones and sexual frustration, and yru bunny will be sweet again, will stop humping yoru legs, and her litter habits will return. An unspayed female will also go throuigh false pregnancies, pulling out her fur to line a nest, getting hormonal and grumpy.

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