Milo

[Jack's-Jane]

Sky its not so much the non human contact but the peeing everywhere.

I did state that if we do decide to rehome him we wont be taking in another bunny and I do agree with what you said about him deserving a home of 100% love hence if I cannot offer him it thats why im suggesting I may need to rehome him as it isnt fair on him.

Lily was clearly one of a kind perhaps more that I first thought

But he is not neutered so he is bound to pee everywhere, especially as he can probably smell your other Rabbits.

 

[Sky-O]

But he is not neutered so he is bound to pee everywhere, especially as he can probably smell your other Rabbits.

The very obvious point I had forgotten when writing my last post.

 

[karen1980]

He pee's on the sofa and randomly on our front room carpet.

I put a blanket on the sofa and he pee's on it so I washed it and he pee's again on it.

He pee's in areas that Lily didnt really sit in either.

Everytime he pee's or poops we take him to his litter tray place him in it and put the offending items. I then use white vinegar on the area he's toileted on.

He doesnt seem to pee if he goes up stairs very much but does drop poops everywhere.

Ive got him down to one litter tray in his bed area he uses it mostly for wee's but not often for poo's


We havent had bunnies in the house for a long time.
Lily went to the bridge in March and I had my trio indoors for ten mins begining of june but they went in the kitchen and front room yet he only seems to want to mark the front room not the kitchen even though he goes out there

 

[Nicola1]

*big hugs* Karen, I know you are still feeling a lot of grief for Lily and you had mixed emotions about getting Milo, I think this could be why you feel this way.

It does sound like he is being territorial, a few weeks after his neuter he might be a different bunny. I've also found having a bunny from a baby makes no difference, if anything it is easier to get through to an adult as they have formed their personalities and aren't just little bundles of madness.

 

[petticoat74]

Your heart is sore from your grief from losing Lily and you are bound to compare Milo to her... but he is not her and two weeks is nothing really. Get him neutered and see how things go... Your love for Milo may just be a slow burning one!

 

[elis-mum]

when i lost Dorothy i ended up with another rabbit within days as my poor Buddy was in a terrible state on his own.

i took Maisie in and she was not at all approachable, she was virtually feral! i felt quite distant from her and struggled to forge a bond so soon while still grieving for Dot. i looked after her well but never felt close.

as time went on i watched her playing and doing binkies and being happy.. (she was as mad as a bag of frogs!) and my feelings for her stated to change. i spent more time with her, letting her come to me on her terms and slowly we started to appreciate each other.
i looked forward to seeing her as much as i did buddy and the 'stand offish' ways i found so awful now made me laugh....

i think what i am trying to say is once Milo is neutered and settled you might find happiness and rewards with him in a different way than you did with Lily.
no 2 animals will ever be the same, but each can be loved for their own personalities.

i really hope it works out for you both.. it sounds like you need each other.

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

Cutie-pie peed all over our bedroom carpet and the skirting boards. I need to get the stains out.

However, once she was spayed it stopped. The smell has gone too. Actually she was quite bad when she first arrived. Didn't use the litter tray at all. I think she must have followed what Sunshine did and finally used it. Took several weeks though.

When can you get Milo neutered ? That way you can see what the difference it makes.

 

[karen1980]

He will be neutered in 2 weeks time as Im hope all weekend with him and the vets are open all weekend.
Just come down stairs and hubby said he's pee'd again on the sofa

He's now banned from it.

 

[chul]

He will be neutered in 2 weeks time as Im hope all weekend with him and the vets are open all weekend.
Just come down stairs and hubby said he's pee'd again on the sofa

He's now banned from it.

I think you need to wait until a few months after his neuter, the poor boy is riddles with hormones at the moment!
Add time and love, and the remembrance that he is not Lily, and I am sure you will love him.

 

[Lspacehopper]

He will be neutered in 2 weeks time as Im hope all weekend with him and the vets are open all weekend.
Just come down stairs and hubby said he's pee'd again on the sofa

He's now banned from it.

Bit of advice until he's neutered. Get yourself some cheap, plain plastic shower curtains from Wilkos or a pound shop or something. Put them over the sofa to protect it. He also won't like the noise it makes when he jumps up on it.

When my Frank and Petal were indoor bunnies, before Petal was spayed she started peeing on my bed and took great delight in doing it when I was there. After spaying, it stopped.

 

[Bungle bunny]

when i lost Dorothy i ended up with another rabbit within days as my poor Buddy was in a terrible state on his own.

i took Maisie in and she was not at all approachable, she was virtually feral! i felt quite distant from her and struggled to forge a bond so soon while still grieving for Dot. i looked after her well but never felt close.

as time went on i watched her playing and doing binkies and being happy.. (she was as mad as a bag of frogs!) and my feelings for her stated to change. i spent more time with her, letting her come to me on her terms and slowly we started to appreciate each other.
i looked forward to seeing her as much as i did buddy and the 'stand offish' ways i found so awful now made me laugh....

i think what i am trying to say is once Milo is neutered and settled you might find happiness and rewards with him in a different way than you did with Lily.
no 2 animals will ever be the same, but each can be loved for their own personalities.

i really hope it works out for you both.. it sounds like you need each other.

This is a really good reply.... the only thing I would add is why dont you try going back to basics with the toilet training, you know, keeping him a relatively small area until he gets used to his litter tray and then letting him out bit by bit. This will help get him used to you too during that time as you just go and sit quietly with him. He will get used to you and if you hand feed him little treats etc. I know how frustrating it can be when buns destroy your home and pee and poop every where and I know what its like for them not to be the one you lost.

With time and patience, I know he will love you. We had 3 babies who were errified, goodness knows what had happened to them before but with time they all love their cuddlies, just be insistent but gentle.

Good luck with him, I am sure once he has been done he will be easier for you.

 

[karen1980]

Thank you for the last few replies everyone, thye have been supportive :wave:

I know it isnt is fault im having a tough time, he's almost sussed the training in his bed area I just cannot understand the front room and obsession with the sofa - Lily never went on the sofa bless her she want built for jumping. :roll: more for comfort and not speed :lol:

 

[Santa]

My first ever bunny I had as an adult used to very deliberately pee on me! He might be peeing on the sofa not because it smells of other buns, but just because it smells of something...probably you...

I'm afraid that what you're describing is perfectly normal behaviour for an unneutered buck, even in a house which has never had other bunnies in it. The fact that yours has, will just add another 'layer' to the smell, but even without that, what he's doing is perfectly normal.

I hope you can find a way to minimise the impact before he is neutered, and then give him time afterwards. Yes, this behaviour is likely to significantly diminish after neutering, but you may also need to accept that he has already left his smell in some places and may therefore be more likely to return there, so litter training may take a little longer. Hopefully it will be quick and easy, though

 

[Hc1]

you obviously miss Lily terribly. My experience is prob different to yours in that all my buns are outdoor ones, so I don't have the pee problem. My last bun, Topsy, was 8 when she died last year. She was amazingly affectionate, she never tried to escape, or destroyed my garden, as soon as I went into the garden, she'd come hopping over to me for cuddles. She was so happy and contented. she had a few health problems, and I had a few bad times, and I always felt like the 2 of us got each other through everything. After she died, because her partner Oliver looked lost, we got 2 does to keep him company.

They wouldn't let me come near them, they ran away every time I went into the garden, they dug everywhere, escaped a few times (once before they'd been spayed, then one started nesting but thankfully it was a false pregnancy. They generally caused havoc (and still do). I wished I had Topsy back (and still do). I really miss the affection that I got from her. I did wonder if I had done wrong getting the 2 girls,but they have grown on me very slowly. only in the last week or so, have they actually come up to me and taken a treat from my hand. Such a small thing, but it was a huge deal to me. It's taken 8 months and they'll tolerate me much closer now but still want me at arms length. It's so hard but I wouldn't give up those little monkeys now. I thought I had got over losing Topsy but I'm crying typing this, just thinking about her. I hope you and Milo can be happy, even if its different from Lily. You probably wouldn't want anybody to be too close to her personality anyway - she was obviously special. But he might be special too in time.

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

He will be neutered in 2 weeks time as Im hope all weekend with him and the vets are open all weekend.
Just come down stairs and hubby said he's pee'd again on the sofa

He's now banned from it.

I don't blame you. We have leather ones, so it doesn't matter. Actually they won't come anywhere near them.

See how it goes after the neuter. If your stressed Milo will be stressed and then you will be stressed.

When I got Nancy, my bridge bunny I cried for 2 days she was not my old bunny.

Try and relax.

 

[shell1805]

hey hunni, im really sorry to hear you are having a tough time with milo. i can relate to a degree. bella and jasper are totally different buns. bella is perfectly litter trained and so affectionate (this came with alot of time and patience but that is easy to forget now, the joys of rose tinted glasses ) and jasper is a pooping machine and sooooooo independant. he will have a cuddle but only if i get hold of him, he has never come to me for affection and that stings. silly really, but we expect out animals to show love like we do and in reality they wont.

with that all said, jasper is the bun i am most proud of. when we first got him he would thump, hide and shake uncontrollably through fear. now when i come to say hey to him he responds, not in the way I would love, but in the way he feels secure to. he will come, nudge at my ankles and then 'ping' off and binky like mad. do you know how much i cried when he first did that, i was so proud of him. he had let me in and you know what, yeah he might not be like bella but i dont want him to be. he is his own little dude and how dare i even compare him to another animal.

you have an ideal of what lily was and thats ok. bella is up on a pedestal so high but if i am really honest with myself she is a destructive little madam with a tendency to destroy my sofa one nibble at a time. however when her time with me is through, will i remember the amount of times she nipped my toes. no. i will see only the good and that is what you are seeing now.

hunni, milo will be whatever you put into him. if you give him time, learn to understand him, you will see him for him and you will finally let him into your heart. dont define him by what lily meant to you, that isnt fair on him or you.

i feel like ive just gone and given you a lecture but thats far from what i want. what im scared of is that if you react so soon and dont give yourself time to get to know each other you will have so many regrets. 2 weeks is nothing in a life time. i know the pee and poop is disheartening, every time jasper comes in my front room its like 'poop poop poop' and im like 'grrrrrrrr' but i also laugh as he sticks his head in the litter tray to have a sniff and because it is a tray for bella's size he is too small to get in it so has his butt out of it and poops like that. i dont know why that makes me chuckle but for some reason i feel like he thinks he is doing it right and at least he is trying :lol:

milo deserves a chance of happiness and so do you. please dont limit yourself because of your grief xx

 

[Bunnies1]

I found this really useful when learning to litter train rabbits. It worked too

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FCA8c9D4T4I

 

[steph182]

I think getting a new animal is always bitter-sweet when you've lost one.
It just doesn't feel right at first.

When I bonded Charlie to Milly, I was happy to see then bonded... But devestated that it wasn't Mable he was still with.

When I got Rogue (hammy), I loved her instantly... But it took me a good month or two to not feel sad that Impy was gone every time I looked at her cage.

Losing our animals early is heartbreaking, and it leaves a huge hole in your heart... A new addition will NEVER fully fill it, but you can still love them just as much and they can take their own place in your heart... You just need to give them the time to worm their way in there!