using bedroom bit as a loo

[paulinejoe]

I've dropped a bit of a clanger i think - i recently moved my buns into the garden - they've got a 6x2 hutch above a 6x4 run which they have 24/7 access to - and i put the megazorb and hay and straw in the bedroom bit, not realising (until i read it on here last week) that they wouldn't sleep in there if it was their loo - obvious really but i just didn't think i just thought they'd like to lounge up in the bit with the mesh front and carpeted that bit. It's ok at the mo while it's warm but in the winter i think they'll need to snuggle up in there.

They now wee in the bedroom bit in two corners and mainly poo in there too but tbh they poo on the carpeted bit and also all over the grass in the run too :roll: (so they must sleep in poo cos there's nowhere where it isn't :lol

So, my question is this: Is it too late to litter train them to wee somewhere else? and if so how do I got about it cos knowing them, they would wee even if the megazorb wasn't there.... I'd rather they didn't poo in the run too really as surely it can't be nice eating the grass with all those pellets everywhere but again i don't know what i can do to stop it???

 

[paulinejoe]

anyone???:wave:

 

[KarenM]

Lots of bunnies seem to prefer to toilet in the bedroom area & even in winter my buns preferred to sit in the open part of the hutch or down in the run.

If you really want them to pee elsewhere though you could try using a litter tray & filling it with megazorb & hay, then placing it where you want them to toilet. At the same time, clean the bedroom area really well and leave the floor in there bare, as this will make it less attractive for them to pee there.

As for the poos, it could just be their marking their new territory and you might see it lessen over time. Alfie and Bubbles still tend to scatter poos quite regularly though. :roll: :lol:

 

[janice]

Have you given them a litter tray? Often when you start it is best to put in two so that they can descide where they want to go. Put one in their living area or downstairs in the run and one in their bedroom (as that is where they currently go). See what happens and work from there. Rabbits do tend to eat and poo at the same time so put more yummy hay in a nice container above the litter tray out of the bedroom and see if they can be coerced into using the other tray.

Bag holders from IKEA make good hay racks and can be hung almost anywhere

 

[paulinejoe]

Thanks for the replies :wave: They haven't got litter trays no, i did try Joe with one when he was little but he would toss it out the way and go in exactly the same place as where it was in the first place :roll: it was one of those corner ones, but i think it was a bit too small for him maybe.

So if i leave the bedroom bare and put a bigger sized corner litter tray in the open-fronted area in their living room bit (and also one in the run) then is it ok to leave the carpet down in there as they'll have no straw anywhere? I mean i would intend to reintroduce the straw if and when they are litter trained but in the meantime are they ok without it for a bit? I just know if i put straw in the living room bit, they will most likely ignore the tray and wee and poop all over that area instead, plus half of it will end up going down the hole into the run below.

Thanks Pauline x

 

[KarenM]

I would use something like an underbed storage box as a litter tray - the bigger the better as they like to eat/sleep and toilet in the same box (sounds gross I know :lol

They'll be fine without any hay down on the bare floor - I used to leave the whole hutch floor totally bare and use litter trays at each end of the hutch. Just make sure they still have access to plenty of hay elsewhere, just not on the hutch floor.

 

[paulinejoe]

Thanks Karen, i'll measure up the hutch tonight and see if an underbed box will fit in ok, the ones on tesco are 39x59cms so as long as there is 39cms between the archway into the bedroom and the back of the hutch (it's 6x2 so i think there should be) then i'll get those, and then i'll stick the other two in the run and see which ones they prefer. I'll probably have to nail them down as they are rather fond of re-arranging the furniture :lol: