Rabbit digging

Hey!

I'm looking for some advice about our 2 year old male rabbit, Cosmo.

He lived by himself for the first 18 months of his life, and we had very few issues (other than the occasional biting of the carpet). 6 Months ago, we got a second rabbit, a younger female named Chance. The two of them have been completely inseparable since day one, and spend all their time together. They're constantly grooming each other, playing, sleeping cuddled up together etc., they're the best of friends. However, possibly 3/4 weeks after we got Chance, Cosmo started digging both litter trays out - and I don't just mean digging a little bit. He gets the hay and bedding EVERYWHERE - all over the floor outside the (large) cage, in the food and water bowl (which means overnight they have no clean water). Here's every explanation we've thought of so far and why we've discounted them:

1 - He doesn't like Chance's poo being in his tray - Cosmo will dig the trays out as soon as they've been cleaned, even after a deep clean, when there is nothing in there but hay and litter.

2 - Doesn't like being in the cage - Cosmo does this even when he's not locked inside. He will walk up to it, hop inside and start digging.

3 - Doesn't like the type of hay/litter - We've tried numerous types and there is no change in his behaviour.

4 - He likes to dig - I've put together a couple of areas within the house for him to dig until his heart's content, but he doesn't. The only place he will dig is in the trays.

5 - Doesn't like sharing a cage with Chance - As I've already said, they're inseparable, and when they were in separate cages to begin with they spent most of their time sleeping at the same end of their respective cages to be as close together as possible.

6 - Doesn't like the type/size of litter tray - They both have large litter trays. We've tried him with 3 different ones now with the same result, so we've reverted to the original one.

Please can someone offer some advice on what the issue may be/what we can do to resolve this? It's becoming very time consuming and expensive to have to clean the cage out 4/5 times every day and constantly replace dirty/wet hay.

Thanks

Hello and welcome. It is really lovely to hear your 2 bunnies get along greatly! My first question - is Chance spayed as if not this will possibly be why he is digging. Other than this, I cannot think of any other reason why he is behaving this way. You have covered everything I can think of.

tonibun said:

Hello and welcome. It is really lovely to hear your 2 bunnies get along greatly! My first question - is Chance spayed as if not this will possibly be why he is digging. Other than this, I cannot think of any other reason why he is behaving this way. You have covered everything I can think of.

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Hi, thanks for the reply! Yes, Chance is spayed and has been for some time.

However, on that note, Cosmo hasnt been neutered. Essentially, the vets have advised that his testicles have formed on the inside as opposed to outside, but they're too deep for them to safely remove them. After 2 vets and 2 operations, we've had to leave them in there which isnt ideal. Not sure if this would have something to do with it.

Thanks

Hi, this behaviour could possibly be due to the fact that he is isn’t neutered, as this may cause him to be more territorial, especially since he’s been bonded to another rabbit. However, digging is a natural behaviour and instinct in rabbits which is often hard/unlikely to completely stop. I’d recommend looking into getting a digging box for them, and filling it with a material such as shredded paper (no ink) or cardboard (or another non-toxic materials but make sure that this is a different substance to what is in their litter tray to not confuse them and make them use that as a litter tray instead). Other ways to reduce the mess could be offering alternatives for your bunny to dig on and get it out on that instead such as sisal or seagrass mats which can be bought from amazon and other pet suppliers as well as cardboard boxes. I’d also say to make sure your litter tray is big enough (a large sized cat litter tray is the best for most rabbits as they should be able to do a 360 degree turn in it - if the litter tray is too small this could lead to frustration and digging potentially). Also make sure that the litter tray is half litter and half hay as this encourages the best litter tray habits.

The only other alternative to stop the digging I can think of is using a grate which creates a barrier between the rabbit and the litter. Although, I’ve never used one myself and most of the ones that I have seen don’t seem great as they are metal with wire which is bad for rabbits’ feet, so I’d only use one of these if it was plastic and comfortable for the rabbit, so definitely do your research if you’re going to consider this as using the wrong grate for the rabbit could potentially lead to them not wanting to use the litter tray at all.

Hope it helps and you find a solution!

Joshw28 said:

Hi, thanks for the reply! Yes, Chance is spayed and has been for some time.

However, on that note, Cosmo hasnt been neutered. Essentially, the vets have advised that his testicles have formed on the inside as opposed to outside, but they're too deep for them to safely remove them. After 2 vets and 2 operations, we've had to leave them in there which isnt ideal. Not sure if this would have something to do with it.

Thanks

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This is the reason then! Have you got a Vet who is experienced with rabbits - if not you could start a new thread asking for recommendations for a Rabbit savvy vet in your area.

Susan did this for a while when Dillon was poorly, Dillon has gone now and she hasnt done it since. We did change what we put in to the tray too and I dont think digging is as satisfactory for her. Prior we had a layer of newspaper, then a layer of pellets, then a layer of hay, now we do just newspaper and hay.

Rabbits dig - it's a normal behaviour, so I would be looking at a different way to manage the mess, rather than stop the digging. If you are using standard depth litter trays, they are only a couple of inches deep, so you need something with much higher sides - eg use a much deeper box (such as an underbed storage box with one end cut down) or large covered cat litter box, large carrier with no door, or even put the existing tray in a big cardboard box to contain the mess. Face the opening part of the digging box towards a wall, so it can't spread as far. Cardboard boxes are useful to make temporary walls to see what works best. If the mess is getting into the food and water, they may need a larger enclosure as well - how big is their cage? There are also coop cups for food or water, which can be hooked on to wire mesh so they are slightly higher off the ground, and less likely to get debris in them. The pellets shouldn't be an issue as they shouldn't be on much anyway - dry food normally gets eaten quite quickly, so it isn't there for long enough to get debris in it. Forage and hay could be served eg, in a wall mounted basket.

The rabbits sound like they are getting on really well. This may also be a temporary blip eg due to 'spring fever' and it may settle down again over the next few months.

Shimmer said:

Rabbits dig - it's a normal behaviour, so I would be looking at a different way to manage the mess, rather than stop the digging. If you are using standard depth litter trays, they are only a couple of inches deep, so you need something with much higher sides - eg use a much deeper box (such as an underbed storage box with one end cut down) or large covered cat litter box, large carrier with no door, or even put the existing tray in a big cardboard box to contain the mess. Face the opening part of the digging box towards a wall, so it can't spread as far. Cardboard boxes are useful to make temporary walls to see what works best. If the mess is getting into the food and water, they may need a larger enclosure as well - how big is their cage? There are also coop cups for food or water, which can be hooked on to wire mesh so they are slightly higher off the ground, and less likely to get debris in them. The pellets shouldn't be an issue as they shouldn't be on much anyway - dry food normally gets eaten quite quickly, so it isn't there for long enough to get debris in it. Forage and hay could be served eg, in a wall mounted basket.

The rabbits sound like they are getting on really well. This may also be a temporary blip eg due to 'spring fever' and it may settle down again over the next few months.

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dear shimmer amen,-I cannot imagine a rabbit that doesnot chew-on everything to keep its teeth at bay[constantly growing and must chew[.-did I mention scratching and clawing to keep nails short.-in the wild rabbits chew on and claw trees-bark]-,and dig in the dirt--,chewing eating twigs,branches from safe trees..-we remove these critters from their habitat and-we-need to replace it.--sincerely james waller from across the pond-usa

Have you seen the thread I have started regarding your rabbit? Jane says it is possible!

meet Boo, she is my spayed bunny of about 7 years

joey&boo said:

meet Boo, she is my spayed bunny of about 7 years

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Oh Boo, you are priceless :lol::lol: