• Forum/Server Upgrade If you are reading this you have made it to the upgraded forum. Posts made on the old forum after 26th October 2023 have not been transfered. Everything else should be here. If you find any issues please let us know.

Rabbits won't stop peeing on rugs!

I have three rabbits, a 7-month-old male Netherland dwarf, a 5-month-old female holland lop dwarf, and an assumed 1+-year-old male American.

The two dwarves are bonded and housed together, whereas my American is separate due to some bonding issues we're trying to work out. They are side by side in pens, though separated by a wall, and I am aware that some of this marking may be due to territorial instinct (they are all fixed but can still be territorial). All three of them have issues with peeing on rugs and less of a problem (though still won't stop) peeing on hard floors.

This is becoming difficult because it warps and destroys the foundations when the moisture is trapped between the rug and wood. I can "tolerate" peeing on hard floors because it will dry before it warps the floors, but I am struggling with keeping urine from warping the floors UNDER the rug, and I cannot travel with them because they pee on anything soft. I feel bad because the only thing that I have learned that fixes the issue is removing the rug entirely, which isn't fair to my buns' feet, and I don't want to do that.

Things I have done to try and resolve the issue:
  • Removed and washed the rugs immediately after being peed on (this is impossible to keep up with because then I am cleaning the rug every three hours or so)
  • Separated the rabbits into different rooms; this helped somewhat, but the unruly potty behaviors persisted too much still, and it was not worth separating them
  • Placed more litter boxes, especially on problem areas; it works for a few weeks, but then they find a new place they like peeing on
  • Under the rugs, I placed a thick plastic tarp to keep the mats from making direct contact with the wood flooring; this works somewhat, but at times the buns will destroy the plastic, and pee will seep through
  • Actively clean the litter boxes; I've also provided a large litter box where their pee slips through crevices so they don't stand in it (it does not hurt their feet) and yet their habits won't change

Nothing seems to be working for me, and I've been extremely patient; there's just no improvement! The most common advice I get is to provide litter boxes and remove the accident as soon as possible. While I have tried this, they pee on the rugs so much that they are beginning to disintegrate every time I put them in the wash (I'm washing them that much!) Not to mention, I will put the clean rug down and not even a second later, one of them will pee on it. My main culprit is the female, though my American male is also problematic too. My male Netherland dwarf is only a minor part of the issue. I will not consider rehoming them because I truly love them; I just need some new advice other than what I've been hearing over and over.

I see so many people who free roam their rabbits and there's very little mess ever it seems! I know those might be unrealistic standards, but I genuinely can't have rugs or anything soft without them peeing on it. I can't even begin to consider free-roaming them under diligent watch because of these poor potty habits. What should I do? I need any kind of advice, please help! And no, giving up is not an option for me.
 
Last edited:
Pretty much all my rabbits would pee on anything soft I’m afraid. So they didn’t get fleeces and blankets etc.
 
Back
Top