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Elderly rabbit no longer using litter trays - advice?

heleni

Warren Scout
My 10-year old boy (widowed in the autumn, now living alone in his shed and run as I don't know how long he will go on for, and I don't want to commit to another 5-10 years of rabbits by getting him a new mate) has stopped using his litter trays since his partner died. He used to be very good at using them.

I initially thought it was because the new hay I'd bought was too crispy to be comfortable, so I bought some new and gave away the rest, which he will now eat but doesn't like to sit on. I changed the materials in the litter tray - straw, then plain newspaper, now Megazorb, plus newspapers and puppy pads on the floor. I have given him low sided trays so he can get in and out in case his movement is limited (he's not been upstairs in his hutch for weeks). But he still wees on the floor, or out over the edge of the tray. He can lift his tail so isn't getting his legs or bum wet, and most of his poos are in the litter tray just not the wees. He doesn't dribble wee, they are large puddles, so I'm not sure he's incontinent per se. There are no obvious signs of pain and he hops around the garden happily enough, and can run away from me if I'm trying to catch him. No signs of caecotrophs so he must be eating them. He has been treated for EC since his partner died - one preventative 7 (?) day plus a full 28-day course.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or do I just have to accept that he is an old man with poor toilet habits, now he no longer has a lady in the house and someone else (me) does his cleaning?!
 
Has he been examined by a Vet recently ? Ruling out any health problems would be my priority. Conditions such as Bladder infections or renal problems can present as loss of litter tray training.

Not using his litter tray might be behavioural, he is probably lonely now. Personally I could not keep a single Rabbit as an outdoor Rabbit. Could he be a House Rabbit ?
 
Thank you InspectorMorse. He was last seen by a vet probably back in January when he had his 6-month health check, no issues picked up then, but it sounds like another trip to the vet might be needed.

You're right that he is probably lonely and interesting that it could result in behaviour changes like this. We let him run free in the garden as much as possible, for variety, and he does like my company now a lot more than in the past! He couldn't be a house rabbit realistically (as much as I love the idea of him wandering around inside), it's not really set up for that as he's always been outside and we can't have puddles of rabbit wee all over the house with a young child too. I have been trying to see if we could pair him with a long term foster, I've tried three rescues, but none of them have had any suitable rabbits.
 
Thank you InspectorMorse. He was last seen by a vet probably back in January when he had his 6-month health check, no issues picked up then, but it sounds like another trip to the vet might be needed.

You're right that he is probably lonely and interesting that it could result in behaviour changes like this. We let him run free in the garden as much as possible, for variety, and he does like my company now a lot more than in the past! He couldn't be a house rabbit realistically (as much as I love the idea of him wandering around inside), it's not really set up for that as he's always been outside and we can't have puddles of rabbit wee all over the house with a young child too. I have been trying to see if we could pair him with a long term foster, I've tried three rescues, but none of them have had any suitable rabbits.

I hope the Vet will find him to be well. If it is behavioural then unfortunately it might be something that cannot be remedied without addressing the possible cause.
 
I took my rabbit to the vet today where he was examined and had a urine saple tested. The vet could find nothing obvious medical that could be causing the issues, nothing urinary or kidney related based on the test results and details of his behaviour etc. He did mention that possibly it could be mental decline given his age, so it looks like I'm just going to have to keep an eye on the rabbit and accept that he won't be as tidy as he was when he was younger!
 
I took my rabbit to the vet today where he was examined and had a urine saple tested. The vet could find nothing obvious medical that could be causing the issues, nothing urinary or kidney related based on the test results and details of his behaviour etc. He did mention that possibly it could be mental decline given his age, so it looks like I'm just going to have to keep an eye on the rabbit and accept that he won't be as tidy as he was when he was younger!

At least the Vet did not find any serious health concerns :)
 
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