Litter Behavior?

[crazyellybean]

We got a Mini Rex the day after Christmas from a co-worker, she said that she was house trained to use a litter box. At first she did not use it, but then I started putting some hay in there as recommended from another site, now she uses it almost all the time!! yay!! .. However, we give her free time for about an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening to run around the living room (putting a gate up so the dogs can't get in)... she LOVES her free time.. and will even come up to me for me to pet her...

but she poops all over the place?!? ... especially in the corner outside of her cage where the liter box is...which I can understand the concept there.. but literally we have to walk around picking poop up... because you can't see she is doing it, it just kind of falls out.. and then she runs away..

any recommendation on how to fix this? I don't want to take her free time away... do you think a second liter box in the corner of the living room would work, or confuse her?

 

[missyscove]

Welcome to RO and congratulations on your new addition. Be sure to post in our introductions forum too so we can all get to know you.
I consider a rabbit litter trained when they pee exclusively in the box. They do often poop when they're running so you'll likely always have some poops outside the box.
That said, since she is new to your home, she is probably using her poops to mark her territory and once the place smells a little more like her she may decrease.
Is she spayed? If not, spaying her may also improve her litter habits as well as reduce her risk for certain reproductive cancers down the line.

 

[crazyellybean]

Yea that is what I thought too... but she has been out almost every night in the last 2 weeks, and she has done it almost every night... Really I don't want poop all over the place.. LOL

She does pee & poop in the liter box... I have not had to change her bedding in three days now.. I have not noticed any pee outside of the box... I do have dogs, so that might just be her way of spraying.. Gosh I hope it does not last long.. we try to tell her no, when we see it, but it's like "Hop, drop"

 

[LakeCondo]

You may want to get her an exercise pen, like used outside for dogs. That's what I have for Honey. It comes in 8 2ft-sections, so easily sets up as a 4-ft square. I go in & sit on the floor & visit her, so her territorial poops are kept in that area. Under the pen I have a plastic tarp, topped with flattened cardboard boxes when she started digging holes in the tarp.

 

[Imbrium]

if she isn't spayed, that would definitely help some... and some of it should lessen with time. adding another litter box to her free-run area would be a good idea - it won't work miracles but should help some.

rabbits poop about 500 poops a day, so they can't really be expected to get them all in the litter box. a dust-buster, whisk broom or shop vac is very handy for cleaning up after them.