Litter Training

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BunnySilver

Bella - Owned by Silver
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Location
Illinois, USA
My Netherland Drwaf rabbit, Silver, is 4 months old and I can't get him to poop in his litter box. He will pee in there but will only poop outside of his litter box even if it is right next to his litter box. I have tried putting his poop into his litter box but he doesn't seem to care and I have tried putting a little hay on top but he hardly touches it that way. I don't know how I can get him to poop in his litter box. Help!ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1385861405.266479.jpg
 
I'm guessing at 4 mo. your rabbit isn't neutered yet? Rabbits use their poop to mark their territory, especially unneutered rabbits. There's also the fact that he is still young. Neutering very often will help with the territorial marking, as well as any hormonal problems. It's not a guarantee though, and there can be risks with neutering.

How long have you had him in your home and what is his litterbox setup like(type of litter, how much hay do you put in and is there hay anywhere else)?
 
I'm using a full size cat litter box with wood pellets for litter,I put his food bowl, and hay rack right in the box. Rabbits poop and pee when they eat. With him being so small a cat box will work good.
 
I have a litter box in the corner of his cage next to his hay rack and water bottle. I use Yesterday's News litter and I use enough to completely cover the floor of the litter box. I have had him for a little over 2 months and he is not neutered yet. I use Sunseed Fresh World bedding. ImageUploadedByRabbit Forum1385913641.900239.jpg
 
One thing that can cause issues is having bedding throughout the cage. It can make litter training confusing for them. I would suggest taking the bedding out. You can try putting fleece fabric or newspaper down instead, but sometimes that can lead to accidents too. But you can try it and see how your rabbit does. Just keep an eye on if your rabbit tries ingesting any of it. Also try a larger rectangular litter box, then you want to put the hay rack so that your rabbit has to sit in the litter box to eat the hay, or you can put a pile of hay in a corner of the litter box, preferably a corner not usually peed on. The idea is that rabbits poop while they eat, so if you keep their hay where they have to sit in the litter box while they eat it, then the majority of their poop will stay in the litter box. You may also need to put a layer of hay over the litter, as some rabbits won't want to use their litter box because they don't like the feel of the pelleted litter on their feet.

For the rectangular litter box, you can use a cat one or a plastic storage bin, just whatever will work for you and fit in the space you want it in. You just want it big enough that your rabbit can move around in it comfortably and eat. One thing with the hay rack too. You just will want to make sure that it isn't too difficult for your rabbit to get it's hay through the cage bars, or it may discourage hay eating.

A rabbit is really considered litter box trained if it consistently pees in the litter box. Poop is a whole different matter. But some of these tricks can help keep the poop more confined to the litter box. Also neutering, when he is old enough, often helps.
 
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