Rabbit eats over litter box

[Aph10]

My lions head buck is able to reach over his litter box to get to the hay which allows him to pee and poop outside the box. Any ideas to discourage this behavior? He is only 3.5yrs and he’s able to jump without any problems. Tbh I think he’s just being lazy or wants an easy exit plan.

 

[BunnySis]

Can you attach a pic of what it looks like when he does it? Then i can give more info

 

[Cinn-a-bun]

My lions head buck is able to reach over his litter box to get to the hay which allows him to pee and poop outside the box. Any ideas to discourage this behavior? He is only 3.5yrs and he’s able to jump without any problems. Tbh I think he’s just being lazy or wants an easy exit plan. View attachment 58436

Does he have hay to eat inside litter box?

 

[WhiteBunnyEcho]

Depending on the size of the litter box, I’d recommend getting a larger one such as a shallow storage tote. If it’s large enough, he shouldn’t be able to eat the hay from standing outside the litter box.

 

[John Wick]

For animals, the easiest/laziest way is often preferred, haha. They're all about efficiency! Remember litterboxes are a human construct, so there's nothing within our rabbits that tell them "ah, I should not eat until I get into this vessel." Experimenting with litterbox size and where you physically place the hay may help.

 

[Aph10]

He has a very large litter box and I try to do a hanging bag over the box so he has to do it but his brother likes to push the hay that’s fallen in and then push it to the front so he can eat with his back against the wall. I thought it might just because he doesn’t want to try to jump in when he’s brother is there (cus he’s a little piggy lol) but now I think he’s doing it on purpose. Twice this week I’ve seen spike hop into the box with his butt hanging out and then pee directly outside the box while I was a few feet away. It felt premeditated lol.

 

[JBun]

It's not necessarily a purposeful thing. He may not realize that even though he's in the litter box, his butt is hanging over the edge and his pee is ending up outside of it.

I think you may need a bigger litter box with higher sides. Try something like a mortar mixing tray(Home Depot, ,Lowes, etc). They measure about 20x30x7. It's what I used for my rabbits and has worked really well. Or storage bins work too.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Plasgad-Black-Large-Concrete-Mixing-Tub-887102C/205451585

 

[Catlyn]

For animals, the easiest/laziest way is often preferred, haha. They're all about efficiency! Remember litterboxes are a human construct, so there's nothing within our rabbits that tell them "ah, I should not eat until I get into this vessel."

Heh, so true! My pair has a storage bin for a litterbox. Iris is too small so she has to jump into it to eat, but sometimes my big man will just lift his front feet in the box and munch away. I've even caught him snoozing away with half body in, half body out. I wish to get a picture of it one day.