Urine spraying - too young to spay.

[AshAndMaple]

Hi everyone, my 3-month-old lionhead Maple has just started spraying urine everywhere. And I mean everywhere. She shares a habitat with her brother (same litter), and I switch them over between the pen and free roaming my living room to prevent pregnancies but still allow them to interact. They've both started trying harder to get to each other so I think their hormones are kicking in. My vet says they must be at least 6 months old before they can be spayed/neutered.

In the meantime, is there anything I can do to stop this behaviour? Or do I have to put up with it for the next 3 months?

 

[JBun]

Until they can be spayed/neutered, about the only thing I can think that might calm the hormonal behavior, is separating them to completely different areas so they can't see or interact with each other, which is what may be initiating the hormonal spraying. You also wouldn't be able to allow them to free roam the same space, as the smell of the other rabbit could set off hormonal spraying as well. You'll also want to do a deep clean of the area with vinegar, to remove any preexisting scent markings.

Male rabbits can be neutered as soon as their testicles drop. If you want to try and have your male bun neutered sooner, I would suggest looking around for a knowledgeable rabbit vet that will do it sooner than 6 months.

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-...abbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/

 

[AshAndMaple]

Until they can be spayed/neutered, about the only thing I can think that might calm the hormonal behavior, is separating them to completely different areas so they can't see or interact with each other, which is what may be initiating the hormonal spraying. You also wouldn't be able to allow them to free roam the same space, as the smell of the other rabbit could set off hormonal spraying as well. You'll also want to do a deep clean of the area with vinegar, to remove any preexisting scent markings.

Male rabbits can be neutered as soon as their testicles drop. If you want to try and have your male bun neutered sooner, I would suggest looking around for a knowledgeable rabbit vet that will do it sooner than 6 months.

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-...re putting him through the operation.[/SIZE]

Until they can be spayed/neutered, about the only thing I can think that might calm the hormonal behavior, is separating them to completely different areas so they can't see or interact with each other, which is what may be initiating the hormonal spraying. You also wouldn't be able to allow them to free roam the same space, as the smell of the other rabbit could set off hormonal spraying as well. You'll also want to do a deep clean of the area with vinegar, to remove any preexisting scent markings.

Male rabbits can be neutered as soon as their testicles drop. If you want to try and have your male bun neutered sooner, I would suggest looking around for a knowledgeable rabbit vet that will do it sooner than 6 months.

https://rabbitwelfare.co.uk/rabbit-...abbit-friendly-vets/rabbit-friendly-vet-list/

Okay, thanks for your reply. Unfortunately I don't have the space to put them in completely separate areas, and I wouldn't really want them to loose the ability to interact with each other. Would getting the male neutered sooner make it less likely for the female to spray urine? I'll probably wait anyway because the male is significantly smaller than the female, and I'd rather he grows more before putting him through the operation.

 

[JBun]

Possibly. If the male isn't getting all hormonal and excited, it may help her calm down. But it can take 4-8 weeks for his hormones to fade, so you could keep having spraying issues, at least for 4 weeks after his neuter. Though it's surprising your female is spraying. They aren't usually as inclined to do it as the males. Are you sure she's a 'she'?

 

[AshAndMaple]

Possibly. If the male isn't getting all hormonal and excited, it may help her calm down. But it can take 4-8 weeks for his hormones to fade, so you could keep having spraying issues, at least for 4 weeks after his neuter. Though it's surprising your female is spraying. They aren't usually as inclined to do it as the males. Are you sure she's a 'she'?

Okay, yes I'm positive she's female - I've just checked again, and she was checked by other volunteers at the animal sanctuary too