Annie and Emmie's Carrot Patch

When I ask some people if their bunnies are litter-trained, they look at me strangely, and say "Litter trained? I thought that was only for cats."
No, it can be done, and it is very helpful. Bunnies are very clean and quiet animals. Lots of times, if you look over at any given moment, your bun will be doing one of three things:

1. Cleaning itself

2. Eating

3. Napping/Resting

Litter-training is very easy if you have an adult rabbit, and some patience. Rabbits by nature, choose to relieve themselves in a corner. This makes litter- training very easy. Some rabbits catch on very quickly, others don't. A VERY small margin, never get it. I have heard a few stories where a bun is litter-trained with in half an hour. This does occasionally happen, but the chance of it happening for your bun, is very small. One thing many people do not realize is that if your cage is too small for a litterbox, your cage is too small for your bunny. The cage should be able to fit a litterbox, food dishes, a water bottle, bun's toys, and still have room for bun to lay down and move around comfortably when full-grown. Check out the Housing section for great cage ideas. Now, onto the good stuff.

Adults vs. Youngsters

Adults are easier to train than young buns. Adult's attention spans are a lot longer than a younger one. This is just like kids- younger ones tend to fidget, and get bored- wanting change. Older kids have a longer attention span, and are easier to teach. However, if you want to train a youngster, stick with it! It will probably take a bit longer than an adult would, but it will pay off!!

Also, if you already have litter-trained buns, and you introduce an un-litter trained bun into their "communtiy," you don't really have to litter train the bunny - - the litter trained buns assist with litter box lessons, and most of the time, the new bun catches on from his new pals.

Spayed & Neutered Buns vs. Unspayed & Unneutered Buns

Spaying and Neutering is usually the MOST important factor in litter- training. Rabbits that are 4-6 months old are in their "teenage" years, and their hormones are racing. This means they will start to mark
their territory- which in males can mean spraying, and humping females (humans included- - -both sexes!!).

If placed with a female they will mate. Plus, 72% of unspayed females will contract Uterine Cancer, and die. So it is to your bunny’s Litter-Training and Health benefit to have them spayed or neutered. See my Spaying and
Neutering section for more information on this topic.

Marking territory will mean a lack of litterbox habits. By having him/her fixed, he will be much happier, healthier, and will be more likely to use the litterbox.

Which Type of Litter Should I Use?

My personal favorite, (and my buns) is Carefresh. It absorbs wonderfully, and helps to hide the odor of the urine (which can really smell, especially in unfixed bunnies).

Depending on where you live, certain types of litter may or may not be available to you. There are several that are safe for bunnies. Please keep in mind that MANY cat litters are NOT safe for bunnies. Such as some clumping or clay litters, which can ruin their respiration system. Also, stay away from softwood shaving litters, as they are thought to cause liver damage in buns. The HRS recommends looking for organic litters made from alfalfa, oat, citrus or paper. So please look the following list over, and choose one that sounds good.

GOOD Litters:

@Carefresh (AKA Tek Fresh)

Phone: 1-800-242-2287

Fax: (360) 671-1588

E-mail: absorbs@absorption-corp.com
Website: http://www.carefresh.ca/

Mail:

Absorption Corp
1051 Hilton Ave.
Bellingham, WA 98225

@Eco Fresh

Website: Bunny Bytes

@Citrafresh

@Cat Country

E-mail: mmeadows@tein.net

Website: http://www.mtnmeadowspet.com/prod01.html

@Critter Country

E-mail: mmeadows@tein.net

Website: http://www.mtnmeadowspet.com/prod03.html

@Yesterday's News
E-mail: http://offers.purina.com/contact.asp?offer=CNT01&pagecode=CONTACT

Website: http://www.yesterdaysnews.com/

BAD Litters:

@Softwood shavings:

@cedar

@pine

These are very dangerous and thought to cause liver damage. Here is some information on pros and cons on different types of litter, that I took from the HRS Webpage (Thank you):

Choosing a litter right for you often depends on what is available in your areas and the price, and what kind of litter your bun likes.
Keep in mind the following as you choose your litter:

@Most rabbits spend lots of time in their litter boxes.

@Rabbits will always nibble some of the litter.

@Rabbit urine has a very strong odor.

Clay litter is dusty. If your bunny is a digger, the dust can make her vulnerable to pneumonia.

The deodorant crystals in some clay litters are toxic.

Clumping litters will clump inside the rabbit's digestive and respiratory tracts (the
latter if they manage to make enough dust to breathe) causing serious problems
and often leading to death

@pine and cedar shavings emit gases that cause liver damage when breathed by
the bunny

@corn cob litter isn't absorbent and doesn't control odor but can be added, with
the bunny's waste, to compost

@oat and alfalfa-based litters (available from Purina, Manna-Pro, and King-
Soopers groceries (not sure what the geographical range of this chain is)) have
excellent odor controlling qualities, but if a rabbit eats too much, they expand and
cause bloating; these, too, can be added, with the bunny's waste, to compost

@newspapers are absorbent, but don't control odor

@citrus-based litters work well, offer no dangers, and can be composted, but may
be hard to get and expensive in some areas of the country/world

@some people have reported success with peat moss which can also be
composted

@Many people have great success with litter made from paper pulp or recycled
paper products. These litters are very good at absorbing and cutting down on
odors. A litter called CAREfresh is available. You can find out about local places
that carry Carefresh by emailing absorbs@absorption-corp.com or by calling 1-
800-242-2287. A similar litter in a pelleted form is called Cellu-Dri 1-800-382-
5001. These litters are harmless if ingested.

@Litters made from Aspen bark are safe and good at absorbing odors. One
brand is called GentleTouch 1-800-545-9853.

Cleaning and Disposal

Bunnies are very clean animals, and don't like to be dirty. They like their litterboxes and cages to be nice and clean. Clean litterboxes will encourage them to use them. Also, a fresh handful of hay in the litterbox will entice them into the litterbox, as they like to munch will doing their business.

Decomposable/organic litters like Carefresh can be dumped into your woods or garden (which will then grow hay because of the hay in their diet). After you are done dumping, rinse them in white vinegar, as it helps
keep the calcium residue down (and the smell!! J).

High sided litterboxes are often the best, because sometimes in low sided boxes, the bun will hang their little butt over the edge, and pee on the carpet. High sided litterboxes keep their rear ends inside the box, keeping
the business where you want it to go. Litterboxes with a hood also work well, and give the bun some privacy while doing their business! :o) Another type to avoid are the corner litterboxes as the same thing goes for them as the low litterboxes: the bunny can easily turn around and hang his butt out the end and pee all over the cage.

Accidents can be cleaned up with white vinegar, or club soda. This will also help, although probably won’t cure it, the bunny from going here again, because they hate the smell of vinegar.

Once your bun is litter trained, don't mistake the occasional pill (solid waste) around the cage for failure to be litter trained. The bun is simply marking the cage
as theirs. When your bun is not in her cage you can clean this up. Don’t do it while they are in their cage. Doing this might make the bunny angry as you are invading her space. Think of it like this:

How would you feel if someone came into your room, while you were in there, and just started rearranging stuff without your permission? You’d feel pretty angry, wouldn’t you? So would your bunny. So don’t clean the cage until bunny is out.

The Actual Training

Like I said in the introduction, you need patience to own a bunny. This is probably the most "patience-required" thing you will do with your bun. It takes time and patience.

Start with a litterbox in her cage and a few in her running space. Observe where she chooses to "go," and place the litterbox there. If she lifts up her tail, as if about to relieve herself, cry "NO!" and place her in the
litterbox, along with a handful of hay. The hay is to make the litterbox seem more of a good place, rather than a punishment. Make sure you put her in the box BEFORE she urinates or defecates. If you put her in AFTER, you are teaching her to relieve herself, THEN go to the litterbox.

Keep repeating until she gets the idea, petting her, and giving her a treat when she uses it on her own. Use as many litterboxes as you need. The more, the better, as it will be easier to train her this way. Once she is litter
trained, you can gradually increase her running space. Don't increase it too drastically, because she may get confused, and forget where the litterboxes are. If her run includes more than one floor, include one
litterbox on each floor. While "in training" DON'T leave bun unsupervised, as it will ruin the whole training process.

Health Clues in the Litterbox

When you check the litterbox to see if it needs cleaning, make a mental note of what the droppings usually look like. They should be round and dry. You may also see some cecotropes. Diarrhea and cecotropes are often confused. Diarrhea is an unformed or watery mass, while cecotropes are soft clusters. An occasional bunch of
cecotropes are normal, but if you see excessive amounts that are left unconsumed, it could mean that his diet is too rich in protein (reducing the need for the protein-rich cecotropes). Try giving extra low-protein, high-fiber grass hay, and reducing pellets. If this does not cure the problem, consult your vet as an illness may be involved.

Small, hard droppings are not a good sign. It means that less is
coming through.

The reason for this could be:

@less going in

@poor appetite

If the droppings are strung together with hair, it may mean that too much hair is in the stomach.

*Note* a little bit of hair in droppings are okay. In this case, it is usually not noticeable unless you look real close. In the above case (the bad case) it will be more noticeable.

Also notice how it is coming through. Is bunny straining, in pain or discomfort? A trip to the vet is needed, and this info that you've gathered can help the vet make his diagnosis.

Urine color varies from dark orange to creamy white, depending on what your bun has been eating. Many people get scared if they see red urine. This is usually caused by excess alfalfa or fur twigs. However, if you see little red spots on the carpet, check the nails; one could be broken.

Annie and Emmie’s “kitty pal” sometimes steals their condo! Click on the picture to go to her website!