Robin’s Rabbit Advice - Peeing in One Spot Outside of the Litter Box

Hey Rabbit Fam! This week I wanted to share a question we received from a client about rabbit litter box behavior. The lovely Jane and her family adopted “Coco” from us about a year ago. I’ve shared her inquiry and my response below. I thought there may be a few other rabbit lovers out there who may benefit from my ideas on this. Comments welcome and if you have a rabbit concern please feel free to reach out us!

Jane: “Almost exactly one year ago my husband and I brought home our awesome bunny, Coco. She's a delight and we adore her. Question...She just recently started peeing outside of her litter box in the same spot on her "rug" in her enclosure. Still going in the litter box also. I clean it, she pees there again. Any ideas? the rug has a tunnel attached to it and she loves it. It's been in there for months, it's not new. Any thoughts?”

Robin: Peeing in one spot outside of the litter box is a weird response after being good with her litter training for so long. Here are my initial thoughts. Let me know if any of this sounds like it could be what is going on with Coco.

1. If she isn't spayed, she could be scenting new places because she is wanting to find a mate. This is essentially just a hormone response telling her body that she needs to "scent more." Some bodies have a stronger response than others, so some rabbits struggle more with litter box usage and others are never motivated to go outside the box. But more often than not, sterilizing an animal will reduce scenting behaviors. 

2. Or she could have just gotten a bit of urine there by accident and then decided she liked it, or smelled it there and went again in the same spot. Their noses are extremely sensitive. 

3. Sometimes it can be in response to an event that happened that made her feel territorial. Like something scary happened, or she felt invaded and she decided to put up "defences" so that everyone knows she lives there. 

4. I don't want to scare you, but a UTI could be causing her to go more often. It doesn't sound like this is your situation, as she usually holds it for the box, but a bit of cranberry supplement couldn't hurt. It supports the whole urinary tract and they make supplements specifically for rabbits. 

5. Don't be too hard on yourself or your rabbit. I would say that most rabbits use the litter box 85% of the time. I know very few that are "perfect" and use the litter box every time. Easily washable rugs and well thought about "rabbit rooms" are my best advice for this. They are animals, and they are not infallible, just like their human counterparts.  

My suggested fixes:

1. Soak the rug in white vinegar for as long as possible, overnight is great, but even a rinse is better than nothing. Let it hang dry completely, then wash with oxygen bleach added to the load. Really get all the smell out. And try again.

2. Take the rug away for a week, then try again.

3. Try a new rug. They tend to want to go more on rugs that are fluffy or plush. They don't go as often on ones that are flatweave and minimal.

4. Burn the room down and rebuild it, then try again with a new rug. Hopefully you don't have to get to this one, as it has been quite expensive in my experience. Ha!

5. Accept her decision and use something really easy to clean right over the pee spot, put a pee pad underneath it, or just move a litter box there.

Jane: “Thanks for the reply Robin. I believe that the issue was caused by #1 and #3 on your list. #3 being that it was Christmas time and the house was decorated all around her. We had her spayed 2 weeks ago, both for behavioral issues and for general health. I was worried by so many sources listing the possibility of reproductive cancer being so high. Happy to report that she is back to her previous happy self and although she isn’t peeing in her litter box, she chose a spot (post surgery) right outside of it to use consistently so I put a small pee pad there…easy clean up and everyone is happy!  She’s a delight!”

Robin: Wonderful! I am so glad we got the issue somewhat resolved and that her surgery and recovery went smoothly. And yes, it is so great that you were aware of the high incidence of reproductive cancers in female rabbits. Smart choice on the spay. Thank you for sharing with us and for letting me use some of your rabbit experience as a blog post! We are here if you ever need anything in the future.

So there we go! Perhaps not a “perfect” solution for Jane and Coco, but a very real life rabbit challenge and resolution. Comment on this post if you have come up with any unique solutions to a “rabbit pee spot issue”. Pets are better when we share knowledge.

Peace to you, Rabbit Fam. Talk soon.