new to this

Question
hi,

today i am about to get my first rabbit, i live in a apartment and i am not allowed dogs, so i thought of a cat but i thought that when i left the house for work it would meow and scrath my lounge.


So i thought about a rabbit, i am only going to get one and i am very excited to pic HER up today.


MY QUESTION IS:


Becasue i am only getting one rabbit will her and i bond well?
i am only getting a small indoor cage, i want to toilet train her, and only have to use the cage for sleeping and when i leve and have friends over.
IS THIS A GOOD IDEA?
HOW DO I TOILET TRAIN HER?


thankyou so much
hope to hear asap


samantha

Answer
Hi Samantha,

I'm glad you are trying to do your research and I suggest you explore www.rabbit.org to learn about house rabbits. It is a great idea to have a rabbit as a companion, but it sounds like you are out of the house a lot, and you may consider getting a second rabbit because they are very social animals and can get depressed and lonely without a friend or husbunn. A rabbit will scratch, bite, pee on, dig at, and do other negative verbs to your things at first, like or worst than a cat. It can be trained not to do so if you offer it several chew toys and maybe a dig box with shredded paper inside to dig at.

If you have questions about the rabbit I suggest you ask an expert or consult the website because some shelters and pet stores suggest to only feed them alfalfa pellets for their entire diet, which can go very wrong.

It is a great idea to let your rabbit around the house. Many rabbits around the world are now being allowed to walk freely inside the house like cats and dogs because of their trainability. The best thing to do is start small, with a room or hopefully the cage, and see where she goes to the bathroom. Put a litter box in this corner and if she keeps using it, praise and treat her, but if she doesn't, move the litter box to whichever corner she moved to, or add another one. Make the litter box appealing! Putting hay in the litter box will encourage her to go inside of it, and they also poop when they eat sometimes, so it could help with that. Putting her inside the litter box when she is about to or is peeing and pooping can help with the habits along with training, but no punishment should be made. They will think of punishment as you turning into a savage predator and will be very scared and possibly not trusting of you. If you put her food and hay in one corner, her water in another and the bed in the third, you will put the litter box in the forth. This works well because rabbits often don't like to go to the bathroom near these places. Positive reenforcement is key.

At first, she will be pooping everywhere to mark her territory. Females are much more territorial than males, but both will mark their cages as their own territory. You can't stop this, and trying to stop it will often lead to more, because they feel you are intruding.

You will probably bond very well if you take the time to go at her pace. It could take a week to several months for the bond to form, but when you can tell she is comfortable around you, you have gotten a long way. If you won't be home for 6 or more hours a day, you should probably get another rabbit. You can bond just as well with them both, but you should really consider getting her a friend. You may notice a change of attitude in a lonely rabbit. They can become anything from depressed to destructive. You will have to give your bunny a lot of attention to make sure she lives a happy life.

Hope this helps, sorry for the super long answer,
Krystal