PEE

Question
I have a rabbit(English spot). He is 2 years old. Although he knows the rules about pee and never pee except his cage, he pees on my bed today. Why does he do that?(never did before)
Thanks

Answer
Hi Gozde,

This seems to be the question of the month so far...lots of questions about this very subject.  My first thought is always hormonal if the rabbit isn't neutered.  It appears that a lot of this territorial behavior has started since the holidays.  Rabbit don't like changes...and most people have decorations which require moving things around and guests that bring unfamiliar sights and sounds.  Rabbits in the wild (and domestics were once wild) memorize everything around them.  This provides a marker for their territory and it also allows a quick and marked pathway home should a predator approach.  Same thing happens with our domestics.  Many rabbits do not like it when their house is cleaned and things are put out of place.  We use that instinct to allow our sight impaired rabbits free roam since once they have learned the room and everything in it, they can move about freely even though they can't see.  If this is only happening on your bed....do you have anything new on the bed?  Any new smells?  New detergent used in washing?  New type body spray you might be using?  A new pet?  Even a stuffed animal can trigger this.  Anything different can trigger these hormonal responses.

Is this happening anywhere else?  This could also be a sign of a urinary tract infection should he be urinating randomly around the house.  Many times with a UTI, they will leave a spot of urine when they hop...or they may appear to strain while trying to urinate.  Needless to say, if this is the case, a visit to a rabbit savvy vet would be the thing to do.

If he has not been neutered...I would strongly suggest doing that.  It does reduce the male territorial behavior.  In the case of your rabbit, it might take some amount of time to purge the hormones due to his age.  Neutering will also stop the sexual frustration that usually shows itself in undesirable behavior such as urinating in odd places, spraying urine and aggressive behavior.  It will also completely eliminate the possibility of testicular cancer.  We do have a cancer survivor in our rescue.

A side note to neutering...not all vets can properly and safely treat a rabbit.  They are nothing like treating a dog or cat.  Vets generally don't receive "exotics" training in vet school.  Depending on your location, finding a rabbit savvy vet might be a challenge.  I do have a list of known rabbit savvy vets all over....let me know if you need any help finding a vet.

Randy