Pet Information > ASK Experts > Exotic Pets > Rabbits > I seem to be having a problem.

I seem to be having a problem.

22 11:34:50

Question
Hi, thanks for taking your time to help. I have two females, one new and one a little older. When the younger female excretes, its stool is sort of chunky and watery, and it clings to the rabbit's fur.
Also, my older female is having a little probem with using the bathroom in the cage. it uses the restroom more out of the cage than in the cage, even though I take the rabbits out for about 2 hours a day. Today, for example, I let them on my bed for about 10 minutes to clean the cage, but by the tim eI had finished, she had excreted around 15 times everywhere and had pee'd also.

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions!!!

Answer
Dear Kevin,

The bunny with the clumpy stool is suffering from cecal dysbiosis, which is explained here:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/poop.html

A diet too rich in starch is usually the culprit, and you can compare your bunny's diet to the one here:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/feeding.html

to make sure she's getting enough hay and NOT too many treats--including junky pellets with seeds, nuts, fruit, etc.  Those are pure poison, and if you're using them then you need to toss them and get a good quality timothy- or alfalfa-based pellet for them.

The bunny peeing on the bed is marking your bed because she's marking it as territory.  Having her spayed will help:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/spay.html

(In fact, BOTH should be spayed for their health and safety; it has little to do with getting pregnant and more to do with not getting cancer!)

A bunny needs more than 2 hours a day out of the cage, and once you have them spayed and litterbox trained:

www.bio.miami.edu/hare/training.html

You can let them out for long periods.  My own rabbits are never caged, and they do just fine.  :)

Hope that helps!

Dana