How to Train a Dwarf Rabbit

How to Train a Dwarf Rabbit. Training a dwarf rabbit is similar to training a cat. Rabbits don't have an innate desire to please humans the way dogs do, so training will be limited to working with their natural instincts. Many people litter-box train their dwarf rabbits so the rabbits can roam around the house.

Things Needed

• Cage
• Litter box
• Paper towels
• Antibacterial cleaner
• Organic litter
• Food bowl
• Water container

Step 1

Spay or neuter your dwarf rabbit; this will make training easier and is healthier for the rabbit. When a dwarf rabbit reaches adulthood, many of its innate behaviors, such as marking territory, make it difficult to train. Neutered rabbits are calmer and less prone to chewing and spraying furniture, and have fewer health problems. It's recommended to neuter a dwarf rabbit between four and six months of age.

Step 2

Buy the right-sized litter box and cage for your dwarf rabbit. It's best to buy a cage that will accommodate a small 9-inch by 9-inch litter box, a food bowl and water container. The rabbit still needs room to move around. The litter box should be metal, because a rabbit will chew up a plastic one, and should be low enough to the ground that the rabbit can hop in and out.

Step 3

Put your rabbit in a small room, such as the laundry room, that doesn't have carpet. Let the dwarf rabbit roam around. The rabbit will find a location where it likes to urinate and drop pellets. The cage should be in the room with the door open so the rabbit can get in and out.

Step 4

Observe and watch where the rabbit is urinating. Soak up the urine with some paper towels; place the urine-soaked towels in the litter box. Pick up any droppings and put them in the litter box. Thoroughly wash the floor with an antibacterial cleaner to remove the urine.

Step 5

Put the litter box with the paper towels soaked in urine in the same location that the rabbit was urinating in before. Let the rabbit hop around the room for a few more days. The rabbit should go back to the litter box where it smelled its urine each time it has to go. If the rabbit urinates somewhere else in the room, wipe it up with paper towels and put them in the litter box. Clean the floor with an antibacterial soap.

Step 6

Put the rabbit's cage right next to the litter box. Continue to sweep up the pellets and wipe up any urine that doesn't make it into the litter box. Keep the rabbit in this room until it uses only the litter box for urine and the majority of droppings.

Step 7

Add organic litter to the box on top of the urine-soaked paper towels. You'll be able to get rid of the urine-soaked paper towels once the rabbit is fully trained.

Step 8

Move the litter box into the cage. The rabbit should be able to follow the smell of urine and go into its cage to use the litter box. If this fails, keep the litter box in the cage and put a new one in the place it had chosen to go before. The rabbit will eventually follow the smell of urine to either of the boxes.

Warnings

• Don't use kitty litter because it's harmful for rabbits. Organic litters include those made from paper, citrus, alfalfa or oats.

References

• H.A.R.E., Inc.; Training Your Rabbit: Reality 101; Dana Krempels, PhD; 2009
• House Rabbit Society: FAQ: Litter Training
• The Basics of Anything: How to House Train Your Dwarf Rabbit
• The Daily Puppy; How to Potty Train a Dwarf Rabbit; Judith Wilson