How do you litter train a 10 week old mini lop who sleeps in an indoor cage?

Answer 1

Many rabbits take to a litter box without effort: simply provide the box, and the bunny will do the rest!

Choose a good-sized box (boxes sold for rabbits are often too small, unless you have a tiny rabbit), like a cat litter box -- even "jumbo" size is good so it's nice and comfortable for the bunny. Rabbits sometimes try to lift up their bottoms and pee over the edge of the box, so a box with high sides (except the one side where the rabbit hops in and out) is a really good idea. Boxes with lids can also be a good idea, because it can provide the rabbit with a kind of secret "hidey-hole" where he'll feel safe (but, as a general rule, anything you give a rabbit to hop into should have two doorways, otherwise the rabbit might feel trapped and avoid going in, so you should use a utility knife to cut a second doorway in the litter box lid).

Choose a safe litter material. A previous answer to this question suggested clay cat litter, but this is definitely bad advice! It's very normal for rabbits to eat small amounts of their litter material, but clay will clump inside their bellies and lead to serious illness (even death). Also, clay litter is extremely dusty and this can lead to serious breathing problems in bunnies. Corncob litters are sometimes recommended, and these are fine if your rabbit doesn't eat any but most rabbits do, and it's extremely unhealthy for them and can lead to illness. Safe litter materials include:

• Newspaper
• Hay
• Aspen chips (some people say pine chips are also safe, but other people say they're toxic)
• Wood stove pellets -- these are compressed paper pellets sold as a starter for wood stoves; be careful to use only plain pellets, not the sort covered in chemical starters
• Purina brand "Yesterday's News" -- these are made for cats but they're safe for rabbits
• Carefresh brand bedding or litter

Put hay in the litter box: this will encourage hay eating (good for teeth, guts, and mental health), and it will encourage the rabbit to use the litter box because rabbits like to graze and poo at the same time.

If your rabbit doesn't immediately take to the litter box, next time she goes to the toilet pick up the droppings, or wipe up the urine with a piece of newspaper, and put that in the litter tray. Keep doing this repeatedly, then she should start to learn to go there herself because of the scent.