# using the nest box as a litter box



## samanthaj (May 20, 2011)

our doe had 3 babies,at first she wasnt doing this but the past few days she has. today i took the babies and put them into a new,clean,smaller box. is it noraml that she would do this,its her first litter and they seem to be doing fine otherwise


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## Shiloh Acres (May 20, 2011)

Sigh ... Almost all of my does do this. Especially once the bunnies get bigger. They will likely ALL (mom + babies) start going in there. 

I often remove boxes before I really want to for this reason, and make sure not to put them in too early for the same reason (which is tricky for me since my does often kindle later than most). 

But yes, it's normal. 

The upside I guess is that if someone wants a pet rabbit, I'm sure they are very easy to litterbox train! Pretty much as easy as cats, I'd guess.


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## samanthaj (May 21, 2011)

this morning she had them out of the box,thankfully it wasnt to cold!! i put them back in and so far they are still there,minus the pee and poo lol. although its gross,im glad to hear its normal


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## blk90s13 (May 22, 2011)

At what point do you take the box out ? mine make a mess of the box and I have to keep cleaning it its not too cold out anymore and I was thinking they should go out already 

specially they are munching on green treats and some hay pretty well already


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## rockdoveranch (May 22, 2011)

Was she using the nest box as a litter box before she had her babies?

My rabbit books say not to put the nest box in the cage too soon, not more than 4 days before the babies are due to avoid the doe using it as a litter pan.

Just a thought.


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## Shiloh Acres (May 22, 2011)

I take the box out when the babies start spending much of their time outside of it. I don't raise them in very cold weather, so that's not an issue. Once they are outside of it most of the day, it becomes EVERYONE's litterbox, and since I raise outdoor cage rabbits, not house rabbits, it's time to go. Age is different ... Smaller litters grow faster.


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## samanthaj (May 22, 2011)

to answer the questions, she wasnt using it as a litter bos before hand,we gave it to her and she had the babies the next day!!! the babies are only about a week old so to little i assume to be out of the nest box. and so far so good she hasnt been using the clean box as a litterpan!


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