Decorative rabbits are smart and clean pets, so the animal lovers are excited to give birth to furry animals. However, such a householder often brings the owners not only positive emotions, but also certain troubles. Since the rabbit needs a toilet, it should be taught to the tray from an early age. But to teach the animal the simple rules of hygiene, it will take a lot of strength and patience.
How to choose
The choice of high-quality and proper tray, toilet filler is the main condition for successful training of a rabbit. He perceives this hygienic object as a foreign body, so the tray must be convenient for the animal. 
Otherwise, excessive discomfort can permanently discourage the animal from going to the toilet according to the rules.
Did you know? The most miniature rabbit is the Dutch dwarf. The weight of an average adult representative of the breed does not exceed 1.2 kg.
Tray
Today, in pet stores you can find all kinds of trays for animals, but the most popular among them are only two types:
- When keeping a rabbit in a small area, the most convenient is the corner tray. It has a triangular shape that allows you to install it in one of the corners of the cell with a minimum waste of free space.
- When keeping an animal in a large cage or in a special barrier, a small rectangular tray is optimal. Its main advantage is the ability to install anywhere.
The tray must have a grid or grid. This design makes it possible to achieve an optimal ratio of hygiene and comfort for the animal, since it does not require the replacement of the litter after each excrement.
Important! It is not recommended to create a toilet tank with the most available materials - most of these materials do not have a high resistance to aggressive animal excrement, which leads to the accumulation of unpleasant odors in them.
In addition, a plate with a grid provides direct contact with the litter, and this is not only perceived by the rabbit positively, but also causes heightened interest, which is important for early learning. 
Filler
The main requirements for hygienic filler are:
- complete safety for animals;
- high degree of absorption of liquids;
- the ability to absorb the maximum amount of unpleasant odors.
The most suitable material for these purposes is a granular filler made from environmentally friendly sawdust. It is able to react instantly with feces and safely bind them for a long time.
Representatives of the family Zaitsev are familiar with the environment primarily through the taste buds, so the litter must be hypoallergenic and non-toxic, otherwise the animal may be seriously poisoned.
It is best to purchase special granular fillers for decorative rabbits, but in their absence, you can use pellets for cats. If there are no granulated bedding in the nearest pet store, you can use loose sawdust or finely shredded paper.
Important! Wood fillers based on needles banned for rabbits. This litter contains many natural resinous compounds that are toxic to the delicate organism of animals.
They will help to qualitatively absorb all the feces, but this litter must be changed after each bowel movement. Bulk materials are not capable of binding all liquids dry, and domestic rabbits only need clean and dry places. 
How to teach the rabbit to the tray
Decorative rabbits have a stubborn temper, so it is much more difficult to accustom them to the tray than cats. The animal practically does not admit its mistakes, so that the punishment in training is useless. In addition, excessive persistence can lead to the complete rejection of a stationary toilet, which threatens not only the spread of unpleasant smell from the cage, but also problems with the health of the pet.
The decorative breeds of rabbits include such as hermelin, squirrel, lionhead, colored short-haired dwarf, Viennese blue.
The success of learning animals depends on many factors, which is why it is difficult to predict the appearance of the first results. Often the most prone to learning are young animals, so it is recommended to teach the pet to hygiene from a young age. This process will require tolerance, perseverance and understanding.
Only in this case, in 2-3 weeks it will be possible to thoroughly instill the pet new rules of behavior.
The basic steps of habiting a rabbit to the toilet:
- The animal should be necessarily acquainted with the capacity for the toilet, for this it together with the filler is placed in a cage for several days. During this time, the pet should get used to the tray and stop perceiving it as a stress factor.
- After the animal has mastered, add a small amount of feces or dirty litter to the granules. This will help attract the rabbit and show him for what purpose this cell zone exists.
- If the rabbit did not independently begin to go to the toilet, he needs to strongly explain why a new accessory appeared in the cage. To do this, wait for the moment when the animal sits down to defecate, and a few seconds before the process begins to transplant it into the tray. In this case, it is necessary to control that the litter does not fall out of the tray, otherwise the rabbit will crap all over the cage.
- In the first few days, the furry pet will strongly reject the new rules of hygiene, so perseverance and patience should be maintained. If the pet persistently ignores the tray, in the cage you need to install several toilet containers at once - this will help the animal to determine the optimal place for stool.
Why accustomed rabbit stopped walking in the tray
Often, decorative rabbits successfully train, but in some cases, the result can be instantly lost, fixed with heavy efforts. This leads to the fact that the pet begins to spoil outside the toilet, in any place convenient for him.
Important! As a punishment, you should not poke a rabbit with your nose in a puddle, the animal will most effectively take light cotton across the back of the body.
There can be many reasons for abrupt behavioral changes, but in most cases this is a direct result of all sorts of stress, or the physiological characteristics of the organism.
Among them the most common are the following:
- Feeling in the tray causes moral discomfort - often this happens with a careless relationship with an animal, when it does not feel like the owner of its territory; in this case, a natural marking of the terrain occurs. You can overcome the problem by careful and attentive handling of the animal. The cage should be a home for it and not cause negative emotions, and the toilet should be arranged in a remote and darkened corner of the dwelling.
- Puberty - at the age of 3-4 months, representatives of the family Zaytsevye begin puberty. Fluffy animal becomes an adult, so in a hurry at all costs to mark their territory. This process is natural for almost all animals and takes place over time. Prevent it can timely castration.
- The emergence of a new animal - if the feces outside the tray began due to the appearance of a new relative in the cage, you should not scold the pet, as he simply marks his territory. This is a natural norm, so in this case it takes a short time to adapt it to new conditions (no more than a few days).
- Stressful situation - rabbits are quite shy, the appearance of any stress factors in their habitat causes them a strong shock. Most often, such a pet feels a lot of stress after the arrival of guests, the emergence of a new territory, the capture of a stranger, the appearance of another animal in the apartment. As a result, the animal can completely lose all the skills learned before. To help in this situation will help refresh the memory of the pet - for this you need to re-repeat the training to the tray. In most cases, after only a few days, he will again remember what he learned.
Frequently asked Questions
Even having got used to the tray, the animal does not always use it properly. Consider the most common problems encountered when learning the animal.
What to do if a rabbit goes to bed in a tray
The rabbit's special love for its tray is not desirable. This accessory is equipped for hygiene, so it is necessary to prevent this phenomenon. Otherwise, it can cause serious infections.
For the care of decorative rabbits, it will also be useful for you to learn how to care in the apartment, how to train at home, what to do if the decorative rabbit stinks, how to properly put on a leash, whether it is possible to bathe, what to properly feed, what kinds of diseases are.
Most often this bad habit is observed in insufficiently tidy cells. Going to bed in a tray, the rabbit spreads feces throughout the entire cell area, as a result of which the pet disrupts the feeling of dividing the living space into zones.
To overcome the problem is quite easy.
For this you need:
- as often as possible to clean the cell from feces;
- Be sure to change litter after each bowel movement.
What if the rabbit goes to the toilet next to the tray
Quite often, the owners of rabbits are faced with a problem, when an animal can be taught to regularly walk to one place, but the rabbit still does not cease to ignore the tray and walks a few centimeters from the tank.
Did you know? Decorative rabbits can live up to 8 years, while their wild relatives live under natural conditions for no more than 1-2 years.
Often this is due to an excessive amount of filler in the tray, or too high sides. This result will help control over the amount of filler, as well as a more careful selection of capacity for the toilet of the pet.
Compliance with the general rules of hygiene is one of the main conditions for the safe and safe keeping of ornamental rabbits. And training to defecate in a tray is very important for optimal sanitary conditions in the cell.
To accustom this animal is not easy, but if you acquire perseverance and make the necessary efforts, your pet will surely learn everything.
