Just like any other animal, rabbits use the bathroom. Encouraging them to do so through a litter box will save you the headache of cleaning up after them in the long run. Rabbits are territorial creatures though, so is it safe for two rabbits to share the same litter box? Is access to the same private area going to cause a fight?
Two rabbits are able to share the same litter box with the correct pairing, bonding, and introduction. When rabbits are bonded, they feel comfortable around each other and easily share the same space. Rabbits are territorial animals, so it’s essential that bonding measures are carried out.
Rabbits may be territorial, but they’re also extremely social and can get along well with others if properly introduced.
Best Pairing Matches
Rabbits need to be with other rabbits, plain and simple. As stated before, they’re very social animals and are the happiest when are with other rabbits. Without other rabbits, they can have physical and mental anguish over time, so it’s very essential to have two together. Just like humans though, rabbits need to mesh well together in order to live in harmony with each other.
- Best: Male/Female Pairing: This one is the most natural and will promise the least amount of contention between the two rabbits.
- Better: Female/Female Pairing: This pairing will cause a little more contention between the two rabbits depending on the dominance levels of the two, but as long as they’re spayed and neutered they will be fine.
- Good: Male/Male Pairing: This pairing will cause the most contention that you can have. If you have this pairing, make sure that the two rabbits are sprayed and neutered to avoid fighting and injury.
Age Pairing
Pairing two baby rabbits: Two young rabbits will usually get along just fine, especially if they’re siblings. Over time, however, they will start to smell different than how they did when they were younger so it’s very important to spay and neuter them so that they don’t start to fight with each other. Males should be spayed and neutered at 10-12 weeks and Females at 4-6 months.
Pairing a baby and adult rabbit: This is very risky. The adult rabbit could lash out and bully the baby rabbit. This is the least recommended introduction pair but spaying and neutering the baby lowers the risk a bit and the rabbits will have a better chance at successful bonding. If you choose this pairing, please make sure to read my guide on how to bond a baby rabbit to an older rabbit here, since the tips in that article will help things go much smoother.
Pairing two adult rabbits: Introducing Two adult rabbits to each other is probably the easiest match up, especially if both are spayed and neutered. Just make sure the temperaments of the rabbits mix well and you should be fine.
Introduction Of The Rabbits
Introducing the rabbits properly is very very important. Throwing two unfamiliar rabbits into same living space could lead to disaster. Here are some quick, easy steps to take to make sure you introduce the rabbits properly.
- Step 1: Isolate the rabbits in separate cages at first. Make sure that the rabbits aren’t able to see each other so that it won’t be possible for them to start off on the wrong foot or fight.
- Step 2: Spray and neuter the two rabbits if not done already. It’s been mentioned a lot so far but that is because of its importance. When the rabbits are neutered, they are less aggressive it lowers the risk of the two becoming territorial and fighting with each other.
- Step 3: Bring the cages together. This will let the two meet in a very comfortable and safe environment for the first time and get used to each other’s scent. Do this for 2-3 weeks so that they become more relaxed.
- Step 4: The meeting of the two rabbits. This last step is very important, so make sure it’s a natural environment so that it lessens the chance of a confrontation. Make sure to lay cardboard boxes down with some hay and get any dangerous objects out of the way, then observe. Having some thick gloves on hand just in case you have to break up a confrontation is wise. The first meeting should be 10 minutes at first, then do the same thing the next day and gradually increase the length of meetings as time goes on.
Bonding
Now that we have found the right pair, we can work on bonding the two rabbits. Bonding will help the rabbits not be territorial and guard their space. With litter boxes being so small and close together it is very essential for the rabbits to bond together. Typical signs of bonding include laying down close together, grooming, and playing. If you see these things after a couple of weeks it will be safe to then allow them to share the same litter box.
Litter Boxes & What To Put In Them
Litter Boxes
Now that you’ve paired, introduced, and bonded your two rabbits we can get to the LITTER BOXES! When choosing how big of a litter box to get, sandiegorabbits.org says,
“Basic plastic cat litter pans work best for bunny’s litter box. They come in sizes small, medium, large, and giant, and can be found at stores such as Target, Wal-Mart, and Kmart, for a nominal price. We recommend sticking to the medium, large, or giant litter pans for most bunnies unless your bunny is very tiny.”
– Lucky Bunny Rabbit Rescue (source)
The best way to go with bonded pairs of rabbits is to go with a giant pan so that there will be enough room for both of them to do their business.
The Good Stuff
Once you have chosen which litter box is the best for your rabbits, we can then PUT THE GOOD STUFF IN THEM. The best things to put into your litter box are pee pads on the bottom to absorb everything and make clean up nice and easy, wood stove pellets that don’t contain chemicals are best to use with paper pellets as well. The final addition to the litter box is some hay, so your bunnies feel comfortable to be in there, given the sizeable amount of time they will spend there.
For a complete guide on exactly how you can best go about setting up a littler box for your rabbit, see my article How to Set up a Rabbit Litter Box in 10 Steps.
Clean Up
Cleaning up after rabbits is so essential! They’re very clean animals so if you neglect to clean up their personal space they will start doing their business where you don’t want them to.
Conclusion
To wrap up, yes it is possible to have two rabbits share the same litter box. The process just takes a little bit of training, patience, and research for them to be able to do so.
So if having two rabbits share the same litter box is very possible, then what about sharing the same carrier? Take a look at my article all about rabbits sharing the same carrier here. You may just be surprised how doable this is also (with some important exceptions of course)!
