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Why Does my Rabbit Spray Urine on me

Sara
By Sara . Updated: January 20, 2017
Why Does my Rabbit Spray Urine on me

Most people think that owning and caring for a sweet docile creature like a rabbit is the easiest task to do. After adding a rabbit as pet member in their family they start to realize what other rabbit owners usually complain about: urine spray. As a rabbit hits puberty they start spraying the yucky smelling urine all over the places making their owners flinch. While most owners try to fix this problem they do not realize the source of this problem. If you are interested in knowing the source of the problem and how to fix it then keep reading this OneHowTo article if you're asking yourself: why does my rabbit spray urine on me?

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Spray urination or normal urination

Every rabbit owner must know the difference between spray urination and normal urination of their pets. When rabbits spray, their urine has a very strong odor in comparison to their normal urine discharge. Also, when rabbits urinate normally they would do so on a horizontal surface but if it is spray urine, then it will do so on vertical surfaces.

Why my Rabbit sprays?

  1. To mark territories: When a rabbit hits puberty especially the male rabbits, they start marking their territory in the wild. In case of pet rabbits, they would mark the cages by spraying. For most pet rabbits their owner is also one of their territories so they tend to spray on them too.
  2. Showing love: When rabbits reach sexual maturity they would definitely start to spray and most often it is due to love. Spraying is the normal way of showing love for a rabbit. During the courtship period, male rabbits spray on female rabbits. So, if you are the target of sprays then it may be because your rabbit loves you a bit too much.
  3. New member: When a new rabbit is introduced into a household that already has rabbits then the new member would be the target of multiple spraying. Gradually the rabbits adjust to the change and the spraying will decrease. The same will happen if you introduce new pets like dogs or cat or any other to your pet rabbit.
Why Does my Rabbit Spray Urine on me - Why my Rabbit sprays?

How to fix it?

The best way to avoid becoming the target of multiple sprays is to have your pet rabbit neutered or spayed. In the process of neutering, the reproductive organ which causes the production of hormone is removed. This helps in curbing the problem of spray urination as the hormonal changes cease to occur. But it can increase other behavioral problem in the rabbit such as biting or aggression.

If you do not want your rabbit fixed then avoid letting it run free all over the house as it will spray on every item which doesn’t already contain its smell.

Why Does my Rabbit Spray Urine on me - How to fix it?

If you want to read similar articles to Why Does my Rabbit Spray Urine on me, we recommend you visit our Pets category.

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1 comment
al schillaci
will this behaviour slow or stop with age and without spaying?
OneHowTo Editor
Hi Al. Not necessarily, if you don’t want to spay your rabbit, we recommend avoiding letting your rabbit roam free, as rabbits only spay objects which do not already carry their scent. In addition, by separating rabbits (if you have more than one) it may deter rabbits from feeling the need to mark their territory.
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Why Does my Rabbit Spray Urine on me

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