We often blame the cat for not using the litter box, but for pooping in the wrong place. This may be due to several reasons. We’ll list the main ones right here, but first, let’s talk about how to show your cat where the litter box is.
You need to close the cat in the room where the litter box is located. For example, you placed the litter box in the bathroom, lock the cat in a couple of hours in the bathroom with the litter box. If the room where the litter box is located is large, then just take the cat and place it in the litter box. You don’t need to forcefully hold it in the litter box. She will immediately come out of the litter box as soon as you put her there, but I assure you, she will remember the place where the litter box is. Repeat this several times during the day. And so, why the cat does not go to the litter box:
The cat does not like the litter. Yes, everything is the same as with food, the cat likes one food, the other does not. She eats one food completely, the other remains in the bowl. The same thing happens with the litter, if the cat does not like the litter or the cat does not like the litter box, the cat can poop elsewhere. What to do in this situation. To begin with, when you pick up a kitten from a cattery, the kitten is already accustomed to a certain litter box and litter, therefore, in order to eliminate our problem, you need to use a similar litter box with the same litter. If you want to use a different litter, you need to put two litter boxes, one with the previous litter, the other with the new one. And when the cat will use both litter boxes, you can remove the litter box with the old litter.
The litter box is not clean. This is usually a problem for the neat breeds, for example, the Siberian breed is less picky about the cleanliness of the litter box than the British breed. Everything is simple here, if you have a large litter box, then you need to clean it at least once a day. The amount of litter should be large enough for the cat to dig into. If a cat cannot dig due to the small thickness of the litter or an uncleaned the litter box, then the cat will not poop into the hole dug by her, but on a flat surface, for this reason she soils her ass and does not bury the excrement.
You have placed a litter box in the bathroom and periodically lock the door. Everything is clear here, the cat cannot get to the litter box and poop anywhere. Our recommendation in this case is to have at least two litter boxes in different locations.
In addition to the cat, you also have animals. This is true when several animals live in the same house and the cat is afraid to go to the litter box through the animal or through what she is afraid of. The solution to this problem is the same as in point 3. You need to have several litter boxes in the house.
This paragraph applies to kittens up to 6-8 months. The kitten likes to be with you on your floor, and its litter box is either on the lower floor or, for example, in the garage, i.e. far from its habitat. In this case, you need to place another temporary litter box near his habitat, but you need to feed the kitten near the main litter box so that he remembers the way well.
If the cat still pooped in the wrong place, then we have the most difficult task. The fact is that the cat is looking for a litter box by smell, which is why we recommend using the same litter that we use, because the cat knows this smell and quickly finds it, but the cat can also smell the wrong place where she pooped before and go there again. In this case, you need to try to remove this smell. To do this, clean the place where she pooped and treat with a urine odor destroyer (you can find it in a pet store) or you can put a device that detects movement and sprinkles water to scare the animal away. In general, you need to create an environment in which the cat will be uncomfortable using the wrong place again.
Good luck with your efforts and remember our pet friends do not have a sense of revenge or a desire to harm, fortunately or unfortunately, the animal does not have such abilities. All actions of the animal are regulated only by the feeling of comfort of their nervous system, they cannot reason and build chains of actions if these are not instinctive actions (for example, when a cat knows what to do during childbirth).
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Irina Kiseleva is British cat breeder. We breed British cats in rare colors (golden, silver-point, blue golden…)
Article by: Gbcattery October 21, 2022