Litter Box Training Your Cat

If you have ever tried to train a cat that was living outdoors to use a litter bax, you know it can be a chore. Kittens that are with a litter-trained mother will usually be trained by the mother cat, but once they're away from Mom, you get to take over. Here are a few things you can try to train your cat or kitten to use a litter box, if they have never used one before.

Start young

The younger a catnis when it learns to use the litter box, the more reliable they will be about it. Keep the kitten's bed near the litter box, or move the litter box closer to the cat's normal haunts. One very good place for the litter box during the training phase is your bathroom, if you can leave the door ajar when you go. The cat knows what you do in there, and if she sees you using the bathroom, she'll come in and try things out herself. Most bathrooms are tile, and cats don't like going on tile. They instinctively want to bury their waste, and the litter box is the only place to do that.

Be patient with accidents. Like small children, cats will have accidents, and they'll be a lot more arrogant about them. Don't rub a cat's nose in its waste but do show it the waste and scold it while you clean up the mess. The absolute critical thing you must do here is make the area smell different, unpleasant to the cat. I use a few different things: cut fresh lemon, mint teabags, Lysol, and as an absolute last resort bleach. Lemon and mint smell to a cat about the same way skunk smells to us, and they'll generally avoid it. Lysol is good for cleaning up, and if it's a citrus-based spray the cat won't like that any better than the lemons.As with all urine there is amnomia in cat urine. When this mixes with bleach it will form a toxic gas. If you must use bleach be sure the area is well ventilated and there are no pets or other people around. Also as you probably know bleach can, well 'bleach' the color out of carpets and furniture. If you use try to use bleach test it on a small area first. Also be sure you have cleaned up as much of the waste and urine as possible first. When you dispose of the waste, by the way, take it to the litter box and let the cat see you do so, so she knows where that's supposed to go.

Consult the veterinarian. If your cat just can't seem to make it to the litter box, you should definitely take him to the vet. There may be an underlying medical issue causing your problem.

Change the litter box often, but not often enough to completely eliminate the odor. Cats are drawn to the odor of waste when they need to go to the bathroom, that's why you should clean up messes so thoroughly. But cats are fastidious and won't go to a litter box that is, in their estimation, too dirty. So don't change the litter box every day; instead, change it every other day, and do not try to sanitize it. It won't work anyway, and it may trigger the cat to start going elsewhere.

When Kitty starts using the corner or closet you can try these tricks to train your kitty. As noted above, lemon, mint, and cleaning solvents will chase the cat away. She may be drawn by the smell of your footwear, so try putting these up high where she can't get to them, and lay aluminum foil down on the floor as well. Block Kitty off from these places; if she's chosen your closet, close the closet door and evict her from your room, if she cries at the door, evict her to another part of the house, preferably close to the litter box.

Litter Box Training Your Cat

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Litter Box Training Your Cat