Daily Kitten Chat Forum » Cats & Kittens

1. 

   Hey all,

   Seven days ago I adopted a lovely eight week old female kitten who we have named Fenella.

   For her first three days we kept her safe in the bathroom with her food, litterbox and bed, though she WOULD NOT use the litterbox to urinate OR defecate, instead she preferred her bed. I removed the bed, and gave her a pillowcase as something soft to lay on, but again, she used this as her toilette.

   So, I inched the pilowcase closer and closer to the litterbox until it was in the litterbox. I haven't removed it yet because while she will now use the literbox to poop, she still will not use it to pee!

   Also, to avoid any kitten accidents, I've been trying to keep her shut in the bathroom with her litterbox and food, but she cries and meows incessantly when I try this now! (She was perfectly happy in there the first couple nights)

   Help, what can I do!?

   Posted 1 year ago by Lady Hockenberry #

2. 

   Hi Jazz. It seems like your kitten does not recognize the litter/litterbox as the appropriate bathroom. There could be several possibilities.

   Litterbox issues: Some cats don't like enclosed litterboxes- too smelly, and they can't see out, which means something might sneak up on them. So if yours has a hood, remove it. Are the sides too high for a kitten to climb over? You could try one of those foil baking pans as a litterbox until she grows a bit.

   Litter issues: What type of litter did her mother teach her to use? What are you using? If they were using, say, nonclumping clay, and you are using something like pellets, crystals, or FelinePine, she may not recognize it as litter. Some cats will not use scented litter; they find the smell too strong to tolerate. I would find out what type of litter she was using before, and use that in a kitten-sized litter box. After she eats, put her in the litterbox and help her make digging motions with her front paws to help her get the idea. If she urinates, praise and pet her! You can also put her waste in the litterbox so that it has the correct scent association. When changing litter, it is a good idea to add just a small amount of the new litter to the old, and increase the proportion slightly each time you change it, unless you know your cat doesn't mind different litter. I would not start changing her over until she is using the old litter consistently, however.

   She probably feels safe enough to come out and explore now, and is meowing b/c she wants to be with her human mommy. It is a good idea to keep her confined until she figures out the litterbox. Just go in there and spend time with her. You can also let her out for supervised play sessions. If she starts to squat and urinate, don't yell; pick her up and carry her to the litterbox. Remember, she is young and this is a new place; she will learn.

   Posted 1 year ago by Kiplings_cat #

3. 

   I like what kipling said. Also, when she has accidents on the pillowcase, wash it so she doesn't associate the pillowcase with the smell of urine. You could get an enzyme cleaner if that's easier.

   Posted 1 year ago by ladysky61 #

4. 

   hello!

   Thank you so much for the lovely advice.

   She uses the litterbox to defecate, so I would assume it is not a problem with the litter, or the pan. We started with a smaller, foil roasting pan, but she refused to use it, so we got something bigger and made leaps and bounds of progress with that.

   It seems to me that letting her out for supervised playtime started the issue, as now she won't go back into the bathroom for any period of time.

   I'll be taking the pillow case out of the pan today, thought it definitely did the trick of getting her to start using the litter box.

   Cheers :)

   Posted 1 year ago by Lady Hockenberry #

5. 

   Hmm. I have a VERY picky cat who has two litterboxes- one for pee, one for poo- since she insists on an absolutely pristine litterbox. Hope Fenella doesn't want that!

   How about putting a second litterbox outside of the bathroom, wherever she likes to play or sleep the most? Young kittens often can't hold it for too long so it is often a good idea.

   Posted 1 year ago by Kiplings_cat #

6. 

   Welcome to TDK. How close is her food and water to her litterbox? They should be as far away as possible from each other.

   Posted 1 year ago by CheetahBoysmommy #

7. 

   Also, worth trying Catattract or Kittenattract litter. You don't have to fill the box with it, but can sprinkle it over as a top layer (as it's quite pricey). Many TDKers swear by it.

   Posted 1 year ago by jcat #

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