Feline Litter Box Training

One pleasing aspect of owning a kitten is the litter box training is usually much easier than canine house training.  Most kittens will naturally be attracted to a litter box for elimination as long as the litter box is accessible and the litter is desirable.

Problems tend to arise when the litter box isn't accessible or clean.  Inappropriate elimination outside the litter box is one of the major problems presented to veterinarians.  Behavior problems may be the cause of inappropriate elimination, however, medical ailments such as urinary tract disease must first be ruled out.

It is much easier to avoid a litter box problem than fix one.  Most cats prefer finely particulate material as an elimination substrate.  Some general guidelines are:

• Clumping type litter provides a preferable type of letter.  It absorbs urine well and provides a scoopable urine clump.  It also absorbs odor better than clay litter.  Clay litter tends to be quite dusty.

 

• Unscented litter is generally preferred by cats however people tend to want to use scented litter to mask the odor from litter box.

 

• Litter boxes can never be too clean!!  Daily scooping of litter is mandatory to avoid inappropriate elimination problems.  If your cat begins to eliminate outside the litter box the first thing to do is increase the cleaning frequency.

 

• Uncovered boxes are preferred.  Covered boxes tend to trap odor and owners may scoop less often since they cannot see the deposits with the box.

 

• Milt-cat households should have several litter boxes.  A general rule is that there should be one more litter box than there are cats.  So in a 3 cat household, 4 litter boxes is preferable.

 

• Avoid high traffic or noisy areas for placement of the litter box.  Laundry rooms are common places for litter boxes but beware; a tumbling dryer may discourage your cat from using the litter box.

 

• Multi-level homes should usually have a litter box on each level.  Remember that as your cat ages, he or she might be less inclined to climb up or down the stairs to use the litter box.

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