How Can I Get My Cat to Use His Litter Box Again
Litterbox bug are among the near mutual—and frustrating—cat behavior problems for owners. It can be challenging when your cat eliminates outside of the box. The outset step in retraining your cat to use the litterbox is to understand why your cat is going outside the box in the outset place.
Why Do Cats Cease Using the Litterbox?
There are many reasons why a true cat might stop using the litterbox. The well-nigh important things to rule out are any potential health problems like constipation or urinary tract issues.
Be sure to see your vet if your cat is showing signs of hurting or distress. Untreated urinary crystals or stones can lead to life-threatening blockages, especially in male person cats.
Once you rule out physical causes, the problem may exist very uncomplicated and easy to solve.
Reasons cats get-go going outside of the box:
- Your true cat dislikes a new brand or type of litter
- A ascendant true cat bullies a submissive cat in the box expanse
- The litterbox is not cleaned often enough
- Your cat doesn't experience comfortable going where you placed the box
- You take a multi-true cat dwelling with not enough litter boxes per cat
- A big cat (similar a Maine Coon) has outgrown a standard size box
Notice your cat's litterbox behavior closely. After you've identified the well-nigh likely cause, how do y'all retrain your cat to begin using the box once again?
The 9 Easy Steps to Retrain a Cat to Use the Litterbox
Before You Start
Keep in heed that the problem, fifty-fifty every bit you piece of work to solve it, might take acquired your cat to develop negative associations with using the box.
Punishing or yelling at your cat for going outside the box tin can make those bad feelings worse, and so avoid any negative reinforcements when accidents occur.
The key to retraining your cat to use the litterbox once again is to modify those negative feelings into positive ones. Here's how to make using the box comfortable again.
1. Discover the correct litterbox for your cat
A litterbox should be 1½ times the length of your true cat, measured from the nose to the base of the tail. Large cats need big boxes. For kittens and senior cats, the sides demand to exist low enough for easy access.
Take yous switched from an open up box to a closed box? Did y'all get a self-cleaning box recently? Your cat may adopt one box style over another.
And nearly chiefly, get multiple litterboxes for a multi-cat household. I box per cat plus i extra is ideal.
2. Discover the correct litter for your cat
There are many different types of kitty litter. Litter can exist fabricated from materials like clay, wood pellets, silica crystals, recycled newspaper pellets, walnut shells, and coconut husks, just to proper name a few.
Your preferred type of litter may non be your cat's favorite. Sometimes a cat volition develop an aversion to the texture of a detail kind of litter and prefer other surfaces like the rug or a tile flooring.
Y'all may have to experiment and purchase small-scale containers of different types of litter until yous find the right ane. Every cat is an individual, but by and large, cats prefer the experience of soft, finely textured litter.
Once you find the right litter, retrieve not to overfill or underfill the box. Besides much or too picayune litter can sometimes exist an issue.
iii. Identify the litterbox in a good spot
Litterbox placement can be an issue for a shy true cat in a decorated, multi-pet household. If your cat is timid, put the box in an easily accessible but quiet place, away from heavily trafficked and noisy areas.
Avoid placing the box in an surface area where your cat will feel trapped or cornered if approached. Nigh cats like to see who'southward coming and how they tin escape if they feel uncomfortable.
Practiced litterbox placement spots can include a basement or spare bathroom or bedroom. Bad litterbox places tend to be heavily used areas like the kitchen.
4. Keep the litterbox very clean
Non surprisingly, cats prefer clean litterboxes over dirty litterboxes. Cleaning the litterbox is non a fun chore, merely it is essential, especially when your cat has litterbox problems.
Scoop out the poop and solid clumps (if y'all utilise clumping litter) at to the lowest degree once per twenty-four hours. Y'all can wipe downward the sides if they are messy too.
Alter the litter out completely at to the lowest degree once per week, but more often if necessary.
Wash out the litterbox once every week using lather and water. Avoid harsh smelling cleaning agents similar ammonia.
Be aware that many cats exercise not like the feel of litterbox liners, and then it'south best not to use them.
5. Resolve conflicts between multiple cats
Information technology's very common in multi-true cat households for one cat to be dominant and some other to be submissive. Unfortunately, these power issues can result in skirmishes at the litterbox and food bowls.
Ane of your cats may be getting bullied or ambushed at the box. If this is the case, put a secondary box in the identify where the shy cat likes to spend time.
Separation of litterboxes, food and water bowls, and favorite sleeping spots tin can exist helpful in homes where in that location is a conflict between cats.
6. Try stress-relieving pheromones
There is some debate nigh the effectiveness of calming agents like pheromones or essential oils. Some owners swear by them, others have seen little issue.
You can try stress-relieving pheromone sprays or diffusers in the litterbox expanse. The idea behind pheromones is that they replicate the comforting natural substance that cats excrete when they rub their faces on things.
Essential oils that are said to be effective in calming cats include lavender, chamomile, geranium, and frankincense. Be sure to talk to your vet commencement and use any essential oil product with care, as many oils are toxic to cats.
7. Thoroughly clean areas your cat has previously soiled
It's not uncommon for cats to render to a identify in the home that they take soiled before. Yous tin discourage this by removing any trace of the aroma.
The all-time style to do this is with an enzymatic cleaner. Enzymatic cleaners are especially constructive in cleaning urine. They interruption downward the uric acid into different components which then evaporate.
Other types of cleaners may seem to us similar they clean and deodorize well, but your cat's sensitive olfactory organ will still find the urine.
8. Know the difference betwixt urine marking and going outside the box
Your cat will squat when urinating outside the box; a true cat that scent marks his territory will stand with his tail loftier and spray behind him.
Urine marking is not the same equally eliminating exterior of the box. The best solution for mark is to spay and neuter all your cats. You tin also use some of the same techniques we mentioned to solve conflicts betwixt cats.
9. If all else fails, seek professional advice
Sometimes a cat's litterbox and other behavioral problems can be tough to solve. Don't be shy about talking to your vet or an animal behaviorist.
Your vet tin prescribe medications for severe anxiety that may exist contributing to your cat's litterbox issues. There are a variety of different drugs that you lot tin can endeavour.
An fauna behavior practiced has training and experience in beliefs modification techniques and tin can assistance you lot to better understand and piece of work with your true cat.
Await for Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists (CAABs) and Associate Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists (ACAABs), equally they take advanced training in brute beliefs, biological science, and wellness.
Featured Image Credit: Tanya-Plotnikova, Shutterstock
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Source: https://petkeen.com/how-to-retrain-cat-to-use-litterbox/
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