How to Deal With Cats That Have Litter Accidents Out of all cat behavior problems, litter tray accidents will be the ones cat owners complain about the most with good reason. Placing the mess and damage to one side, inappropriate elimination is unsanitary and creates an unpleasant and often malodorous atmosphere in the home.
All cats will have an instinct to dig into loose materials and bury their urine and feces. A lot of them adapt this instinct to the litter tray with one or two problems.
It's still something they have to learn and they will often need that help to get the first lesson right.
Litter trays and litter should be one of the first things you buy when you decide to bring a cat in your home. Get them in place before the cat sets its little paw into your home. Make sure the trays are clean, easy to find, and numerous.
One good idea is to have multiple litter trays. It may be the solution for a cat that is having trouble eliminating.
Several cats will dislike using a tray that another cat has recently used, even if that other cat is herself. The rule of thumb is that the number of litter trays in the household has to be the equal number of cats you have in the house, plus one.
Therefore, if you have two cats, you should have at least three litter trays. If you are a household with just one cat, you should have at least two trays.
Keep it simple. Deodorizing litters, antibacterial litters, high-tech litters- all of these gimmicks that are used to sell various kinds of cat tray fillers are aimed at the creatures that buy the litter, not necessarily the ones that use it.
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There's nothing wrong with using a litter that makes your job of tending to the litter tray a little easier or a little less unpleasant. However, some cats may be put off by the additives, perfumes, and chemical deodorizers used in some of these products.
That means they'll choose to do their business elsewhere. The plain cat tray clumping litter (unscented) usually works fine.
Stop all this madness once a cat begins to eliminate outside of the litter tray.
Don’t think the cat will learn to use the tray on her own. Cats habitually will return to the same places to eliminate, a habit that's reinforced by the lingering odor of urine or faces.
Since a cat's sense of smell is far far superior to ours, cleaning up a litter tray accident so that you can no longer detect the odour may not be enough to deter the cat from doing it again.
Enzyme-based pet odor neutralizers actually it break down the chemical structure of the urine and then faces residue so that your cat can just no longer smell it. Pet supply stores usually carry at least one or two brands of these.
Deny them the favorite spots. Deny your cat access to the places where the cats eliminated outside of the litter tray. physical barriers work really well indeed, but if that's not just possible, try to covering these spots with tinfoil or double sided tape.
This will provide a barrier to the odor and a texture the cat will not want to walk on. If possible, consider placing a litter tray directly on top of the inappropriate spot, and then gradually move the tray an inch or so every few days, until it's where you want It to be.
Just be your cat's personal trainer. When your cat first comes home, keep her in one room with a litter tray. Once the cat has started using that tray consistently, give it the run of more rooms. usually, this will be enough to lock in the habit.
However, a cat who doesn't completely get the hang of the litter tray or backslides starts eliminating in other places will needs some extra additional training.
I think one of the best method you can use is to use a large portable dog kennel.
Set the cat up in the kennel with litter and water and give her meals in the kennel too.
When you see that the cat is using the litter tray, let her out for a bit.
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Keep an extra good eye on the cat, and return it to the private quarters after an hour or two. The next time you see the cat use the litter tray, let it out again. the idea is, that only gets free run of the house when it uses the litter tray.
This strategy can train (or retrain) a cat to use the litter tray in as little as two or three weeks it may be a bit longer isn't uncommon, either but a litter tray in every room could really help your cat feel more comfortable.
What is the cause? a cat who suddenly begins eliminating in inappropriate places could be announcing to you that he or she doesn't feel very well. You will never make any progress on getting it to use the litter tray consistently if there's a physical cause for the unwanted behavior, so get the cat to the vet as soon as possible.
Location, location, location. Sometimes, there's something about the location of the litter tray that the cat objects to. Maybe its too far out of the way down in a basement or up in an attic.
Hard to get into or out of especially for small kittens or elderly cats.
Sometimes, air fresheners or other odours in the room will keep the cat away.
Pine and citrus, are pleasing smells to us but may be offensive to cats. also, loud noises, such as a nearby stereo, may disturb your cat when she's doing her business.
When its time to Call the Vet
And before you try to treat inappropriate elimination as a behavior problem, take your cat to the vet for a thorough examination. if your vet rules out a physical cause great, you will know it's probably a simple behavior problem.
However, even if there is a physical problem and your vet treats it successfully, your cat still has developed this habit of eliminating someplace other than litter tray, also you will still need to follow the steps for correcting this behavior problem.
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