How to Ensure Your Cat Uses the Litter Box

How to choose a Cat or Kitten that will match your personality.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A Cat
• Litter
• At least two Litter Boxes

1. When setting up your litter boxes it is important to look at them from your cats point of view. Consider things like the location, the litter itself, and the box.

2. First lets look at the location. Be sure that the litter box is somewhere off the beaten path in your home. Most cats, just like humans, enjoy their privacy while doing their business. A spare bathroom or spare bedroom are good places.

3. Next lets look at the box. Some cats will like the open boxes and some will prefer the hooded kind. You will just have to try one and see how the cat reacts. This is all about trial and error.

4. Another thing to consider is the litter. There are many kinds of litter on the market today and it can be hard to decide which would be the best. Should you use clay litter, scented or unscented? Again this will be trial and error. If the cat refuses to use the litter box you have chosen try a different kind of litter and see if it helps.

Tips & Warnings

• The biggest piece of advice I can offer is to have one litter box per cat in the house plus one extra box. So if you have 2 kitties then you should have 3 boxes in your home. The reason for this is to ensure that the cat will always have a box near enough to use and offers the cat a sense of security in that he can use another box if he feels unsafe with the one of the others.
• As for the placement of the litter boxes, just be sure that you are not putting the boxes near the cats food and water supply. Would you like to eat your dinner next to your toilet? Neither does your cat.
• If you have tried different boxes, liters, and locations and your cat still will not use the litter box there may be a medical condition that is making him/her forget it's potty etiquette. Take her to the vet and have her checked out. In my experience not using the litter box is one of the first signs that there may be a medical issue. Better safe than sorry.
• One last piece of advice. Scoop the box daily and clean it at least once a week. Your cat is a lot like you. It wants it's bathroom nice and clean.