Problem with kitten not using the litter tray

[Plantie]

Well Charlie has suddenly realised that the litter tray isnt his bed

I took both of the beds out & gave them a good wash (which seems loike it has been a daily ritual now.....) and since then, they have had a fleece blanket on the floor. So far this plan of action has been sucsessful & i am going to leave the beds out for a week to see how he gets on & get him back into the routine of using the tray.

Thanks for all your help!

[Millys Mum]

Iv just swapped to it and since then all of them have decided to do 100% of their toilets in it as its so lovely!

[Susanne (urbantigers)]

Try an extra tray of fine clay litter, tesco sell a tub of a good one (sophisticat choice) for £5, as kittens grow and get heavier the litter can become sharper on the paws. It could also be a hormonal thing!

That's the one I use   It's in a plastic tub with a green label.  And it's usually on the top shelf which is a pain for a shortie like me! 

[Plantie]

Try an extra tray of fine clay litter, tesco sell a tub of a good one (sophisticat choice) for £5, as kittens grow and get heavier the litter can become sharper on the paws. It could also be a hormonal thing!

Thanks! We'll give it a go, its worth a try

[Millys Mum]

Try an extra tray of fine clay litter, tesco sell a tub of a good one (sophisticat choice) for £5, as kittens grow and get heavier the litter can become sharper on the paws. It could also be a hormonal thing!

[Ela]

Do you think this could be the cause?

Pass, I am sure they vet will be able to enlighten you more tomorrow.

[Plantie]

Thanks for the reply.

Charlie is leaving his bed & he isnt scared, he is acting acactly the same as he has for the  past 2 months (like a little monkey!). He is booked in to have his bits chopped off tomorrow so when i take him in i will discuss this with the vet and ask him have a look at him, of course if anything is wrong he wont be having his operation.

In a way its like he thinks its his new litter tray, he was digging like he does in his tray & my husband picked him up to put him in the tray & charlie was to quick.

The reason why i didnt change the cat litter slowly was that it is the same type as the other one, just a different brand. I think he found the new one sharper on his paws though.

He has been getting in the bin recently (we have bought a new one), and his depoits were a less hard than usual. Do you think this could be the cause? He hasnt be acting ill in any way though.

[Ela]

Firstly I would take Charlie to the vets to ensure there are no underlying problems. I suggest you try 2 litter trays 1 covered and 1  without a hood, You could also try and put a few drops of rescue remedy in his water in case he is  little stressed. Perhaps something is frightening him and he does not want to leave his bed.

When you want to change from one type of litter to another it needs to be done very gradually, each time you change the tray put a little more of the litter you indend to use and a little less of the old.

If all else fails and a Vet has conformed there are no underlying problems, we have found that if we put a cat in a large dog pen with 2, 3 or even 4 trays, and just a bit of bedding, (Obviously waster in a hanging pot) cats will retrain very, very quickly and use the tray once again. I hate the idea but sometimes it needs to be done and you cannot live with the cat not using the tray.

[Plantie]

Hi all,

Well when i first brought my kittens home they were both already litter trained. They were actually very good at it!

Recently, Charlie the male kitten has taken a liking to weeing & pooing on his bed, which i have to keep washing! I was wondering what could make him do this & how do i get him back into the litter box. He is well in himself otherwise & is eating with gusto.

The only thing we changed was the brand of litter, we thought this could be the problem so we changed back but he still doesnt use the box. We have also moved the location of the bed a few times too just in case he liked the area it was in but he still uses it. We also bought a new bed & we caught him using that last night.

What to do? Its driving me mad!

Thanks

Sarah