Copy of Litter Training
Last updated
Last updated
Most cats/kittens when provided with a litter-tray containing a suitable litter substrate will begin to use it without any direct assistance.
Initially, it is best to select a litter that is light and easy for the animal to scratch/dig in and that possesses a natural odour. It is also best to avoid scented litters.
Placement of the litter-tray is equally as important as the type of litter used.
Litter-trays should be positioned in quiet areas, against walls or in the corners of the room, where the cat/kitten feels more secure and ‘interruptions’ are less likely to occur. This is to avoid the development of a ‘litter-tray aversion’, which could lead to long-term inappropriate toileting.
Cats DO NOT like enclosed litter trays, these have been designed for human requirements, to make us happy, so please do not use an enclosed litter box while they are training.
Very young kittens are prone to having toileting ‘accidents’ and will commonly urinate and/or defecate in the first place they feel comfortable, typically on beds/blankets, in concealed places (under the couch, behind the TV), and in the corners of the room.
To minimise the risk of this happening, it is important to keep kittens confined in their designated room/enclosure until they have used their litter-tray twice for both urine and faeces. This is to distinguish a ‘learnt’ behaviour from a ‘chance’ event.
Once the kittens have demonstrated this learnt behaviour, it is just as important not to allow the kittens out of their designated area for extended periods, as this increases the likelihood of kittens finding an ‘alternative’ toileting spot.
Most kittens will typically need to urinate and/or defecate within ½ an hour of eating, so keeping them confined for at least 1 hour after feeding can greatly reduce the risk of accidents.
In the event that previously untrained cats/kittens do not use the litter-tray, it should be deemed an ‘accident’ and not ‘inappropriate toileting’.
Inappropriate toileting is when a previously litter-trained cat chooses not to use the litter-tray. It is important when an ‘accident’ does occur not to discipline the cat/kitten as this is likely to generate unnecessary stress and/or anxiety which is unlikely to facilitate the litter-training process.
Rubbing an animal’s nose into the site of an accident serves no useful purpose DO NOT do this.
What may increase the likelihood of a cat/kitten using a litter-tray after an accident, is to transfer a small amount of the urine and/or faeces from the site of the accident into the litter tray (a syringe or eye-dropper can be used to aspirate some urine).
The most important action to take after an accident has occurred is to ensure that the soiled area is cleaned thoroughly.
Cats have a far more sensitive sense of smell than humans, so clean soiled areas until you can no longer detect any odour and then clean them at least one more time. This is to remove any odour that may act as a future ‘trigger’ for the animal to repeat toileting at the same spot.
Using an enzyme-based cleaning product to clean the soiled site is generally more effective than trying to ‘mask’ the odour with fragranced products. It is important to avoid using ammonia-based cleaning products as normal urine contains ammonia and cats are more likely to urinate at sites where they can still detect ammonia odours.
Based on the number of cats or kittens you have you may need multiple litter trays. The rule is:
