Mary Allen
When it comes to the toilet, cats don’t take a joke. If you want a clean home and a happy cat, you should avoid these mistakes.
Like humans, cats are quite demanding when it comes to their toilets. Anyone who does essential things wrong will soon get the receipt from their house cat: In the worst case, they will simply do their business somewhere else. If it’s “only” the corner of the living room, that’s annoying. But it gets really uncomfortable when the cat simply wets the bed or looks for even more unfavorable places for business.
Of course, there are many different reasons for the uncleanliness of the cat. Often the litter box plays an important role. These are the nine most common litter box mistakes.
Poor hygiene
We, humans, are most familiar with it from public toilets: If everything is not clean there, sometimes you would rather resist the need than relieve yourself there.
Cats are no different: if the litter box isn’t clean, they’re extremely reluctant (if at all) to go to the space provided. Therefore, clean the litter box several times a day and add fresh litter – ideally a few minutes after the cat’s business is done.
Excessive hygiene
Your cat’s nose is very sensitive. Even if we like a freshly cleaned bathroom with a pleasant scent of lemons or mountain meadows – your cat will most likely not like it. Therefore, do not use strong-smelling detergents to clean the litter box.
When it comes to litter, it is best to try out which product your cat likes best. Because the litter also has a certain smell.
Too few toilets
If you only have one cat, a litter box may be sufficient if you think about cleaning it regularly. However, a classic rule is that you should always provide one more toilet than you have cats. If one of the toilets is dirty, the cat can switch to the clean one. Remember to clean all litter boxes regularly.
If there are several cats, the animals also leave their personal scent in the toilet. This can prevent the other velvet paw from doing her business there if there is only one toilet and she has no alternative.
The wrong place
You also don’t want to relieve yourself in the presence of other people. So is your cat. A litter box in a busy place in the apartment is therefore out of the question.
Choose a quiet place where your velvet paw can be withdrawn and do whatever needs to be done.
Extra tip: It is best to also choose a place that is not in the immediate vicinity of the feeding site. Nobody wants to look at the toilet while eating. Neither do cats.
Not enough space
Until your cat has found the “right” place for business in the toilet, it may happen that it does one or two rounds. It is therefore really uncomfortable for your house cat if it does not have enough space to search for the perfect spot.
In addition, cats like to scratch when the job is done. If the toilet is too small, a lot of cat litter will quickly go to waste. Therefore, when buying the litter box, make sure that it leaves your pet enough space.
A toilet with a cover
Not only that some animals are afraid to enter a litter box with a hood (after all, the cover creates a dark, dangerous cave from the cat’s point of view) – it also restricts your animal’s freedom of movement when using the litter box. In addition, a toilet with a hood takes away the opportunity to support himself on the edge.
So the toilet has three glaring flaws that quickly put your cat off going to the toilet and, in the worst case, can lead to the cat not being clean.
Bad litter
Don’t experiment with cat litter. Once you find a product that your cat accepts well, stick with it. Also, do not change the amount of litter once you have had the impression that your animal is comfortable.
Cats are extremely creatures of habit. If it is avoidable, it is best to avoid making changes in everyday life and especially with regard to the litter box.
Insurmountable hurdles
Older cats in particular may have trouble reaching the toilet at all. An edge that is too high can be enough to make it difficult for the animal to get in comfortably.
If you notice that your senior finds steps and small jumps difficult, it is best to get a litter box with an entry or a flatter edge.
Do you have a cat senior? Then we have 8 tips here: What you should know about old cats.
But even young cats have a hard time with the edges of the litter box being too high. This can make housebreaking training unnecessarily difficult. Therefore, buy a litter box with a low rim for your young cat as well. If you then use our tips, the fur ball will quickly be housebroken: Getting the cat used to the litter box – 9 tips.
Penalties for Mishaps
As always in cat training, penalties are absolutely unacceptable when it comes to the toilet. While it’s annoying when the cat doesn’t reliably find a quiet place, if you start punishing your cat, the problem is guaranteed not to go away.
Instead, look carefully for the possible cause of the uncleanliness: Has something changed in the household? Maybe while cleaning? Is the toilet somewhere different than usual? Has another cat been added?
All of these can be reasons for uncleanliness. Check this out and then try to find a solution that will give your cat the confidence to go to the toilet again reliably.
With a lot of love and patience, you will surely achieve success together.