WhatMakeCatsUseLitterBoxes?
Accordingtoaveterinarian
Atleast10%ofallcatsexperienceeliminationissues.Somepeoplestopusing theboxentirely.Somepeopleuseonlytheirboxesforurineflowordefecation, notboth.Otherseliminateboththeinsideandoutsideoftheirboxes.
Eliminationissuescanariseasaresultofdisputesbetweenmultiplecatsinthe home,adisapprovalofthewastetypeorthelitteritself,apreviousmedical condition,orthecatdeterminingshedoesn'tlikehowthelitterboxissituated.
Kittiesareoftenregardedasamoreindividual,self-sufficientspeciesthandogs, owingtothefactthattheydonotrequirepeopletotakethemoutagainto eliminatethem.Mostcatslearntoeliminateinthehousebyusingcatlitterbox supplies.
Nonetheless,felineeradicationissuesareamongthemostcommonbehavioral issuesthatclientsbringtoveterinarians.Often,theissuearisesbecausehuman preferencesforlitterboxlocationandtypedonotcoincidewiththewantsof theirfelinecompanions.
Asveterinaryexperts,wemustbeateasewhenteaching.
It'sinacat'sDNAtorelieveitselfwhereitcanhideit,regardlessofwhether theywereraisedbyhumansasanorphanorwithitsmotherandotherkittens. StacieLeeNyhuis,aLicensedVeterinaryTechnicianatBehaviorSolutionsfor PetsinAshburn,Virginia,explainsthatinthewild,catsburytheirwastetokeep thescentoftheirpresencehiddenfrompotentialpredators.
It'simportanttoencouragenewbornkittenstoeliminate.Soevenifit'salittle dirtyatfirst,they'llnaturallystartusingthebestlitterboxforcatswhen they'rethreetofourweeksold.
Evenwhilestraycatsmakingthetransitionfromtheoutsidetotheindoorsare awareofwhattodo,theycanprefertouseyourhouseplantsasalitterbox.Put awaythehouseplantsandprovideseveraltypesofcatlitterboxestoassisther inadjusting.Youmightalsothinkaboutgraduallyswitchingfromnatural substrate(soilorsod)tocommercialkittylitterbyaddingittothelitterbox.
HowCanCatsSenseWhenToUseTheLitterBox?
ManagingLitter-BoxIssues
Yourcatwon'tlikelyuseherlitterboxifshedoesn'tfeelateaseusingitorcan't gettoitreadily Duetothefollowingtypicallitter-boxconcerns,shemightexit herbox:
● Yourcat'slitterboxhasn'tbeencleanedfrequentlyorthoroughlyenough
● Foryourhousehold,therearen'tenoughlitterboxesavailable Besure youhavealitterboxforallofyourcats,andalsoonespare
● Thelitterboxistootinyforyourcat.
● Yourcatcan'talwayssimplyaccessherlitterbox.
● Thereisahoodorlineronyourcat'slitterboxthatbothersher.
● Yourcat'slitterboxhastoomuchlitter.Catstypicallyprefer1to2inches oflitter.
FavorableLocation
Catsmayavoidlocationstheydon'tlike,muchlikehowpeopleandcanines developpreferencesforwheretourinatethemselves.Thissuggeststhatthey mightavoidusingtheirlitterboxifit'sinabadspot.Thus,positionitina locationthatcatsfindcozy.
ConflictInMultiple-CatHomes
Occasionally,oneormorecatsinahouseholdwillpreventtheothercatsfrom usingthelitterboxesandrestrictaccesstothem Evenifoneofthecatsisn't reallytargetingsomeothercatsinthelitterbox,anyargumentamongstcatsina housecancauseenoughtensiontoresultinlitter-boxproblems
EnvironmentModifications
Haveyourecentlymadeanymajormoves?Orperhapsyousimplyrelocated yourfurniture,orevenbigger youpurchasedanewhome.Whateveritmay
be,itcouldworryandconfuseyourcat.Bepatient;yourcatshouldeventually acclimatizetothechangesinitsenvironment.
Stress
Severaldifferentthingscancausestress,butsomecatsarepredisposedtoitby nature Youmightnotnoticeaminorchangeifyouhaveananxiouscat,but theydo Ifyourrestroomhabitsstarttochange,trytocomeupwithsome changes.
ToConclude
Yourveterinarianshouldalwaysbethefirstpersonyoucallifyourcatstarts usingthetoiletoutsideoftheCatlitterbox.Changesinacat'slitterboxhabits canresultfromavarietyofmedicalissues.Yourcatmayhaveabehaviorissue thathastoberesolvedifyourvetexaminesthemandgivesthemacleanbillof health.
