It can be very frustrating when your cat stops using her litter box. Suddenly everything in your home can become a potential target of urine. Litter box aversion is the most common problem of clients call me on and in many cases, those customers are at the end of his rope. Nothing sends a cat to a shelter as fast as the question of the litter box. Unfortunately, many cats are relinquished to shelters, abandoned or euthanized because of litter box problems could have helped. Litter box problems cause owners to react emotionally and sometimes irrational. sight or smell of cat pee on the sofa or carpet cherished dearly easily short-circuit people patience.
Harmful mistakes owners make
Waiting too long to do something about it . I can 't you tell you how many times the owners call me and ask for immediate consultation, because they were planning on getting a cat to a shelter for several days. The problem usually lasts for weeks, months, maybe even years, and then the owner reaches the point of fracture. more problem goes, it is difficult to correct. Do not wait.
Assuming the problem behavior . Many behavior problems are the underlying medical causes. Many cats suffer in pain, because the owner takes the cause of litter box aversion is due to behavior problems when, in fact, it could be due to lower urinary tract, kidney failure, diabetes, or any number of medical issues. Whenever a cat showing the changes in behavior should have it checked by a veterinarian.
punishment . This is so counter-productive it is heartbreaking. Rubbing your cat's nose in her mess, spanking, yelling, time out, or any other form of punishment does nothing to help her retrain and, in fact, can make the situation worse. If your cat is peeing outside the litter box she does it because she feels she has no other options. If you punish her for adding to her stress, potentially creating added to the fear of you in this process, and it May start retaining her urine (which is medically harmful) for as long as she can for fear of being penalized. Hitting a cat is also inhumane and harmful to the process of behavior change. Hands should never be used as a weapon. How can you ever expect a cat to trust you and if you do not know if the hand comes close to it will pet her or hit her? Fear, intimidation, and pain is not appropriate behavior modification tool. Do not let your frustration over the behavior problems get the best of you, because your relationship with your cat will suffer.
Not finding the real cause of . Animals must not repeat the behavior, unless you serve a function. If kitty is eliminating outside the litter box there is a valid reason for it. The reason for this is certainly not acceptable from an owner's point of view, but the cat is trying to solve the problem in the best way she knows how. Let's look at a few examples: Maybe she eliminates outside the box, because it's too dirty. While you think that May grab a box every day or so is adequate, May your cat does not feel that is clean enough. It can be eliminated in other areas of the house, because they are cleaner. Perhaps she is peeing in the dining room, because every time she tries to go in the litter box she gets ambushed by a companion cat. Perhaps her dining room offers a more escape potential , because she can see her opponent approaching from a distance and has more room to run. You May have found a litter box that is very private, but the cat mind policy limits her ability to feel safe. Another example might be that a box that is located in the city unappealing. Maybe it's in the basement, where she has to go up and down the stairs. There are many other reasons your cat May feel it necessary to choose an alternate location for the litter box. If you just set deterrents without getting to the source of the problem she will just continue to look for other locations.
Since it is inconsistent . Cats are creatures of habit and they take comfort in knowing that things in their environment is not going to change on a daily basis. Whether your desire to switch to another brand of litter, the fact that you like rearranging furniture, or an irresistible urge to buy cat food that is on sale this week, a sudden change is traumatic for the cats. I had one client who could not decide where he wanted the litter box located in his house and moved up each day as an experiment. The experiment ended in disaster because his cat could not keep up with daily disappearing act. Introduce changes in your cat lives in a gradual manner. If you want to switch brands of litter to slowly adding a bit of litter in the current brand, and then increasing the amount over several days. When introducing another cat in the household to do it gradually, and cats get a chance to adjust. Cats do not want to be surprised.
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