There is nothing worse for cat or cat owner than a smelly litter box.

For many people, the litter box is the worst of part of owning a cat. Not only is it something people dread to clean but it is also dusty and dirty. And, those who have to clean it can find themselves more susceptible to cat diseases that are present there. Sure, it’s a bad job but it doesn’t have to be too hard either.

There are many new cat litter products being designed to make the job, well, easier. One of them is the hooded litter box. These give the privacy to cats who are more sensitive and they also keep dust down considerably. They are idea of a single cat owner as long as they are cleaned regularly. Those who do not want to handle the litter can use removable liners for these boxes. They can lift out the whole liner and throw it out. All you need to do is put in a new liner and add the fresh litter to it.

Self Cleaning Boxes

Another option is the self cleaning box. These are idea for families that have many cats. Or they can be a good choice for anyone who doesn’t want to have to deal with it. A rake removes the soiled litter into a removable receptacle which leaves the box clean. All you need to do is to discard the contents of the receptacle right into the trash.

To teach your kitten to use the litter box, all you need to do is to position it in the right place and keep it very clean. The litter box should never be located next to wear the cat sleeps or near where his food is.

Once in the right place, you’ll need to tell him what the box is used for. To do this, place the cat in the box and rake your fingers through the litter. The cat may decide to start using the box right away. When he does, praise him greatly. If he just wants out, play with him a few minutes and then put him back in. Repeat this several times but don’t push it. You don’t want to make him frustrated.

When to use the Box?

About ten to fifteen minutes after your cat eats, put him back into the litter box. When he uses it, praise him for doing so. When he is napping, watch him so that you can take him to the litter box as he wakes up.

Remember that cats respond better to praise than to scolding. If he becomes angry or frustrated, you will not accomplish anything. Place the box in the spot where he most frequently has accidents and encourage him to use it.

A cat may stop using his litter box if you don’t keep it clean. Most cats will continue to use the litter box once he has done so several times, but you need to keep it clean. Also, a dirty litter box can lead to cat health problems so make sure to keep it clean.

These are some quick and easy tips to keeping your cat’s litter box clean. If you use them your cat will be your best friend.

Technorati Tags: cat

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

Are you living with a cat that refuses to use its litter box? Maybe your cat is insistent that your furnishings make a far better scratch post than the big fancy one that you bought! Or is your cat waking the entire neighborhood with its cries for food at 3am? If this sounds familiar then you need to seriously think about training your cat to solve your cat behavior problems, however before you can do that you need to determine WHY your cat is behaving like he is.

The first and most common reason for cat behavior problems is a medical problem. If your cats’ behavior changed suddenly from being the perfect pet into a problem pet overnight then you need to get him checked out by a vet to rule out any medical problems. For example, a cat with a urinary tract infection will find it painful to urinate and will associate its litter box with pain so will seek out an alternative. Another example, a cat that is in pain when touched will react viciously, not because he doesn’t like you but because when you touch him it causes him pain. Cats generally do not show any signs of illness so it is hard to know when your cat is ill. If you try to correct your cats behavior problems when his is in fact ill then it will only confuse him.

If you have ruled out a medical problem then the next step is to determine whether the root of your cats’ problems is environmental. If your cat’s behavior changed suddenly (and it is not due to a medical reason) then it may have been caused by an environmental change. These are things such as moving house, new baby, new cat or even a new cat to the neighborhood. The most common behavioral changes for these causes are spraying indoors and using furnishings as scratch posts. This is your cats’ way of marking his territory.

The last cause is that your cat is the boss of you. In this case your cat needs to be retrained to obey the house rules. Your cat feels that your house is HIS territory and will therefore do with it as he sees fit. The reality is that YOU need to be the boss of your cat and this is where the retraining comes in.

If your cat has a medical problem then once it has been treated a cat will usually settle back down to his old ways very quickly and hence very little training is required unless he picked up some bad habits whilst he was ill! For a cat with environmental changes or a cat with bad habits it is a simple job of retraining your cat the correct way of doing things. The methods can vary depending on the problem you are trying to fix. If however your cat is the boss of you then it will take a little longer to retrain your cat. In this case you may want to consider cat training programs.

Technorati Tags: cat behaviour problems, cat box training, cat litter training, cat sprays, Cat Training Tips, disobediant cat, stop cat spraying, training a new cat

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

Has this ever happened to you? Your cat’s peeing outside the kitty litter box, and you’re desperately trying to clean up after your cat, wondering if you’re actually doing anything to stop it from happening in the first place!

Well, if you’re like me, you probably want some quick solutions to the problem, or at least a list of checkpoints that you know you must, like a detective on a trail, work through, to get the litter box behavior problem under control.

By the time you finish this article, you will have learned the 7 most important steps you must know, when it comes to this problem of the cat peeing outside the litter box.

Firstly, let’s have a look at the reasons why this happens. The reasons for peeing outside the litter box are:

1. A medical problem.

2. The cat that has never been properly house trained to use the litter box in the first place.

3. Problems with the litter tray itself.

4. An unpleasant event that occurred while the cat was at the litter box.

5. A temporary physical or emotional stress, or change in the household causing the cat to urinate in an area outside the box, which is perpetuated by the urine smell reminding the cat to return to the same area over and over again.

6. Old age causing a cat to not be easily able to get to the litter box.

Now, keep these causes in mind, when checking out the 7 action steps:

1. If there’s a change in toilet behavior with no obvious cause, it may be caused by illnesses such as urinary tract infections, blocked anal glands, worms and parasites, feline diabetes and tumors. These illnesses may have no other obvious signs, apart from this urination problem. So you must consider a visit to the vet. In other cases you may see symptoms such as lethargy, blood in the urine, diarrhea, or constant licking in the anal area. If you see this, then your first stop is the vet!

2. Look at the litter box itself. Ensure you’re cleaning out the waste once or twice a day, and changing the litter every 3-4 days for non-clumping litter (2-3 weeks for clumping litter). Clean the tray with hot water and mild detergent, without any strong odors such as citrus or ammonia, which will repel the cat from the box. If you have multiple cats, remember – the number of trays should equal number of cats, plus one or two. If you’ve changed brands of litter, this may have caused the problem as many cats dislike this change, especially to scented litter. Return to the older litter. If you want to change, introduce unscented litter gradually by mixing the old with the new over 2 weeks. And ensure that the location of the box is acceptable: no loud noises, has some privacy, and is not in view of other cats.

3. Consider adding in 1 more litter box to another suitable private location of the house. This is because sometimes it’s not the litter box that’s the problem, but a negative experience there. For example, if your kids played with the cat while she was on the litter box, or if the cat had pain when urinating, such as during a urine infection, after having kittens, or had a procedure done on the bladder or urethra at the vet, then the cat would associate pain with that litter box. Even if the pain is gone, the association and is still there.

4. Thoroughly clean the area that has been peed on. This is important because no matter what the cause, the fact that the urine remains on the bed, carpet, or sofa is a reminder for the cat to return to pee there. The cat’s sense of smell is more acute than ours, so ensure you clean with a solution such as Brampton’s Simple Solution. If you have remaining urine smell together with a bad association at the box, then you have 2 forces causing the problem to continue. So get rid of both!

5. Next, if possible, deny the cat access to the area that is peed on, especially if it’s an area that is repeatedly used. Many people forget to do this, and their problem is prolonged. By stopping access, the cycle of repeated urination is stopped. Will the cat pee somewhere else? Possible, though less likely if you provide a second litter box, show him where it is a few times, and also do the step 7 below.

6. If you can’t stop the cat from accessing the area, make the area less attractive for peeing instead. You can do this by either placing a scent, or, by placing a bowl of dried cat food there. If using a scent, try citrus or eucalyptus. If using dried food, which often works better, ensure that you top up the food bowl during the day. Either way, once you have success, continue for another 1-2 weeks to ensure it stays that way.

7. If you’re at home when the cat is, then you have this step up your sleeve as well: the startle technique. Only do this method if you actually catch the cat about to urinate because if you do it at any other time, that cat will not be able to associate that urinating in the area with the unpleasant startle. Startle the cat with a loud “No!” or clap of the hands. Wait 5 minutes, then bring the cat to the litter tray, and if she urinates at the tray, reward her with praise and a food treat. As long as the length and enjoyment of the reward if far greater than the startle, this will be unlikely to cause stress. Use this method carefully as some cats may experience stress with it. Make sure that the cat seems relaxed after the food treat, and that it’s actually improving the situation.

If you follow the above steps, most problems of peeing outside the litter box will be solved within days or gradually improve over 1-2 weeks.

Remember in all cases, you’ll be even more effective if you reduce stress at the same time. This means more play time and attention.

In conclusion, it does take some effort and detective work to see what has caused the litter box behavior problem in the first place. And you now know how to apply 7 essential steps to help you solve this issue, as quickly and effectively as possible.

Technorati Tags: cat behaviour problems, cat box training, Cat care, Cat Litter Box Training

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

Whether you are bringing your kitten home for the first time or if your cat has had a litter of kittens it is important to train a kitten to use a litter box from the beginning. By doing this your new little addition will see the use of a litter box for its toilet as the normal place to go and will continue to use it throughout its life.

If your kitten has just come from a cat that is itself litter box trained then the likely hood is that the kittens’ mother will do the litter box training for you. If however, your kitten has come from a wild cat then you will have to show him where he needs to go to the toilet.

A cats’ natural instinct is to dig into some soft earth do their business and then bury it so that any predators cannot pick up their scent. Your new kitten will also have this inbuilt instinct and will actively search out the most natural area to use, which should be the litter box that you have provided for him. This is why it is actually very easy to train a kitten to use a litter box. Cats also like their toilet area to be clean so make sure that you regularly scoop the litter. When buying your litter box be certain to get a box big enough for your cat. Although he is a fluffy little kitten now, he wont be for long so be sure to get a box that will be big enough when he is older too otherwise you will be buying another box later on. Be sure to put enough litter into the box so that your kitten can dig in it and then bury what they have done.

Before you bring your kitten home, decide where you are going to put the litter box. Make sure that it is in a location that is not too noisy and doesn’t get too much passing traffic from family members. Cats like a little privacy when going to the toilet and if they cannot get it in their litter box then they will hunt out an alternative place instead.

As soon as you bring your kitten home make sure that you show him where his water, food and litter box are. Put him in the litter so that he can feel that he can dig into it so that he will remember this later on when he needs to go.

Although it is usually easy to train a kitten to use a litter box, Sometimes it can seem like your kitten decided from the start that he was not going to use it. If your kitten simply refuses to use the litter box then there are a couple of things that you can try. Firstly keep on putting your kitten into its litter box. If you can spot the imminent signs that your kitten is about to go to the toilet then pick him up and put him in his litter box. Put one of your kittens’ stools into its litter box so that he realizes what it is for.

It is usually very easy to train a kitten to use a litter box and if you do it very early on then your cat will find it natural to use a litter box for life. Whatever you do, do not shout, hit or rub your kittens nose in it mess and then plonk him into his litter box. He will not make the connection that urinating on your carpet is wrong and that he should have used the litter box instead. He will interpret it as the litter box being a punishment and a bad place and will avoid it in the future. Good luck with training your kitten.

For more information on training a kitten to use a litter box or for more information on training a cat.

Technorati Tags: Cat Litter Box Training, Cat Training Tips, Having Kittens, kitten training, llitter box training, train a kitten, train a kitten to use a litter box, training a cat, training kittens

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

If you are currently struggling to litter train your furry little friend, help is at hand. Here are some of the best toilet training tips to make your life much easier and also to make sure that your cat does not use your living room carpet as a toilet!

Cat Trees On Sale Today!

­First of all, if you are trying to litter train a kitten, you must make sure that your kitten can actually get into the litter tray. Some of the trays that you can buy may look good and be super hygienic with lids and suchlike, but if the kitten is having trouble getting in and out of it, chances are they will not use it at all. By all means buy one of these super litter trays but try and use a smaller one for the first few months of its life to make life a little easier.

­If you have more than once cat, one of the best toilet training tips that you can use for your household is to have more than one litter tray. Again you could use one of the more modern shaped ones for the bigger cats in your house but use shallower ones for the new kittens.

­Put the litter tray in an area of the house that doesn’t have a lot of traffic. If your cat is trying to do its business and you come strolling in, you may put them off their stride and making them more likely to use other areas of your home. The bathroom is a great place for litter trays so if you have the room, try putting them in here and see if your cat prefers it.

­Never keep your cats litter tray next to its food. This is one of the most valuable toilet training tips that you will ever hear. Not only is this most unpleasant for the cat but it will make the cat avoid both the food and the litter tray until you move it. You wouldn’t like it if you had to cook in the bathroom would you? The same principles work here!

­Make sure that when your cat uses the litter tray, you take out the solid matter with a pooper scooper. This means that you can use the litter for that little bit longer, saving you money but is also more pleasant for both you as the owner as well as the cat or cats that are using it. This is one of those great toilet training tips for owners that have multiple cats.

Technorati Tags: Cat Litter Box Training, cat toilet training, Cat Training Tips, cat training tricks, Toilet Training a Cat

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

Training your cat to use a litter box is an essential part of being a cat owner. Without this your furry little pal will make a mess of your home and can grow up ignoring your commands and be generally bad behaved. By training your kitten to do something as small as using the litter box, you can make sure that you and your pet have a long and happy relationship.

There are four main stages to training your cat to use a litter box. A couple of these stages will be basic common sense while one or two of them may be useful toilet training tips that you may not have thought of. Either way, these could save your sanity and your carpets!

1.    Buy 2 litter boxes. Why I hear you ask? Well, the first one should be shallow and small, perfect for little kittens to be able to climb in and out of and still have room to do its business happily. The litter needs to be deep enough to cover and solid matter as well as being shallow enough to stop the cat from scattering it all over your floor. The second litter box should be much bigger, for when your kitten gets older. As it grows, your cat will need deeper litter and also a bigger tray to be able to move around in.

2.    Buy your cat litter from a reliable source. This is one of the least known toilet training tips but is also one of the most important. Your cat can grow to recognize the litter you have bought and when you buy a different brand he or she can refuse to use it. By buying a brand that is well known that you know you can always buy, you can ensure that your cat will never stick his or her nose up at the litter you are buying. (For a great money saving tip, try using a cheaper brand right from the beginning as you may not be able to swap it for a cheaper brand later on!)

3.    Whenever your cat or kitten squats, scratches or generally looks as though he or she is about to use your sofa, bed, carpet or any other area of the house as a toilet, pick them up and move them to the litter tray. This will take a couple of go’s to get it right but you will soon learn the signs and the cat will soon learn to use the litter tray.

4.    Praise your cat. As training tips go, this is the most obvious yet so many people forget about this step. If your cat uses the litter tray, give them a treat, cuddle them or play with them, do whatever the cat likes to do and he or she will soon come to the conclusion that using the litter tray is a good thing and should continue to do so.

Technorati Tags: Cat Litter Box Training, cat litter training

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

Are you having difficulties with cat litter box training?  Cats tend to either make potty time either really simple or really hard for their owners.  Some cat owners don’t even have to think about cat litter box training.  Their kitties go potty in the right place, every time, regardless of the circumstances.  And then other kittens simply refuse to go in the designated area, stinking up the entire house and putting their owners in a precarious position.

If your pet is giving you a hard time with cat litter box training, try the following tips for getting him to “go” in the proper place:

1.)    Make sure the litter box is the appropriate size for your cat.
A small cat may feel overwhelmed or engulfed if you are cat litter box training him in a huge litter box.  And a large cat may feel cramped in a tiny box.  Consider the size of your cat when choosing the size of your litter box.  This will ensure that your cat is not avoiding cat litter box training do to the wrong sized potty.

2.)    Move the litter box to a quiet area of your house.
If you are cat litter box training in a high traffic area, your cat may feel too “observed”.  Instead, move it to a private part of a room that he feels comfortable in.  Cats already tend to feel nervous when they are cat litter box training.  Giving them their space will help alleviate some of the anxiety your cat may be feeling.

3.)    Keep the litter box away from the spot where your cat eats and sleeps.
Some cat owners tend to keep a corner for all of their cats needs: food, water, bed, and litter box.  If you are doing this and your cat is resistant to cat litter box training, it is probably because you have the box too close to his living quarters.  Moving the litter box to a separate area will probably make cat litter box training much easier.

4.)    Once you determine the proper placement for your box, don’t move it until your cat has mastered it’s cat litter box training.
Moving your cat’s box can confuse him and cause a setback in the progress of his cat litter box training.  Instead, keep everything as familiar as possible for your kitty.

5.)    Reward your cat’s accomplishments.
Anytime you find that your cat is catching on to its cat litter box training, give him a treat.  This type of positive reinforcement is very effective at getting them to repeat the good behavior.

Technorati Tags: Cat Litter Box Training

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites

Toilet training a cat can either be the easiest or hardest thing you will ever have to do, depending on your situation.  On one hand, cats tend to have a natural instinct to be clean and that includes their bathroom habits.  On the other hand, if you happen to have a cat that isn’t inclined to use the litter box, then toilet training a cat can be pretty tricky.

If you are one of many who have the complex task of toilet training a cat, these tips will make it easier for you:

1.)    Don’t panic if your cat using the bathroom in a place other than the litter box.  Toilet training a cat is just as frustrating for your cat as it is for you.  Yelling or punishing your cat for having an accident will only make him scared of you.  It won’t change the negative behavior.  He will be just as confused as he was before.  Instead, use positive reinforcement for good behavior when you are toilet training a cat.

2.)    If your cat does use the bathroom outside the litter box, scoop it up and place it inside the litter box for a few hours.
This will help the cat’s litter box to smell like a potty to him.  This is very helpful when you are toilet training a cat.  Be sure to also thoroughly clean the area of your cat’s “accident” to eliminate the smell.  Remember that cats tend to use the same spot over and over to go potty.  Getting rid of the smell is important for toilet training so that your cat is not inclined to continue to “go” outside of the litter box.

3.)    Keep your cat’s litter box thoroughly cleaned.
Use a scooper to clean the clumps out of the litter box every day.  And once a week, clean the litter box with soap and water.  Use a mild cleaner though, strong cleaners sometimes cause a cat to avoid using the litter box.  A clean litter box makes toilet training a cat much easier.

4.)    Use separate litter boxes if you have more than one cat.  This is especially important if you a toilet training a cat and one of your cats will use the box, and the other won’t.
The scent of the other cats may keep your cat away from the litter box.  Using separate litter boxes will fix this problem when you are toilet training a cat.

If you are having a hard time toilet training a cat, these tips can set a more solid foundation for your cat’s success.  Be consistent and your cat will be using the litter box effortlessly in no time at all!

Technorati Tags: Cat Litter Box Training, Toilet Training a Cat

Bookmark It to come back later

Hide Sites