Why did the cat stop going to the litter box and how to fix the situation?

Keeping a cat is a simple matter, which is why many have not only one, but two, or even three pets. But here's the bad luck: the animal, which before that regularly walked into its litter box, abruptly changed its line of behavior and chose a completely different place for its toilet. This problem scares many breeders, but you should not panic in advance: there is a way out of any situation.

If we are talking about a kitten, then the owners have no reason to worry. After all, a kitten just bought and brought home is completely disoriented, helpless and scared, does not know where its toilet and bowl of food and water are. After a while, the baby will get used to it a little and will remember all the necessary places in the house. As a rule, if you take an animal in a nursery, then there are no problems with the tray at all: mother-cat and breeders train the baby to the toilet in advance.

A completely different task is facing the owner of an already adult cat, who for several years went only to her litter box and suddenly completely “forgot” what she needed it for. There are quite a few reasons for this behavior, let's take a closer look at them.

Most often, the question concerns kittens. The animal, which, according to the breeder's reviews, perfectly coped with the need for the tray, in your house for some reason stopped doing this. The reason may lie in the tray. For example, he is too tall, and a small kitten simply cannot get there. Having made some effort and not having achieved success, the baby simply goes to the toilet nearby.In addition, the tray may have a certain odor, especially if it is cheap plastic.

The solution in this case is buying a lower tray that does not emit foreign odors that can scare the baby away.

An adult cat can also refuse to use the toilet. This often happens when you buy a new tray. Many animals do not like it if it differs in shape or design from the previous one.

The filler is another reason for the unwillingness of kittens and adult cats to visit a place designated for personal needs. For example, a cat used to go to wood litter, and you saw a novelty with a pleasant aroma in a pet store, and even on a special offer, and, of course, could not resist buying, believing that the pet would appreciate the efforts. Not at all, cats are quite conservative, they do not like changes and try to avoid them. The animal may not like the texture of the new granules, or maybe they emit dust, a strange smell, and their paws stick to them.

Do not buy new litters without having at least a little old in stock, so that in case of failure, you can quickly pour in the composition familiar to the cat. When purchasing a kitten, it is advisable to ask the breeder what kind of filler the baby went to before, and buy the same one. With a baby taken from the street, you will need to conduct several experiments in order to understand what kind of composition will be pleasant to him.

Cats are secretive animals and will not like being watched over the coping process. Therefore, it is categorically not recommended to put the tray in the room, in the corridor, closer to the kitchen - that is, in all those places where family members are constantly moving. This will stress the cat and may not go to the toilet at all. Of course, all cats cannot be meant here, for some it does not matter at all where their litter box is, but most animals still prefer secluded places.

And also the tray can be placed in the far corner of the corridor, somewhere under a tall cabinet or hanging shelves. If you have a wardrobe in the corridor, then a toilet for a cat can be equipped at the very bottom, having previously made a small hole in the bottom of the cabinet so that the animal can crawl through.

Moving is one of the most common psychological problems. Once in a new home, an adult animal, of course, will understand that this is its litter box and will remember the location of the toilet. But due to stress, the cat is capable of nasty, attracting the attention of the owners.

For times of stress, the cat can be equipped with a high bed or provide a secluded place in the closet where she can hide. In a couple of days, the pet will come to its senses, and everything will be fine.

Another psychological problem can be the birth of a child. Most cats do not like children, as babies are noisy and their voices are too high for a cat's ear. In this case, do not let the cat near the baby for a while, let her get used to new sounds, do not force her to communicate with the baby. Do not abandon the cat during this period, she needs your attention no less than a newborn baby.

If an older child has come to your home, for example, relatives have come to stay, explain that the cat should not be pulled by the tail, ears, or squeezed.

A cat can get angry if another pet is brought home, not necessarily a cat too. The animal will become jealous and unpredictable.

Repair can scare an animal, which is necessarily accompanied by noise, knocking, and voices of strangers. Especially if the renovation is done in the room where the toilet is located. For this period, the cat must be isolated by placing in a separate room. There you also need to put her bowls and a tray, equip a place where the pet will rest.

The cat can start going to the toilet anywhere if she gets sick. One of the most common ailments is urolithiasis, mostly characteristic of castrated cats. It is difficult for the animal to recover, the outflow of fluid is delayed by stones or sand. The second misfortune is urinary incontinence. You can easily find wet spots where the cat is used to sleeping or lying. The disease occurs as a complication after castration and in chronic kidney disease. And also the cat may be tormented by cystitis - in this case, you will find urine with impurities of blood.

In addition, the cat can crap if he has diarrhea. The food is already to blame here, perhaps you fed the animal with something too fatty, smoked, fried, or gave it milk. As soon as it seems to you that something is wrong with the cat, he walks strangely into the tray or even began to ignore him, and the animal's health worsens, do not hesitate.

If your cat is not castrated, this can be a serious problem. The animal will mark its territory, and since its territory is the whole apartment, get ready for unpleasant odors and detected marks. It is impossible to force the cat not to be tagged; only the castration procedure will help here. It is advisable to carry it out at the age of 6 months to a year, while the cat has not yet realized that it is necessary to mark his possession.

Unsterilized cats have their own quirks too. An animal, not finding a male, will harass the owners with a lingering meow, and realizing that this does not bring results, it is quite capable of choosing a sofa, bed, table as its toilet. This is how the cat informs you of its problems. Screaming and chasing her around the house to tinker with her face in the waste is absolutely pointless. The animal will harbor anger and will definitely come to the crime scene again.

Usually, an animal that cannot get into a room has no choice but to return to the old toilet. The reason that the pet started going to the toilet in the wrong place may be the most commonplace - you do not monitor the cleanliness of the litter box well. An animal, having found a pile in the toilet, may simply not go there again.

You will have to train the cat to the litter box again if the animal was sick for a long time or he had unpleasant sensations when relieving himself. Because of this, the litter box can be associated with something painful and negative. The first thing to do in this case:

• buy a new tray;
• purchase fresh filler.

This is followed by the direct process of accustoming the animal to the tray. You cannot show rudeness and cruelty, but you need to be persistent. Re-show the cat how to dig in the filler with his paw (while grabbing it by the paw). At first, watch the cat: if you find that the animal is going to go to the toilet in the wrong place, carefully take it and take it to the tray. At the same time, strictly tell the cat "no", and upon arrival at the place, stroke the pet, talk to him affectionately, rake the filler with his paw.

Then leave the animal alone with itself so that it can relax. When the cat comes out, treat him to something tasty. You need to treat the animal later (at least for a week), every time it goes to the toilet correctly.Simple techniques will help fix the situation and get rid of the problem forever. Consider a few more additional tips:

• do not be alarmed if the cat has normal stress - after a certain time, the pet will calm down and return to its usual way of life;
• if the cat is very small or already old, do not buy trays with high sides;
• if the cat stubbornly refuses to return to the pot, outwit him: treat the place chosen by the pet with lemon or vinegar, scatter foil or balls there so that the cat cannot concentrate, close the door to this room;
• an animal that is in the habit of going to the bathroom will not like it very much if a little water is poured into it;
• do not yell at the cat and do not hit it - a "shot" from a spray bottle will be much more effective;
• use a variety of antigadins that are abundant on the shelves of pet stores.

Unfortunately, the smell of cat urine is particularly intense and can often be difficult to remove. However, the problem can be solved.

• Dissolve a small amount of vinegar in a glass of water and wash the mark well. And also the smell of vinegar will scare the cat away from this place.
• Wipe the surface with hydrogen peroxide, then wash with plain water and a little laundry soap.
• Lemon juice has a good deterrent effect. You can take half a lemon and rub it well on the pre-washed mark. Or you can dissolve the juice in a glass of water and apply it to the cat's favorite place.
• Tea brewing, a weak solution of potassium permanganate, gum rinse, alcohol-containing antiseptics will help get rid of odors and stains. It is a good idea to dilute 20 drops of iodine in a liter of water, and then wash the site of the feline "crime" with this solution.

In addition to folk remedies, you can always use store formulations, which will also be effective.

• 8 in 1 Stain & Odor Remover. This tool works well with any contamination, including the remains of feces and urine. Before using it, wipe the affected surface well, and then apply the composition liberally. After 5 minutes, the remover is wiped off with a dry cloth, and all that remains to be done is to wait until the surface is dry.
• Simple Solution Urine Destroyer. According to its characteristics and method of application, the product is no different from the previous one, only you need to wait not 5 minutes, but 10. The product cannot be used on woolen and leather surfaces.
• Capsull Neutralizor Cat & Kitten. The composition does a good job not only with removing stains, but also with scaring the animal away from the place. The liquid will need to be sprayed onto a previously wiped surface and wait a few minutes, then remove with a napkin. After spraying, old and difficult to remove stains are covered with a film for a couple of hours and only then wiped off.

All these funds are the same in use, the only difference is in the composition. This is not a complete list, each pet store offers its own products, and various new products in this area are constantly appearing to improve the quality of life of both the pet and its owner.

For information on how to train a kitten to the litter box, see the next video.