BEHAVIOUR BITES: "Thinking Outside the Box - Cats and Litter Box Issues"

If your cat struggles to use the litter box consistently you are NOT alone. This is a very common behavioural issue for cats!

There are a few areas you should investigate if your cat is struggling with this issue:

• Visit your vet to rule out any health problems. Pain, urinary issues or other problems can quickly cause your cat to avoid their litter box.
• Make sure you have enough boxes (one per cat plus one extra) and they are cleaned at least once a day. Would you want to doo doo in a dirty loo? I think not! Spoiler alert - your cat won't either!
• If you've recently changed the litter, try changing it back. If you haven't changed it, try something different. Cats can be picky about scents and textures of litter.
• Make sure your litter boxes are in a quiet area. Cats like privacy!
• Try different sizes and styles of boxes. Some cats may prefer covered or uncovered boxes.
• Add Feliway diffusers. Stress is often a huge factor in cats and undesired behaviour. Inappropriate elimination is a very common response to stress! Stress can occur due to changes in the home, cats on their territory, or many other reasons we may not think of. Feliway uses pheremone therapy which is shown to be highly effective at reducing stress-related behaviour issues in cats.
• Try putting litter boxes where your cat is eliminating. It may be a territorial response and placing a box in the area being marked can encourage your cat to use the box instead of the sofa. Yes this may be unsightly but it's better that poo and pee on your stuff, right?
• Try a litter with cat attractant in it like Naturally Fresh Herbal Attraction. This may encourage your cat to prefer the box.
• Bear in mind severe cases may respond well to anxiety medication. Don't rule this out if you've tried everything! Your stressed kitty may need a little extra help. Better living through chemistry!

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Learn more about Feliway here.

Learn more about Naturally Fresh Herbal Attraction here.

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Behaviour Bites is brought to you by Sarah Dixon. Sarah is one of the owners of Barks and Recreation and is an internationally acclaimed Animal Behaviour Specialist. Read more about Sarah here.