Dirty Cats

Question
Hi Kate, I hope you can help me.  We have a beautiful cat who is now 1 1/2 years old.  We have had her since she was a kitten.  Her litter box habits have been getting worse and worse for the last 8 months or so.  She now uses our bath mat to urinate on, and she also likes to climb into the bath tub to urinate and defecate. The litter box is cleaned out regularly.  She will go in there sometimes, but not always.  What can we do?

Answer
Hi
There is always a reason why a cat choses not to use its litter tray. the problem is finding that reason.
It could be that the litter tray is in an area which smells strange or she does not feel ssafe to use it ie too near a loud washing machine or her food area.

It could be the type of litter, some cats prefer different types 9thats why they make so many different one) It could be worth trying her with a different type (see my web page about litters here/cat-litter.html)

there could be any number of other reasons the trick is to work your way any possibilities and try different things. You can also give her a period of litter training again to try and get her comfortable with it again. Please see my page here about that here /cat-litter-box.html

It may also be an idea to read my other pages about this sort of problem for more background information and other possible causes here /cat-litter-box.html

as you can see i decided to write quite a lot about this problem as it is one of the most common issues pet owners have.

I hope you can sort out a solution for your cat soon.

best wishes and a Happy New year
Kate