Kitty Litter Problem

Question
I just got two new kittens and have two litter boxes as well. One kitten uses the litter box just fine. The other will only use it part of the time. The rest of the time, she will pee or poop in front of the front door, in a corner, in an old bean bag chair I have, or in the bathtub. I clean the litter out daily and have tried two different brands of cat litter to no avail. The litter box is out of the way and not in a high traffic area or near her food, but is easy to find. Here's the weird part... when I catch her starting to squat, I'll yell "NO!" at her, and she'll stop, turn around, and walk over to her litter box and go! So she KNOWS where she's supposed to go. I've tried asking my vet when I've taken her in for check ups but he doesn't seem to think this is a problem. (He obviously doesn't have to keep cleaning up the messes!!!) Can you help and give me advice on how to stop her from going to the bathroom all over my house???

Answer
Hi RJ,

Did your vet also check your kittens' stool for parasites? Worms are common in kittens and can cause litterbox problems, this should be ruled out.

This problem of confusion about the litterbox is not too uncommon in kittens, the good news is that with the right approach you can fix the problem. In your case the kitten who doesn't always use the litter may be the less assertive kitten, and she is intimidated about going in the litterboxes that smell like the other kitten. In addition, kittens are like human babies in that they do not always have an accurate perception of when they will need to "go" so sometimes they get caught away from the box and have a sudden need to go.

Never yell at your kitten or reprimand her for going where she should not - this will NOT help and will only increase her stress and confusion and make matters worse. Instead, for all kittens, I suggest the following:

Confine the kittens in one room with the litterbox, and gently place them in the box right after each meal. Use a litterbox they can easily get in and out of. If you allow the kitten out into a large area he may get lost and not find his way back to the box in time when nature calls, so gradually allow him out for longer periods once he is using the box.

By doing this you set your kitten up for success, and you can reward good behavior rather than punishing "bad".

I also recommend using "Cat Attract" litter or the additive you can sprinkle into your current litter - it is specially designed to attract cats to the litterbox for their business, and it works really well. The website is http://preciouscat.com/precious-attract-p-5.html

Also, you need to make sure any lingering smell of urine or feces is removed from the soiled area - even if you don't smell it your cat can. I recommend Nature's Miracle - available at pet stores.

You may also want to take a look at this guide to your new adopted kittens:

http://catnet.stanford.edu/articles/careguide.html

and may I recommend the book "Your Cat: Simple New Secrets to a Longer, Stronger Life" by Elizabeth M. Hodgkins as an excellent book on kitten care (less than $20 at Amazon).

Good luck!

Tina