kitten wont pee in the box

Question
Dumplin' is a 14 week old DSH who has been with me since she was 2 weeks old. As a veterinary technician, I consider myself fairly knowledgeable about cat behavior and kitten training, but Dumplin' is really perplexing me.  Ever since transitioning from urogenital stimulation to litter box training she has never quite grasped the concept of urinating in the litter box.  I have tried everything in my knowledge such as... 3 litter boxes for her and 1 other cat #all are large with an accessible lip to get in#, natural cat litter #1 box contains sand only, the other 2 are feline pine#, litter is cleaned regularly. She was originally taught to use the box by placing her in the box frequently and stimulating scratching behavior. I don't think she has an aversion to the litter, because she always poops in the box and covers it as well.  When she was still 6-8 weeks old she would on occasion pee in the box, but I also found urine near the box in her crate or on her bedding. She now chooses the carpet, throw rugs, dog beds, bathtub or even the hardwood floor. My veterinarians suggestion was to confine her in such a small area that the box is her only choice besides laying in her urine. I get the concept but I feel like that option is a bit cruel to subject a very playful kitten to.  Otherwise, Dumplin' is a wonderful cat.  She does not show any signs of anxiety or urinary disease. I am wondering if I should try pad training or if the crate is the way to go.  Please help!

Answer
That's awesome that you've tried so many things. Have you also tried using different sizes of litter boxes? Since she has done this pretty much the whole time, makes wonder if she's simply not sure about urinating in it. And as you know, cats can be very finicky. I actually had a kitten that did this same thing and I ended up resorting to a box flat (the kind that cases of canned veggies or pop cans come in.) I do agree with your vets with the small space scenario. Think of it this way, the short time with this versus who knows how long, if ever, she figures it out herself. And the important thing to remember that they need us to help them figure things out and we cannot feel sorry (at least show a lot of emotion and sheltering) for them when it's something that is for there own good. The more that we react and stress over it, the more they'll think there's something to react to.   

Just curious, when you place her in it, how does she act? Scared and trying to get out right away or does she hover and sniff around then jump out? My kitten was actually afraid of the litter box, so that was fun trying to figure what would make the little kid happy.

Keep me posted and let me know how things go.