Can a litter trained cat be taught to go potty outdoors?
EDS Skin Care Forums Forum Index » EDS Lounge

free skin care · Mon Mar 06, 2006 2:42 pm

I don't want a litter box in the house anymore if I can help it and wonder if it would be possible to train a cat to go outside to do her business instead? I was thinking to try it in the summertime since she goes to the bathroom out there more anyways, and maybe taking her litter box out of sight so she has no where to go in the house, at least I hope that she wouldn't make a mess in the house! The winter might be more of a problem though since she hates going out in the snow. Has anyone done this with any success, I really hate litter boxes!

free skin care · Wed Mar 08, 2006 3:48 am

there is a book online somewhere which teaches you to teach your kitty to use your toilet - some owners have even got their cat to flush after! - if i ever had a cat again that would be the thing I would want to try - i'm sure you can find the book on amazon or it has its own website too if you google it (and it comes with a toilet seat that you put on your regular toilet seat so the cat doesn't fall in)

free skin care · Wed Mar 08, 2006 3:52 am

Carekate posted this up on the Littermaid thread:

Quote:

maddy wrote:
Can get 'litter quitter' over here which teaches kitty to use human bathroom...unsure if it is worth it never having to clean litter tray again but having to find cat 'gifts' in own toilet. I don't have a cat but a friend of mine is trialling this. Is same as 'meet the parents'
I taught one of my cat's to use the toilet to do his business back when I was a teenager, but never was able to get him to flush the toilet afterward! Wink Seriously, what we did was take a bit of an old window screen and nail it onto a small frame that would fit under the toilet seat, then we put litter on top of the screen and Tino would go. Gradually, we removed the litter till he was going directly on the screen, then we cut a hole in the screen itself and gradually made it bigger and bigger until we finally removed it altogether once he was balancing himself on the rim like an old pro!

free skin care · Wed Mar 08, 2006 6:40 am

Hey Moosette -

Have you had your baby yet? I’m sure your OB/GYN already advised you about this, but the reason I’m asking is that pregnant women shouldn’t handle litter boxes or cat feces while carrying because she can be exposed to a disease called Toxoplasmosis (click here to find out more: http://www.iit.edu/~toxo/pamphlet/). If you haven’t popped out Baby Moosette yet, you definitely need to get your hubby to handle the shoveling-cat-crap and cleaning the litterbox chores for a while!

free skin care · Wed Mar 08, 2006 9:30 am

Hi Carekate! No, no baby moosette yet, I will be 37 weeks on Saturday so I'm getting closer to the finish line! My due date is April 1st and being my first baby the midwife says he'll probably be late Crying or Very sad

Hubby has been great and took over the cat litter responsibilites as soon as we learned that I was pregnant! Although it doesn't get cleaned nearly as much as I used to do it, it is nice to have a break from that chore! I was wondering about getting rid of the litter box because my cat has become somewhat weird and has been "sitting" in her box. We have caught her a few times doing this, not going to the bathroom, just sitting there doing nothing. I don't know why she has started doing this odd behavior, any pet physcologists (sp?) out there??

free skin care · Wed Mar 08, 2006 3:51 pm

moossette our cat also takes to just going and sitting in her litter box!! Shock

Does your cat have her own bed/beds?
I put it down to the fact that the litter tray is theirs, cats are quite territorial, they like to have their own spaces.
We have set 2 beds up for Josie, she has her own 'igloo' upstairs in the study by the window and her very own cat tunnel behind sofa downstairs.

Vicky Halls a cat psychologist has written some fantastic easy read and hilariously funny books about cat behaviour:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/index=books&field-author-exact=Vicky%20Halls&rank=-relevance%2C%2Bavailability%2C-daterank/104-6357323-7206355

free skin care · Thu Mar 09, 2006 6:27 am

moosette wrote:

....my cat has become somewhat weird and has been "sitting" in her box. We have caught her a few times doing this, not going to the bathroom, just sitting there doing nothing. I don't know why she has started doing this odd behavior, any pet physcologists (sp?) out there??

rosebud wrote:

...our cat also takes to just going and sitting in her litter box!! Shock

They can do that when they feel neglected. Cats are very sensitive and intuitive creatures and your kitty knows that you are distracted and preoccupied by the coming baby and so is beginning to act strangely because s/he senses a change is coming in your household. Cats are also very jealous. While that business about never letting a cat near a sleeping baby because it’ll steal it’s breath (WTH does that mean anyway? The cat will smother the baby?!) is a stupid old wives’ tale and the cat won’t ever knowingly try to cause harm to an infant, the cat might exhibit behavior like trying to get in your lap when you’re holding/rocking/feeding baby, but this is simply because after a new child comes in to a household, the old “baby” (i.e.: the cat) will then be neglected simply because newborns demand so much attention. The same thing happens, I’m told, when a new baby is brought home and there is an older sibling in the house, especially if the baby and older child are fairly close in age. And just like they say to do for the older brother or sister, you also need to go out of your way to give special attention and affection to kitty after Baby arrives so the cat knows that even though you’re busy, you still love kitty! And don’t be surprised if your kitty tries to get revenge on the newcomer by leaving you “presents” anywhere around the house EXCEPT in the litterbox! When I brought my son home from the hospital, Tina (brother of the aforementioned Valentino whom I taught to use the toilet) used to let me know of her displeasure regarding the squaling newcomer by shitting in the bathtub!!!

free skin care · Thu Mar 09, 2006 6:28 am

P.S. It doesn’t have to be a new (human) baby that triggers the misbehavior in cats, it can also be a new pet (especially a cat) that has joined the family....

free skin care · Sat Mar 11, 2006 6:53 am

my moms cat does! it's so funny. She doesn't need to clean litterbox anymore! Laughing

Automatic Message

If this is your first visit to the EDS Forums please take the time to register. Registration is required for you to post on the forums. Registration will also give you the ability to track messages of interest, send private messages to other users, participate in Gift Certificates draws and enjoy automatic discounts for shopping at our online store. Registration is free and takes just a few seconds to complete.

Click Here to join our community.

If you are already a registered member on the forums, please login to gain full access to the site.