Moving a cat and toilet concerns!?

boogie man

Hi,

I just moved my cat to my new house last night, she settled in fine after a while of sniffing everything. I have put out kitty litter for her as I can't let her out for a while. Thing is she isn't used to using kitty litter and as of yet she hasn't done any number 1's or 2's since the move.

She has only used kitty litter once before when she was sick, so I'm just concerned about her. Will she just cop on and use it or what can I do to encourage her?

Any advice most welcome!

Cheers,
BM

biko

You can put her in the box and do some digging in front of her.
Cats has an urge to do that so hopefully she'll get it.
You may want to check around the house behind things in case she gone to the toilet somewhere else.
If you have some sort of lead you can take her out with that.

When we moved to a new house we kept the cat in for about a day and then let him out. When they're new they usually don't shoot off but take it easy and explore their new surrounds.
Give her some extra yummy food the first times she comes back in again so she likes the new place

boogie man

Cool yeah, I've tried putting in the litter box to show her how nice it is to pee into! She just doesn't seem interested - maybe she will get more interested the more she wants to go! Had her out on a lead earlier, but she just wanted to explore and not pee! I'll have to have a look around and make sure she didn't go behind a chair or something! Good thinking. She's addicted to whiskas temptations so if I do let her out on her own a shake of the box should be enough to get her back in!

I just hope she gets used to the litter! How long should I try and keep her in for? She's a real outdoors cat and loves going off and exploring - it must be so frustrating for her staying inside.

mymo

If she has used the litter before, she will again.
She's probably just waiting to get out, but the urge will win out and she will use the litter. I would get more than 1 tray though 2 or 3 would be better(old basin or similar would do for now) and leave them around the house.
We adopted an adult cat a year ago and kept him in about a month, mainly to get used to the dogs and other cat, so he wouldn't get scared off.
A week or two should be enough before letting her out for couple of mins, 2 or 3 times a day. Dig over a small bit of earth near the house so she'll have somewhere near to go to the loo, and let her out when hungry, as you said a shake of the food should get her in. Just watch her and don't let her out of sight for first few days, then gradually increase time she's out.

boogie man

mymo wrote: »

If she has used the litter before, she will again.
She's probably just waiting to get out, but the urge will win out and she will use the litter. I would get more than 1 tray though 2 or 3 would be better(old basin or similar would do for now) and leave them around the house.
We adopted an adult cat a year ago and kept him in about a month, mainly to get used to the dogs and other cat, so he wouldn't get scared off.
A week or two should be enough before letting her out for couple of mins, 2 or 3 times a day. Dig over a small bit of earth near the house so she'll have somewhere near to go to the loo, and let her out when hungry, as you said a shake of the food should get her in. Just watch her and don't let her out of sight for first few days, then gradually increase time she's out.

Thanks - Sounds like a good strategy!

Rancid

If she's used to going in the garden, a shovelful of clay on top of the litter should make it more acceptable to her. At least it would dull down the dusty smell of the litter.
Worth a try until she gets used to it, I think.

lorebringer

Your cat may not be going to the toilet in the tray because she is stressed with the situation. Some cats are very good at hiding their feeling and she may appear calm and relaxed etc. but she could be very stressed. The urge to go to the toilet will eventually win and she will go.

A lot of animals don't like to go to the toilet near where they eat so just make sure she is fed in a different room to the litter tray as this could also be preventing her from going.

boogie man

Thanks for the replies guys, good advice indeed.

Good news - she went for a wee last night in her litter! Phew, hopefully now she'll know what to do when she gets the urge!

Cheers,
BM