Peing over the side of the litter tray. sigh. Opinions on deep trays please?

[fluffyraggies]

I have just spent 15 minutes cleaning up a sea puddle of cat wee in front of the litter tray again. It's on a hard floor thank goodness. But arrgghh.

I have 2 cats, and a 'giant' covered litter tray. They are 2, but this has only been happening in recent weeks. This is about the 4th time.

I'm at home allot and i go and pick up a poo as soon as i hear puss has finished scrapping around. So it's pretty much always clean. BUT on the rare occasion that one of them has to use the tray with a poo still in it they are now feeling the need to not go right in and so their bottom is barely inside the tray - causing the puddle. I've just seen lady cat do it!

So, i've googled high sided litter trays. I've found this one -

www.amazon.co.uk/Van-Ness-Litter-Tray-Large/dp/B001CTBXJA/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

It's 6.5 inches deep. My existing one is the same size base, but is 4.5 inches deep. This doesn't seem like much of a difference. I would like a covered tray again for all our sakes

Any thoughts?

[cozietoesie]

I think you need at least one more tray, fluffyraggies. The general rule is 'one per cat plus one'. That may not be possible for you if you're very tight for space but one tray for two cats is going to lead to problems, I think. At least one more anyway is my recommendation.

[cozietoesie]

PS - Seniorboy has two and uses both of them even though I'm home during the day and (as you do) clean up directly I know either has been used. He really hates peeing on a tray that has a poo in it and unfortunately, the two functions are often very close together in time.

[fluffyraggies]

You're right cozie, and we started out with 2 trays. I've still got the other one, it's identical to the one they're using.

When we had both on the go they always seemed to want to use the same tray. One tray would stand unused. So for the sake of space we went down to one.

I can go back to 2, but i still want to buy high sided trays. More so because the 2nd tray would have to be on a less easy surface. This wee mopping is yuk!

[MaggieMaggieMaggieMcGill]

May I recommend the purchase of some inco pads to place under the tray, saved my sanity with two elderly ladies.

[cozietoesie]

I'd put the other one down anyway, right away.

It may be, also, that the fact that they're covered is trapping the smell of the poo inside and making it unattractive to go inside. Some cats don't like covered trays for this reason.

Can't help you on the high sided-ness, I'm afraid. I've always used standard trays as that's what my boys have always liked. Other posters may have more experience with different trays.

You haven't changed the type of litter they use recently, have you?

[fluffyraggies]

Inco pads you say Maggie? Will google :)

Cozie i haven't changed litter, no. We use the tesco compacted wood pellet one. No artificial odor, just nice and fresh. I like to have no smell because it's clean, not because the smell is covered, IYKWIM?

I keep the litter pretty deep, and totally clean it out every 3 days. I use a liner, and so it's all very clean and easy, but I can well imagine it isn't too pleasant venturing into a covered tray with an existing poo. I don't have the swing door/s on these trays. They were a bit wary of the doors when they were kittens so i just pulled them off and it's stayed that way. They swan in and out of the trays just fine.

[catlady1]

I also think another litter tray is your best bet. I have two cats and we currently live in a one bedroom flat, and I have to have two litter trays down otherwise I have a similar problem (not with wee, but if the litter tray needs changing or has poo in it they sometimes will just poo next to it, or behind the toilet in the bathroom for some reason). They do both share both trays rather than just using one or having one each.

Have you always used the wood pellet litter? If so and this problem had only just cropped up then it's fine, but lots of cats dont like how it feels under their feet and so will avoid going all the way in to the tray and/or squatting down properly when they do because of the weight it puts on their feet.

[cozietoesie]

I think you've identified your own problem though - they're not using it well when there's an existing poo in the tray. I'd get the other tray out. You simply can't guarantee to remove a poo in the short timescales available.

[fluffyraggies]

Love an in depth poo chat on a grey Monday, hey? lol

The other tray is out. But everyone's fast asleep on the sofa right now, so no reaction yet

The wood pellet story: I think the very first litter we had was the one the breeder recommended which was mail order only wood chips of some rare and wonderful variety which had a strong odor.

After a couple of months we decided to 'wean' them on to something less out of the ordinary and went for ... Catsan? Purple and white packaging? Anyway it was whiteish clay based litter. It was OK, but if i remember rightly it did track allot. We used that for about 6 months, then the shop that sold that stopped doing it in managable sized bags and as i havn't always got DH with me to do the lifting i decided we had to try and wean them on to something else.

I shop at tesco so i looked at what they had. My mum uses their value stuff (for her cat ) and i hate the look of that. i bought the expensive 'silky clay dust' one in a yellow carry box. That was just dreadful. Puffed about and got on their feet and went hard when wet. Another friend uses one which has a very chemically smell.

Sooo hence moving on to the tesco wood chip one. Been using it about a year. I bet you wish you hadn't asked after all that

Bless the raggies they've always just marched in and poo'd or wee'd in what ever's been in their trays. No accidents or secret toileting elsewhere in the house. I've count myself lucky. This over the side weeing is just an accident.

[cozietoesie]

Not called 'The Litter tray' for nothing!

The type of litter you use is usually a cross between what they like, what you can afford and what is most practical for you to clean up given your circumstances. You'll find almost as many variants as posters, here.

Good luck and let us know how it goes. From your descriptions of behaviour, there won't be an overnight change - just that with any luck, you'll find them using the other tray on occasion and in about a fortnight you'll look back and think ' No accidents, recently......'

[Floralnomad]

My mum stands her trays on old towels as her Raggie tends to sit right on the edge to poo and invariably misses a bit . He's a creature of great habit and won't use a covered tray .

[cozietoesie]

I always put trays on a spread-out broadsheet or two. (All my family give me their spare old newspapers.) Seniorboy doesn't have many accidents but it's a good security blanket for me and also picks up most of any dropped litter.

[MaggieMaggieMaggieMcGill]

We did use newspaper but it always used to soak through and would end up having to be changed twice daily and cleaned underneath. 'the inco pads totally sorted that out and lasted a couple of days.

[thecatneuterer]

You may find puppy training pads cheaper than incontinence pads and basically the same (I think) but bigger. I used them in the bed of my one of my old, blind and incontinent cats, but they would also be very good for your purposes I think.

[WhatKindofFool]

I've seen a deep plastic box being used as a litter tray. You know the storage boxes that you can get from Argos or B&Q. They are about 8 inches deep or so. Maybe worth a try as she couldn't get her bum over the edge of it.

[lljkk]

I bought storage boxes from supermarket for... £2.50 each? In their Basics range. About 10" high. Sorted. Not possible to hang bum outside. Litter cannot be scattered. Win win all round.