How to get cats to do their business outside?

[Thclockstrucktwo]

My kittens are now 10 months but we kept them inside from 8 weeks to 20 weeks when they were spayed/neutered eyc. So they got used to going in the litter tray. They still go in the litter tray (we keep one in the bathroom for the 19 year old cat who is a bit doddery to go outside now). The kittens go outside all the time but come in to do their stinky poos.
How can I train them to go outside? It's like they always save an especially vile turd for visitor/house viewers/anyone.

My cats only started gong to the loo outside after I left them out for long ish periods of time (4-5 hours), if you have a cat flap though this could be tricky.

Outside, do you mean in your neighbours garden? Your cat, your cat poo, yours to dispose of.

Is it really critical for some reason?

Most of my outside-going cats have come back inside to use their trays - and The Lodger, who came to us near-grown, having raised himself on the streets, actually started doing that rather than just never stopping. Cats can feel quite vulnerable when they're doing their duty and he obviously preferred inside: safe, warm, self-cleaning - who can blame him?

It never bothered me at all. I don't mind cleaning trays and not only does it give you a happy cat and save arguments with the neighbours over poo in the rose beds but also enables you to keep a weather eye on their health via their inner workings. Besides, my outside-going cats are kept in at night for safety reasons so they need a tray then in any case - or in lousy weather.

Myself, I'd actually get a couple of extra trays for them to use.

Where do they pee?

My other cats crap in my garden but I'm trying to sell the house plus the plumbing isnt great here and the toilet keeps blocking with cat shit plus cat litter. We do have a cat flap which I once locked to keep them outside after chasing them out of the litter tray. They barelled into it at speed and took it off the frame!
They pee in the trays too - or in the case of the elderly cat who will not use a litter tray any other cat has been in, on the floor. She is now shut in the shower at night because she gets confused, falls down the stairs and piddles on the floor. There's room in there for her bed plus tray.

You shouldn't put cat poo/ litter down the loo its not good some wildlife so I've been told.

Not good for human health either! Toxoplasmosis! Bag it and bin it!

How many cats do you have altogether?

I know that some litter can be put down the loo (judiciously - you can't put great wads of anything down a toilet if you want to be sure not to block it) but I've never done that. I use clumping litter and with that, you can lift out poo - and pee balls - and put them in a little newspaper parcel. (I get free newspapers from the library/supermarket and also old papers from friends and relatives so they don't cost anything.) Newspaper parcels go in a plastic bag and that can be binned when appropriately full. All very easy and clean.

Will the bin men take it away? The collection is every 2 weeks here. That's a lot of poo!

Every two weeks here as well and it's not that bad with clumping litter - you're pretty well disposing of only the poo and the pee balls if you're halfway careful. (And the newspaper.)

4 cats. 1 always goes outside. At the moment we're using the grey cat litter. It rarely clumps but just goes into a grey sludge. We tried the wood pellets but the cats tracked it everywhere. I did wonder if the kittens wouldnt go outside because next doors lad throws their dog shit over the fence (he is autistic and chucks anything he can reach over). In 30 years of owning cats I've never had one that wouldnt pee outside. Hence my question.

That will be the reason- cat need peace and quiet like the rest of us! Try breeders celect litter- doesn't break up like the wood pellets and super absorbent. I bag mine in nappy bags- cheap and keep the smell in until the bin men come.

so, how about their timing? Waiting until 2 seconds before a viewer comes to look at the house

Grey sludge? Yikes. If you get natural clay clumping and keep it deep enough, you should just get a nice pee 'ball' which you can lift up with your implement and deposit on newspaper to make your paper parcel. (Two sheets of tabloid or one doubled sheet of broadsheet.)

How deep are you keeping yours?

(By the way, I'd forget about using those hopeless plastic litter scoops with holes/slits in them. I've found that you're best using hard edged metal tools - flour scoops are ideal but you can also easily use metal trowels - Poundland do those.)

2 cats - tray gets emptied into bag and into bin - wouldn't dream of flushing :-/ they'll go outside when they feel comfortable, our garden is 'cat proofed' so when they're outside the cant get out of our garden - we have a corner which we have fenced off and put down gravel and leafy plants - they go toilet in there :-)

Timing is in the hands of the gods, I'm afraid. It would help though if you were to avoid feeding them just before visitors. Food often stimulates movement in the lower regions. (There's no guarantee though!)

we had it maybe less than a cm deep. I had no idea it was meant to be deeper. You're right about the stupid plastic scoops. I've fetched a trowel from outside. I shall try deeper to see if we can achieve a wee ball. Unfortunately for tonight we have run out so there's hardly any in either tray.

I've trained cats to go outside by gradually moving litter tray closer to door, then just outside car flap and then putting cat litter on bit of garden I wanted them to go. But it took a couple of weeks at least and I don't think I've done it in winter.

Covered cat trays helped a bit with smell etc when I had indoor trays and multiple cats. They can't kick the it all over the floor so much either

I can see that it could be difficult if you have to have a litter box. Can you shout at them?

My cat never really returned to the litter box after getting his freedom, so I have no useful experience.

Do you have a patch of reasonably fluffy soil where they can dig?

It's time to put the 19yo cat in the shower with her bed. She had taken to going just about anywhere because I think she can no longer see properly at night. So she's in the shower with her bed, tray and a bowl of water which keeps her safe. And a nightlight so she can see. Despite being elderly and frail and unsteady on her feet she still smacks down the other cats and puts up quite a fight against her thyroid tablet

There is no way you can get rid of the smell of indoor cats when viewing the house.

we have flowerbeds with crumbly soil on that Fugacity. The elderly cat and 8 yo went outside all the time until we got the kittens. We have a tray by the back door by the cat flap (which they come back in to use) and one upstairs in the shower room for the elderly cat. We cant use the covered trays as the old cat thinks if her head is inside then all of her is so pees on the floor. She also struggles to turn around so steps in her poo and makes little poo footprints all over the house.
Should have gota tortoise...

Any chance of a sheltered spot outside for the litterbox?

I'll give that a go. Thankyou for the advice.

I did the gradually moving the litter tray thing. One of my cats still insisted on using the tray, so we ended up building a little cover outside with the tray under it not ruled by the cat of course

I use the wood chip litter.

I mixed some with the soil & they did their business no problem.