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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

Help me get my cat to poo outside

12 replies

BoysRule · 13/04/2016 17:42

We got a rescue cat nearly a month ago and she has settled in really well. She is good at using the litter tray and we let her out for the first time last week. She has a cat flap which she is happy to use.

We now want her to go to the toilet when she is outside.

We tried putting the litter tray nearer to the door and then outside. Whilst she seemed to wee outside (although there may be wet patches in places we can't see!) she is not pooing outside. If the tray is outside she poos on the floor.

We have a very open plan house and it's really unpleasant. We have had a cat before and he always went to the toilet outside so we expected the same of this cat once she had settled.

Does anyone have any tips? I am quite sad at the thought we have to have a litter tray all of the time as there really is nowhere to put it without it being in a place where we eat or trip over it. I guess we may have been naive to think we wouldn't need one.

Has anyone had a similar experience or can offer advice?

OP posts:

PlaymobilPirate · 13/04/2016 17:51

Outside as in in your garden?? Litter tray in the garden?

ShutUpLegs · 13/04/2016 17:55

Gah. How frustratinng - that approch worked for us - putting the litter tray immediately outside the door where the cat flap is.

How about filling it with earth but having it indoors? Then when you know she accepts the earth, then move it outside again?

SirChenjin · 13/04/2016 17:59

Outside as in your garden as opposed to the neighbours?

WidowWadman · 13/04/2016 18:00

Let her poo in the litter tray and spare your neighbours

Original poster

BoysRule · 13/04/2016 18:03

Our neighbours have cats so I really don't think anyone minds. Happy for her to poo in our garden and I think she would as she doesn't go far.

I think I will try the soil in the litter tray idea.

OP posts:

SirChenjin · 13/04/2016 18:38

And how are you going to ensure that it only shits in the gardens belonging to the neighbours who don't mind?

Original poster

BoysRule · 13/04/2016 19:31

Because we have one neighbour with a cat and nothing but fields for miles.

OP posts:

RubbishMantra · 13/04/2016 20:08

Part and parcel of cat ownership I'm afraid.

Have you tried a covered tray, with a lid and a flappy door? Just take the door off it, then replace when she'd confident using it.

SirChenjin · 13/04/2016 20:23

Great

LemonRedwood · 13/04/2016 20:28

Filling litter tray with soil from garden, then gradually moving it further outside worked for us.

Our litter tray is now half buried in a flowerbed in a discreet corner as his lordship still has to have climbed into a plastic tray before he can bring himself to go! Means I still have to clear it out every so often but at least my neighbours still like me (as far as I know )

Fluffycloudland77 · 13/04/2016 21:42

She'll probably learn by herself. Ours did.

He has a clean tray but prefers to poo where all the world can see him.

Vinorosso74 · 13/04/2016 22:25

Our cat would only poo on her tray for the first 6 months or so we had her (6yo when we got her) then suddenly she started using the garden. She has her 'spot' in the corner of the garden. She hardly used her tray for the next few years even though she's locked in at night. Due to health issues she's been in more and is happy to use tray again. It might just take time for your cat to like using the garden.

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