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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.

What would you do with my kitten problem?

37 replies

margaritasbythesea · 19/09/2019 07:09

We've just got two litter mates from a friend whose mother was killed when they were about 6 weeks old. They've been with us since. The boy cat is very healthy, eats a lot, uses the litter tray etc

We've had them between our living room and kitchen as they are joined together, which I know is a lot of space but it was fine at first. They both used the litter tray in the kitchen. There were a few accidents. The little girl had a tummy upset when she arrived but we took her to the vet and he said it was probably the shock and gave her a probiotic. She got better very quickly.

They've been eating mainly dry food with a bit of wet.

The girl cat has started positively avoiding the litter tray so we thought perhaps the space was too much and decided to keep them just in the kitchen and at the same time she got another tummy upset so we stopped the wet food. She us eating and drinking but is smaller than her brother.

She us now positively avoiding the litter tray. This will be the fourth day of diarrhoea. She's hiding in corners to do it and I think she's weed in the middle of the floor in the night. She's lively and playing.

I have two questions : should I take her to the vet about the diarrhoea? And how can I coax her back to her litter tray?

OP posts:
margaritasbythesea · 21/09/2019 09:29

I couldn't get her to the vet yesterday as a cancellation appointment came up for my daughter to have a minor operation she's been waiting for.

The girl cat escaped into the living room thus morning and went directly to the corner to pee on the carpet , according to my daughter. Frustrating. They're crazy to get out of the kitchen.

I'm going to try and get her over her tummy upset and then deal with the escaping into the living room.

I am thinking of taking away her dry food and giving her small bits of roast chicken thus weekend to see if that helps her tummy. Is that a good idea?

Then perhaps I'll try putting trays down in the living room temporarily, or is it wrong to put trays down where I actually don't want her going?

What do you think? I'm a bit lost with her. The boy has taken to everything like a dream.

OP posts:
Fluffycloudland77 · 21/09/2019 10:01

Yes, take any food away with cereal in it.

margaritasbythesea · 21/09/2019 10:02

Thank you.

OP posts:
DancingDella · 21/09/2019 10:13

If she's in pain/discomfort with her tummy she will associate the litter tray with this pain, and therefore avoid it. I took on a rescue adult cat with chronic diahorrea who used to poo near but always outside the litter tray. As soon as I solved her tummy troubles with a special diet, she used the litter tray every time.

margaritasbythesea · 21/09/2019 10:48

That makes sense. She's had a bit of chicken so hopefully by Monday I should know if that helps. I'm unsure how much to give her bit I've started off with a few little scraps.

OP posts:
bodgeitandscarper · 21/09/2019 10:56

We had a cat with digestive issues and the vet recommended Royal Canin Sensible which worked. Hills also do one, you can get both i awet version too. Also try putting kitchen foil in the places you dont want her to go, they dont like the feel of it on their paws.

Potentialmadcatlady · 21/09/2019 11:12

You need more trays at least temporarily with different types of litter in them until she settles on which type she prefers. For two cats you need at least three. Some open topped and some enclosed. Get the carpets etc cleaned with a cat pee neutraliser so it doesn’t attract her any more. If she was mine I would have loads of trays on the spots she pees on. Then as she settled and the habit was broken I would gradually reduce them. Short term pain for long term gain.
If she is only a kitten the better you gets things resolved now the better things will be- she has a long life ahead of her. If she really hates litter ( which would be unusual) you could try puppy pads but I would try and use a decent wood litter first (softer on her feet and easier to dig for kittens)

Potentialmadcatlady · 21/09/2019 11:15

Ps some cats actually really struggle with chicken. If it doesn’t work you may need to look at veal, duck or something similar

margaritasbythesea · 21/09/2019 11:17

OK. If it's not a bad idea to put trays in the living room temporarily, I'll do that.

Once she's had a couple of days on chicken I'll try her on a non cereal dried food.

OP posts:
chemenger · 21/09/2019 15:59

I would have trays in the living room, yes, you will be able to gradually remove them again when things settle.

margaritasbythesea · 21/09/2019 20:20

OK. I think it's been a good day. She likes the chicken. No poo since this morning which I take as a good sign as there were 5 or 6 yesterday.

Thanks for all your help. It's been really reassuring to me.

OP posts:
Fluffycloudland77 · 21/09/2019 20:28

I bet she likes the chicken!

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