Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

The litter tray

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

Flip

Original poster

Kittens - litter tray

9 replies

Chocdip · 27/08/2020 06:15

We recently had two little brothers join our family. They are just over 3 months and we’ve had them for a week, so they are currently confined to one room.

I’m not sure we are getting the litter tray bit right. They seem to use it ALL the time, it stinks, despite us scooping it several times a day and changing it completely every couple of days. One of them had diarrhea the first day but has been fine since. They also kick the litter everywhere and then play with it (wooden floors). And sometimes seem to even play in it!!! Is this normal?

As we prepare to let them roam the rest of the house, I’m just wondering if we are getting it right? We were thinking of getting two more litter trays to dot around the house for them, but I am concerned about the smell (less about the scattered white stones everywhere) overtaking the house. For sure the smell is ripest when they’ve first used it, then it clumps and seems to fade a bit, but never completely. It feels like we need to scoop it after every use!!! Or maybe we do abd I missed that bit of the memo!

OP posts:

Fluffycloudland77 · 27/08/2020 06:48

You do need to scope after every use but young kittens shouldn’t have clumping because they eat it sometimes and it can swell up in their tummies.

Unfortunately they will play in it. They grow out of it.

Chemenger · 27/08/2020 07:06

If they really stink I would try changing their food. Our last foster’s poo stink could drop a buffalo at 50 yards until we swapped him back to kitten food for a while which settled things down. We had to work out by trial and error what he could and couldn’t eat. You could have a day or two on poached chicken to settle things as well. Are they up to date with worming?

Kittens will play in the tray, because it’s a different texture to everything else around and it’s fun to dig and spin round scattering it. I would suggest a covered tray or one of those trendy box ones with the hole on top (they might not be big enough for that yet). A covered one reduces the smell too.

Chemenger · 27/08/2020 07:07

I think there’s a problem with your post OP, the pictures haven’t come through

MonsteraCheeseplant · 27/08/2020 07:09

Yeah mine play with their litter sometimes, it’s so fun! Make sure you provide other things to play with. It sounds like they’re getting it very right if there are no accidents, something to celebrate!

Bargebill19 · 27/08/2020 12:38

Toys- lots of them and you interacting with them. This will make the toilet seem less interesting to them.
Smell - you can buy litter trays with hoods, which minimise the scattering and smell. Clean the tray as soon as you can and disinfect it regularly. You can buy expensive smelly litter or use cheap litter and buy a spray bottle of litter deodoriser.
After awhile you do get used to it 😱🤣.
Yes to having another litter tray - they may use it, they may not, but if your cats are like mine, they will ‘help’ you by using the tray whilst you are emptying it. - so it gives them and you another option!

AnnaMagnani · 27/08/2020 12:47

Normal.

If you get a covered tray it minimizes the kicking it out of the tray, or the poo that escapes over the side of the tray. It does also minimize how far the smell travels.

You also need 2 more litter trays - sorry - as they will start wanting to have a tray each and being a bit territorial over who goes where.

Agree if they have more toys - or the rest of the house to explore - the litter will be less interesting to play with. They are probably a bit bored.

It's impossible to comment further without pictures

TreestumpsAndTrampolines · 27/08/2020 12:50

Ours did a lot of digging which scattered it everywhere - the low sides on the kitten-sized litter trays don't help, and yes, the poop stunk, so we scooped it immediately (also, they complained if it wasn't clean, and one is fairly long haired, so needed a hand so it didn't get stuck to her).

Once they're a bit bigger they'll get better, and get something higher sided (enclosed if they'll tolerate it - mine won't - boy cat has a flamingo pose to poo so only one leg is actually in the litter, and he needs the head height. )

GreenCat44 · 27/08/2020 16:50

My kittens were 10 weeks when I got them and they managed a top opening litter tray (they have a covered one too but prefer the top opening one), I thought they were going to be trapped in there because they were so tiny
Best things ever for not getting litter kicked everywhere, I wish I'd bought one several cats ago!

AnnaMagnani · 27/08/2020 18:08

Mine also managed a top opening tray.

Fine for 2 years except they live with Old Lady Cat who has decided she is too arthritic to climb up any more and has started pooing on the carpet.

And everyone prefers the open tray so top trays are over for us - it was great while it lasted

Flip