How to encourage cat to toilet outside?

[Snozzlemaid]

Cat has just turned 1 and has been with us now for a couple of months. For the first day or so we kept her in one room and we still have a litter tray in that room. As it's our living room I really want to get rid of this one. She has another she uses in kitchen/diner but the original is her preferred one.
She isn't one for spending too much time outside and always comes back in to use the litter tray. I don't think it's occurred to her that she could go outside even though we cleared a patch of turned over earth for her and put some of her litter there to encourage her.
I've now today removed the litter tray from the living room and put it outside and shown her it's there but she was obviously not interested. She's not been since I've done this but am wondering if this is a mistake.
Am I asking for trouble removing her preferred litter tray from its usual spot? I have put a storage box in the space to deter her going on the floor instead.
Will she be okay with just one indoors whilst she's in at night?
Is there anything else I can do to encourage her to go outside? I think at the moment as the door is open all day she just runs back in when she wants to go.

Install a good cat flap and show her out to use it. Remove her car litter tray. Done.

CAn you use soil in the cat litter box so she knows that soil is ok to use. Then move the tray nearer and nearer to the door then outside the door.

Cat flap not an option so we will always need a tray for her when she is in at night.

@DobbyTheHouseElk

CAn you use soil in the cat litter box so she knows that soil is ok to use. Then move the tray nearer and nearer to the door then outside the door.

That's a thought she goes on wood pellets at the moment so may not know soil is okay to go on.

It will be difficult without a catflap - our cat didn't stop using the litter tray until a catflap was installed (we were previously letting him out/leaving the back door open)

Try a bit of soil. She will know the smell and know it’s safe to use. Cats are so clean they don’t like to go where it’s not allowed

My cat was a rescue, but had obviously been used to going outdoors. When I let him out after the initial few weeks you have to keep them in, he ran out and had a wee under the hedge. He pretty much stopped using the tray there and then.

My childhood cats never knew the luxury of cat litter, we always used soil from the garden and dug it all back in afterwards.

If she uses the soil I’d put it back in the garden so she’ll smell it and known that’s where she’s meant to do her stuff.

Thanks. She'd never been outside before she was with us so she's only ever known using litter trays.
I'm happy to keep one tray in for her but just want to get rid of the one in the living room as it's really not ideal there.

I’ve been wondering this. My two are nearly one and despite having been outside since March have never, to be knowledge, done so much as a wee outside. Before we got the cat flap installed in May they’d bolt back in as soon as we opened the back door to do a wee! It’s obviously never crossed their mind that the garden could be used as a toilet!

Why do you want her to go outside? Surely it’s harder to clean up?

@Mincepiesallyearround

I’ve been wondering this. My two are nearly one and despite having been outside since March have never, to be knowledge, done so much as a wee outside. Before we got the cat flap installed in May they’d bolt back in as soon as we opened the back door to do a wee! It’s obviously never crossed their mind that the garden could be used as a toilet!

Glad it's not just us then. If she was shut out for hours I'm sure she'd go out there if she had to. But that's too mean a thing to do when she's finding her feet outside. It's all quite scary out there for her still.

I don't mind her going either inside or outside but just wondered if she'll be okay with only one tray and not her preferred one she's used to using.
As we don't have a cat flap I want her to get used to outside being an option in case she's out and we're out for a few hours.
Is she likely to go on the floor where her old tray was?

She will be fine with one tray inside. Are there any other cats locally? I had two older rescue cats who had never been outside until I got them. Nothing i did would convince them to 'go' outside but then a new neighbour moved in with a cat and after that they rarely used their tray. I'm presuming they saw him and realised it was allowed.

Don't just remove the tray. Over time my 2 started doing the toilet outside but we do still have the tray just in case.

I think it is instinctive one way or the other. Our cat was three when we got her and had been an indoor cat. As soon as we started letting her into the garden she stopped using the tray completely. We have her in overnight (and before Covid she was always in through the day when we went to actual work) and have two trays but she would have to be absolutely desperate to use them now. During the snow back in February she wouldn’t go out and DP ended up clearing a patch in her usual spot and carrying her there, because I was scared she might actually pop!

I moved the tray outside next to the cat flap. That was just after Christmas. It hasn’t been used yet.

@WeRTheOnesWeHaveBeenWaitingFor

Why do you want her to go outside? Surely it’s harder to clean up?

I’m wondering this too. Isn’t it better she toilets inside in a cleanable area that does it wherever outside.

It's a good rule of thumb to have one litter tray per cat, plus an extra one. So ideally you would have two litter trays for your cat. I know they are unsightly, but for your cat's happiness, you may need to find room elsewhere in the house for the tray you don't want in the living room. As long as you scoop out wet litter every few days for urine (every day works well for my cats) and scoop asap for solids, the smell won't be too intrusive.

It is definitely a must to keep a litter tray in the house. It's so important to be able to keep an eye on your cat's toileting as it will alert you to any issues. For example, one of my male cats had blood in his urine that unfortunately turned out to be caused by cancer of the bladder. We wouldn't have caught the issue so early without litter trays to monitor him.