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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.

Original poster

Would this be an issue for you?

14 replies

Popsicle82646 · 10/01/2025 18:26

We have 2 beautiful 1 year old cats who are sisters.
Please no judgement on the indoor outdoor cat argument that is always ongoing with cat owners 😂🤦🏻‍♀️....
But we have chosen to let our girls out in the morning and they have a cat flap access to come in and out as they please all day.
At night (around 4pm at the moment as it's winter and darker nights) we get them in and lock the cat flap so they are in over night.

This works really well and as a result they are more indoor cats and stay mostly in our garden not venturing far, and preferring to just have a wonder and a play or run around in our garden (we have a very large garden that backs onto fields) and then come in as they please.

The issue is with this routine we have to keep the litter trays as they are shut in over night, which is fine HOWEVER they literally go out in the garden climb trees play etc then come right in and take a 💩 or wee in their litter trays 🤦🏻‍♀️ and go out again 😂

Should I be trying to get them to go out in the garden?

Any help or advice greatly appreciated ☺️

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 10/01/2025 18:28

Over time our cats naturally started doing the toilet outdoors and we didn't have to encourage them to do it. Mine do go in and out as they please day and night.

minipie · 10/01/2025 18:30

I’m not sure how you can teach or train a cat to wee in its litter tray at night but outside in the day. Good luck!

HappyHolidai · 10/01/2025 18:31

They might go a bit further when it's not so dark and cold. So maybe they would just go where they have been exploring. But if they only know about litter trays they may not realise it's possible to use soil.

Snozzlemaid · 10/01/2025 18:32

My dcat doesn't go out much and if she does doesn't leave our garden. She always comes back in to use her litter tray and won't go outside at all.

I prefer her being this way rather than previous cats I've had that disappeared for hours. We had one go missing as well. So I'm much happier that I always know where she is.

Wolfiefan · 10/01/2025 18:33

No. Let them use the trays rather than crapping all over the neighbourhood!

CleanShirt · 10/01/2025 18:34

Mine is also locked in at night (and is too lazy to go out in this cold) - I have a litter tray as it's not fair to expect him not to go for 8+ hours

Original poster
Popsicle82646 · 10/01/2025 18:36

CleanShirt · 10/01/2025 18:34

Mine is also locked in at night (and is too lazy to go out in this cold) - I have a litter tray as it's not fair to expect him not to go for 8+ hours

Does yours use the trays during the day when they have the option the go out? X

OP posts:
Catsandcheese · 10/01/2025 18:37

Ours are largely the same as yours OP, and we have litter trays. To my knowledge they come inside to use the facilities, then go back out again.
I am happy that they do this, it means they are never too far from home, and come when called if they are outside.

Grumpyoldpersonwithcats · 10/01/2025 18:38

Our cats frequently come back inside to use the tray. At least it reduces the risk of complaints from neighbours.

CleanShirt · 10/01/2025 18:39

Popsicle82646 · 10/01/2025 18:36

Does yours use the trays during the day when they have the option the go out? X

Show quote history

Sometimes, not so much in this cold. I've always had a litter tray, even with the most outdoorsy of cats.

Original poster
Popsicle82646 · 10/01/2025 18:41

Snozzlemaid · 10/01/2025 18:32

My dcat doesn't go out much and if she does doesn't leave our garden. She always comes back in to use her litter tray and won't go outside at all.

I prefer her being this way rather than previous cats I've had that disappeared for hours. We had one go missing as well. So I'm much happier that I always know where she is.

Aw sounds just like our two!
We feel so much happier that they are homely cats, they have that option to go out which they do but they just stay in our garden and are always there when we come home 😂🥰

OP posts:
FlowersOfSulphur · 10/01/2025 18:54

My cat is also allowed out during the day but kept in overnight (from about 11pm in our case). She has a litter tray, but she also toilets outside. We've never consciously trained her to do this - it's something she's taken to doing herself. However, we don't have a cat flap (she jumps up onto the windowsill and somebody lets her in) so it probably started when she wanted to come in one day and nobody was around to open the window for her, so she had to find a toilet spot outside. She's middle-aged now and mostly stays in our garden, although she did roam further afield when she was younger.

Judystilldreamsofhorses · 10/01/2025 21:40

Our previous cat would have burst rather than use the litter tray (but we always had two for her in the house). In snowy weather we used to have to dig over her patch, and carry her out to toilet - little princess!

She sadly was pts last year and we now have a little boy who will be two next week since April. Until about six weeks ago he would always come in to use the tray, but then suddenly started going outside. It’s been thick snow here for over a week and we’re back to 100% tray, so I am interested to see what happens when the snow clears (hopefully soon).

We don’t have a cat flap so both cats in overnight and if we’re not at home - per pp both cats have instinctively popped up at the kitchen window to come in.

silentpool · 10/01/2025 21:42

I have an outdoor enclosure with a litter tray attachment. They are doing roughly half of their business outside.

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