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Litterbox location in the beginning and then later

2K views 22 replies 10 participants last post by  MowMow 
#1 ·
Reading through many posts re the "dos and donts" for successful introduction of a new kitten/cat to a home with existing cat(s) the common thread is slow and steady all the while having the kitten isolated in a room.

I have a question re logistics of such an arrangement:

This introduction room initially will have the kittens litter box, water and food. But it will very unlikely that it will be the permanent location for the food and water and most importantly the litter box.

How does one train the new kitten to successfully use a litter box once it is relocated to its final location (optimally to the same room as the existing litter boxes of the other cat(s))
 
#4 ·
I've got three cats, two litterboxes, three flower beds (lol)

The litterboxes are at opposite ends of the house and on different floors.
I really don't see much point in having all the litter boxes in the same location but to each their own.
Different locations is what works for me and my girls.
 
#6 ·
I really don't see much point in having all the litter boxes in the same location
Consolidation of the boxes to one room would seem to make it easier ie quicker to clean and refill.


Different locations is what works for me and my girls.
We have a reasonably large home but we wanted the boxes not on carpet (so easier to clean the floor) and out of the way of general household traffic. For us this meant in a basement room which has linoleum for a floor covering.
 
#5 ·
When I started to have to move the upstairs box around (to a different room), I put it in the hallway, halfway between the two rooms for a day or so.

I also have found that cats are smart and if you just show them where the box is they will find it again. For the time being, consider having two separate boxes. The one you have and a second box in another further part of the house once they are given free roam. Just temporarily. Kittens sometimes need to go NOW and having a second more convenient box will save you a lot of angst.

I have 5 adult cats, and 5 boxes in 3 locations (2 upstairs mostly side by side unless the room is used for an isolation room, then one box is put in hubby's office on the same floor), 2 boxes side by side in the downstairs laundry room at the opposite end of the house and one covered box on the screened in porch. I've not had issues with this arrangement.
 
#9 ·
There's another factor here, if you're getting a KITTEN you need at least a box per floor of your home. Young kittens, especially in a big house, could get 'lost' too far from the box, or simply not realize they have to go until they HAVE TO GO...and the box is too far away. That's how bad litterbox habits are created, and I'd prefer to not take the risk.

I have 4 cats and the 6 boxes are spread out like this: Torri has her own private box in her room (silly princess), there's one in the upstairs hallway, one in the main floor coat closet, one on the main floor tucked into a bookshelf (right in the middle of the living room...but the option seems to be the boys spraying there, so I'm fine with it), two BIG boxes in the basement 'cat room'.

Your cats need the boxes spread out for a variety of reasons, but here's the big ones:
-Kittens and their lack of control as I mentioned above
-Litter box guarding (may be invisible to you, but stress - like, say, adding a new kitten - could trigger it)
-their ease of access (how many bathrooms are in your big house? One? No?!...I wonder why you'd need more than one...lol)
-territorial marking makes people much happier when it's in a litter box rather than all around your home. This is part of what litter boxes do.

Basically, there are many cases where it does work, that doesn't mean it's the best practice. If you have a nice big house then there are bound to be places you can tuck a box away, in bathrooms, closets, in an out of the way corner...but you should do it. Prevention is ALWAYS better than trying to go back and 'fix' something once it's not working anymore.
 
#14 ·
There's another factor here, if you're getting a KITTEN you need at least a box per floor of your home. Young kittens, especially in a big house, could get 'lost' too far from the box, or simply not realize they have to go until they HAVE TO GO...and the box is too far away.
Ignorance is bliss I guess as when getting our new kitten last July we simply added 2 more boxes down in the depths of the basement of our two storey home (2 were there already for the existing cat). The kitten has done just fine as does the almost 15 year old cat.

Having said that we are tentatively planning adding another kitten to the mix this coming summer (+1 will make 3 in total) and I think I will add a new room to the mix....the laundry room on the main floor. This still isn't optimal given that it is can be a busy room when laundry needs to be done but there is no other room even remotely suitable for a litter box given humans also reside in this home ;).
 
#12 ·
Well I just learned today that after having a temporary litter box upstairs Gizmo will no longer use the downstairs box that he has used for 6+ years without issue.

He obviously decided he prefers the his toilet upstairs lol and who am I to argue.

It's not entirely 'appropriate' having a litterbox in my bedromm but it's better than him deliberately 'holding it in' which he was doing as the consequences for that are really bad (and expensive)
 
#15 ·
Well I just learned today that after having a temporary litter box upstairs Gizmo will no longer use the downstairs box that he has used for 6+ years without issue.
That is my concern ie we have 4 boxes in the basement which are all used successfully by our 2 cats.

If we add one on another floor because of the arrival of a new feline then I wouldn't want the other 2 cats to start using this new single box.


It's not entirely 'appropriate' having a litterbox in my bedroom
I agree completely and I have never been in your bedroom!
 
#16 ·
If you are only using the basement as a place for the cats to go to the toilet, why on earth do you have so many litterboxes down there?
You added 2 on top of the 2 that were already there for your other cat.
You have two cats.
It's not like they say to each other, "Right, you take the ones on the left. I got the others."

Outside of being insistent you don't want a litterbox in a room which is fine, to each their own, why not consider something like a landing on the stairs. Like I have one on the landing of the stairs which lead to the attic. Not a high traffic area and the cats have privacy.
Obviously you'll put them where you want, we're just offering ideas and opinions which were asked for.
 
#19 ·
If you are only using the basement as a place for the cats to go to the toilet, why on earth do you have so many litterboxes down there?
We always used two for the single older cat and so when the new kitten arrived we had the space to add two more!
(But I guess now that I think of it 4 is the `accepted` number if we do get the planned for kitten this coming summer)

Obviously you'll put them where you want, we're just offering ideas and opinions which were asked for.
I do appreciate the input. Because of this thread I will be adding one more room on a different level of our home to house a litter box.
 
#18 ·
well I say if you have a system that works then stick with it, (if it ain't broke don't fix it).

The only reason I am stuck with one in the bedroom is he simply refuses to use the one downstairs now.

I must admit I'm not overly pleased at having a litterbox in my bedroom lol, However I would take that any day over him peeing outside of the box or holding in to the point where he's harming his own health.
 
#20 ·
There are no rules. I have three cats and one litter box. My cats don't care if I move the box, change the type of litter, cut down on number of boxes - at one point I had three, then I went to two, and now one. Even moving twice in the past two years, they find the litter box and use it with no issues.

Your results may vary.
 
#21 ·
There are no rules.
marie, I didn`t say "rules" in my post. It was only a passing reference to the number of cats + 1 convention with respect to the number of litter boxes that is often mentioned. Of course it goes without saying, as you have...YMMV.

My cats don't care if I move the box, change the type of litter, cut down on number of boxes - at one point I had three, then I went to two, and now one. Even moving twice in the past two years, they find the litter box and use it with no issues.
It is a relief when cats are easy going in this respect isnt it?
 
#22 ·
Oh, I didn't mean the "rules" thing towards you, I was talking about the "one for each cat and one extra" thing that people here quote so often and that you just mentioned. So at one point, I should have had five?? :shock:
 
#23 ·
I find that there are no "appropriate" places to put a litterbox. There is always SOME reason I don't want in a particular room.

The bathroom is too small and I don't want to be staring at a litterbox when I'm using MY litterbox.

The bedroom is out of the question for me, it's gross for me to have it where I sleep. Also, it's carpeted.

Spare bedroom is carpeted and if I have company I'll have to find a new home for the litterbox for the duration of their visit.

Kitchen has linoleum but it seems kind of unsanitary to me AND there's not really any room in there.

Dining room/living room are the main part of the house and when I have company the box is right out there and the cats would probably think it was great fun to drop a stink bomb in the middle of a dinner party.

So you *MAKE* a spot appropriate spot. The spare bedroom walk in closet is a good out of the way spot (and on the few times a year I have overnight guests I remove the box to the spot next to the other one and ask the guests to keep the closet door shut in case the cats use that spot anyway). It's carpeted so I brought home from work a LARGE heavy duty cardboard box. It's flattened and under the litterbox in case of spills or misses.

The entryway that leads into the living room has linoleum and I got a nice room divider to separate it. If I have dinner guests I move the box into the spare closet next to the other box to prevent stinkbombs disturbing my guests.

So, MAKE an appropriate place and I agree with Library.... I would never test a kitten's ability to hold it long enough to get to the basement.
 
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