loosecannon
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posted on August 15, 2001 05:03:28 AM new
We have a kitten that we brought home a couple of months ago. We all like the little critter but I don't like having a litter box in the house. It goes beyond that really. The litter box is repulsive to me and since our house is not what you'd call spacious, there is not a good place to keep it.
Can we train this kitty to go outside so we can eliminate the litter box?
If you have experience with cats I'd appreciate your help.
Thanks!
[ edited by loosecannon on Aug 17, 2001 07:26 AM ]
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margot
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posted on August 15, 2001 05:37:10 AM new
Of course you can have your kitty go outside, but outside cats don't have the life span of an indoor cat. And, what happens when you're not home to let the kitty out?....they find a dark corner somewhere that will become their "litter" box or if you're lucky, they'll use the bathtub. Why not try getting one of the litter boxes that have a cover? This affords the kitty some privacy, cuts down on the mess of tracked out litter, and cuts down on any odors. There are the fancy boxes that are self cleaning...but they are a bit pricey to my thinking. Keep a litter box in the basement (with the door ajar so the cat can get to it) or in a laundry room, or bathrooom. One thing...once you decide on a location, don't move the box around to other locations. Cats like to know where to go. And, they like their box to be kept clean. Get one of the handy scoopers and give it a quick clean once a day. With the no clumping litter, it's not difficult and has minimal odor. Lots easier than cleaning up a poopy baby diaper! Enjoy you're kitty....you'll find that cats are the nicest people!
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Hjw
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posted on August 15, 2001 06:21:52 AM new
loosecannon
Wow! I share your feeling about a cat box. When my husband retired, he brought home a brain damaged cat which incidently he holds in higher esteem than me or anyone else in the whole wide world. The cat was injured when he was inside a car engine when it was started.
So, I have an invalid cat and a litter box and a retired husband inside my house.
Frankly, there is no answer to this problem or I would have discovered it.  I was kinda hoping that my dog would eat the cat but they have become friends. 
Helen
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sadie999
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posted on August 15, 2001 07:11:24 AM new
I don't know if this will work, but what if you move the cat box close to the front or back door for awhile. Then put a cat box outside that same door. If you start to notice "activity" in the outdoor box, you could phase out the indoor one.
I had a big old macho Tonkinese for awhile who was a indoor cat because we lived in a city. When we moved to the burbs, he went outside. But, he'd come inside to use the box! At least the neigbors didn't complain he was ruining their gardens.
Good luck, and hopefully someone will post a tried and true method for you.
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saabsister
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posted on August 15, 2001 07:13:46 AM new
We keep our cats' litter boxes in the basement and use a clumping litter. I scoop it once or twice a day into a plastic bag and then throw the bag in our outside trashcan(or at least out the basement door until morning when I can see my way to the trashcan). My cats are both indoor cats - too many large predator dogs around here.
I wouldn't chance it without a litter box in the house - my parents' cat decided that he wanted to be let out at 2:00 in the morning. No one got up to let him out so he rustled around in their closet and peed on Mom's wool suit before she figured out what he was up to.
Helen, find your husband another job. I did.
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snowyegret
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posted on August 15, 2001 07:13:57 AM new
LC, the self cleaning litter boxes are coming down in price.
Helen, my DH's Borzoi that literally rippped the pants off an intruder was scared of a little 8 lb cat.
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Hjw
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posted on August 15, 2001 07:57:54 AM new
snowyegret
That's exactly my experience. I thought I had a man killing dog but he is just a wimp.
Helen
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Triggerfish
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posted on August 15, 2001 08:39:22 AM new
When you go to the grocery store and they ask you "paper or plastic?", get the plastic and keep them under the sink or something. They are excellent for cleaning out the kitty box. Just scoop everything into the plastic grocery bag, tie the top in a knot and toss it!
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Hjw
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posted on August 15, 2001 09:32:39 AM new
I don't go near a litter box. It's a repulsive concept to me. An animal that sh*ts in the house is simply unacceptable.
So my husband is the litter cleaner.
I was reading about a culture...can't remember where... in which they believe that "people" should not use the house for such purposes. LoL!
What would they think about litter boxes?
Helen
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MrsSantaClaus
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posted on August 15, 2001 10:47:59 AM new
My hubby and I have an understanding - I take care of the kid's butts - he takes care of the cat's !
Actually, we moved the little box to the basement and installed a cat door in the basement door. We took off the rubber flap, though.
Now the cat can come and "go" as she pleases - and the hubby takes care of it!
BECKY
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jt-2007
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posted on August 15, 2001 11:55:43 AM new
I use liners (or even a kitchen trash bag will work). Just TAPE IT to the box with 2 pieces of scotch tape.
We scoop it every other day (kid job) but when it gets stinky just slip off the bag and toss. To put it on, just slide it over the entire box so when removing you just turn it inside out.
We also keep the litterbox inside a larger cardboard box so no litter gets tossed out in scratching and the scooper just lies next to it in the cardboard box. That gets tossed once a month or so because it really doesn't get nasty.
We keep ours in the laundry room corner. Have to leave the door cracked.
T
And baking soda sprinkled over it add a day or too to it's life.
You could once buy some stupid thing to toilet train cats. Don't know if it works. We only have one functional bathroom so I don't want to know!
[ edited by jt on Aug 15, 2001 11:59 AM ]
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RainyBear
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posted on August 16, 2001 12:01:26 PM new
I have a covered litter box and use the clumping litter, scooping it out twice a day. The smell is only bad if they go and don't cover it up, or if one of the little dears stands in the box but hangs his butt out the door, effecting an "outside the box" poop.
I've seen cat toilet training kits in pet stores. The idea is that you put litter in a sling above the toilet bowl for a while until the cat gets used to going there, then you remove the litter and -- if it works -- the cat continues to go in the toilet. I'm sure getting the cat to flush is much trickier, so you'd probably find presents in the toilet when you go to use it. Since I keep my toilet lid down, I haven't tried this system.
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Hjw
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posted on August 16, 2001 12:16:47 PM new
RainyBear
How totally gruesome!!! My husband's braindamaged cat is banned from the bathroom, the bedrooms and the room in which I keep my books. LoL And I wish that he would stay outdoors with the squirrels!
Helen
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ewora
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posted on August 16, 2001 07:22:02 PM new
I live in a third floor apartment and I keep the door to the deck cracked and have put the litter box out there. It seems to work fine for now but when it gets colder I will have to come up with another solution. Maybe they will start asking to go out??
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Hjw
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posted on August 16, 2001 08:00:25 PM new
ewora
You are soooo lucky that you can leave that door cracked...maybe you can have a little pet door made for this winter.
Helen
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MrsSantaClaus
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posted on August 16, 2001 08:10:22 PM new
Your local pet store can order a door for ya!
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tiggressoflove
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posted on August 16, 2001 08:32:40 PM new
It's the perfect use for those large priority boxes. You'll never have to clean a litter box again, just put in trash bag and put together another priority box. Use newspapers and those priority bags for fillers.
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ewora
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posted on August 16, 2001 11:27:21 PM new
Our nights are getting to be about 50 degrees now so it gets a little chilly at night with the door open. Unfortunatly the door is mostly glass so the door isn't an option. I'm hoping they'll just learn to wait while I'm gone and will ask to go out when I'm home. If I just remember to open the door every couple of hours. Better than giving up one of the bathrooms to kitty mess. I just started the deck thing actually and it's working out well. I can just sweep the litter that falls off their feet right off the deck.
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barbkeith
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posted on August 17, 2001 03:46:14 AM new
How about this for a litter box problem. I have 5 cats, 2 dogs and a pet door AND 2 litter boxes. Why 2 you ask? Well, one of my cats is almost 20 years old, never goes outside, and has decided that 1 litter box is not enough. I think she's intimidated by the other cats so she won't go into the litter box if one of them is around. I had to make a litter box out of a plastic storage container because she wouldn't put her butt down and would pee outside the opening. The plastic storage container is great though. It's very enclosed (just cut a hole in the side) and I just lift the top to clean it out. The rest of them go outside. Thank goodness for pet doors.
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eleanordew
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posted on August 17, 2001 10:17:51 AM new
I keep my cat's box in the bathroom, inside a closet (the closet door stays ajar all the time).
If you have a small kitten and a multi-story house, you might want to keep a litter box on each floor. A kitten sometimes has trouble with stairs, and can't "hold it" long enough to get upstairs or downstairs or whatever. After all, they are just babies.
Once the cat is older, you can reduce the number of cat boxes gradually.
I also had a 20 year old cat -- in the last few years of her life I put out several cat boxes, because she sometimes just had trouble getting there in time.
El
"The customer may not always be right, but she is always the customer."
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RainyBear
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posted on August 17, 2001 02:22:14 PM new
ewora - if your patio door is the sliding glass variety, here's a pet door that will work:
http://www.michaelholigan.com/Departments/TVShow/seg_tscript.asp?ts%5Fid=5215&text%5Ftype=M&text%5Fpage=1&mscssid=A3RN48CT73SR2MTC00A3H206KJ1V71L6
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