Wee Wee Problem.

Hey people,

Need your advice with a 5 week kitty.
She has used the kitty litter quite abit for the past week but lately when i let free in my lounge, she wee wee's in the corners.
My wife think's she's trying to grab my atention because when i am not home she rans to the litter...
What do you think?
I have told her no a taped her on her nose but she does not take notice.
Do i need to have a punishment for this? If so how do i need to do it?


Cheers.

She is a tiny baby and this is something with her Mother that she would still be doing with the help of her Mother. Her bladder is very tiny and she probably cannot hold it. She does not need to be punished at all, (actually for anything, cats are not animals to be punished, it will bring out negative behavior)

When you have her out in the lounge, make sure you have her litter box very close by, so that when she needs to wee, its right there close by for her.

Cats learn best by positive reinforcement - negative-based "punishment" only results in them learning to fear you.

Any time she uses the litter box, praise her to high heaven. And as Pami pointed, out, when out playing, make sure there's a litter box nearby. You may want to consider putting out a number of boxes until she grows a little older.

Also, at this point you need to purchase a black light and run through the house with it. Any place that has a yellow splotch is kitty urine, and it needs to be completely cleaned with an enzyme cleaner. Nature's Miracle is one, and is pretty much available at most supermarkets or pet stores. We prefer knok-out (http://www.nokout.com/odor.html), but it's more expensive and you have to wait the shipping time.

But wherever she's peed not in the box, you must completely douse with an enzyme cleaner. If on carpet, it needs to be soaked down to the floor boards. Then cover the area with aluminum foil until it dries - which should take a couple of days. If you smell ANYTHING even slightly ammonia-like after the first application, apply a second. The problem is that once they start peeing out of the box, any place that smells like pee is simply a place to go to the bathroom, and it has to be cleaned up to the kitty's nose, not our noses - thus the enzyme cleaner.

You may also want to consider purchasing a product called "cat attract." Many pet stores carry it. Our vet carries it. Used according to the directions, it really helps.

But additional litter boxes, lots of praise for litter box use, and cleaning up any soiled areas should really do the trick.

Remember - she's just a little baby. At 5 weeks, she is VERY young - and she needs help with her potty training. She really shouldn't be punished for being excited. It's just like with a human baby - you need to help her use the potty, and it'll be a lot more productive to do it with praise for doing the right thing.

Good luck!

Laurie

I second everything in the above posts. Plus I would add to make sure the kitty litter boxes are shallow enough for her to climb into easily. I've used aluminum cake pans -- they're cheap and disposable. Be sure not to use the clumping type of litter, if she eats it, it can swell up in her digestive tract and cause horrible problems.

Really don't try tapping her nose or any other negative punishment. You can punish children and dogs and be forgiven, but cats aren't like that, they nearly always react negatively.

She probably just gets excited when you're home and forgets to go wee wee until too late to get to the box. She'll get better as she gets older.

Thanks for all your advice.
I will take stop punishment as i did not find it right in the first place.

As LDG mentioned i have noticed that she does wee wee in the same places and she does sniff. If i see this should i take her quickly to the litter it let her do her thing?

That is a good idea. She's a bit old for this, but you can also rub her abdomen gently as you set her in the litter box.

...but you really need to get those places that smell like urine cleaned up. Until you can get your hands on an enzyme cleaner, you may want to just set a large sheet of aluminum foil over anywhere you're sure she's peed (even if you cleaned with traditional cleaner - that doesn't take the smell of urine away from kitty's sensitive nose) to help discourage her returning to those spots. It's confusing for her right at the moment. But your idea of lifting her to a litter box when she's sniffing places she previously peed is a great idea. Even if she doesn't have to pee, it will help her come to associate the smell of pee with the litter box - which is a good thing. And especially then, if she does pee, praise her to high heaven! That will help her associate peeing in the litter box with good things!

Laurie

It is a little difficult to rub her anywhere as she does not want to sit still while she is in the peak of play time.
Another thing i forgot to mention is she will only pee if i am around but with my wife she does not pee..... hmmm or maybe it's just a coincidence???

Honestly I think she is too young to have free run of your whole house for long amounts of time. Let her out for a little bit when you are around but it is comparable to taking a diaper off a toddler for the first time and expecting no accidents. Now, you can't confine a child to a small room or crate but for a kitten, she needs to have her litterbox and food and water all right there for her to easily find and get to. How did you aquire such a young kitten? Poor thing, did something happen to her mother causing her to be seperated from her so young?

Honestly I think she is too young to have free run of your whole house for long amounts of time.

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You mean is should let her out for a few hours and then put her back in her room?
Also is ok to take the kitty with me when i visit my family?? Is new enironment good for her now and again?

How did you aquire such a young kitten? Poor thing, did something happen to her mother causing her to be seperated from her so young?

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Not sure what happen to the mother but there were about 6 kittens left under a friends house, so i took one.

Just let her out when someone is watching her, when there is no one around to watch her closely, put her in a bathroom or small bedroom. As for bringing her places, it depends on how she reacts. We had a 2 week old kitten (Tubee) that for the first 2 or 3 months of his life we let come with us because we didn't want to leave him home with the other two cats. He started to show us he didn't want to go anymore then so we left him home. Try bringing her in the car, or bring her somewhere for a short time and see how she reacts. If she does anything negative I would suggest leaving her home.

Manda

Ya, too little for them to understand the punishments! I would put the litter box over the spot where she peed. Another thing is, maybe she is peeing while you're gone and you wife just isn't seeing her doing it! Just a thought