Poor job covering waste in litterbox

viggen

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We got our first kitten about 6 weeks ago. She is a female ragdoll about 4 months in old now. Overall, she is text-book perfect,which is such a relief being a first time cat owner


We have 2 litterboxes, a covered box with crystal litter and an open box with clumping clay. She uses both boxes without a fuss but I'm noticing that she is getting worse about covering her waste completely.

After she goes, she turns around, sniffs, then begins to scratch in an attempt to cover her waste, forming a mound in the center of the box. That would be fine if she eliminated in the center, but it's always along the perimeter of the box.

This is becoming normal for her now, where in the first few weeks, she always covered her waste.
 

goldenkitty45

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Not much you can do - some cats cover, some don't. IMO as long as they are using the pan, who really cares if they cover or not
 
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viggen

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When it's urine, I don't mind, when it's poop, I mind


I thought cats naturally want to cover their scent. If she pooped and jumped out right away, then I'd say she doesn't care. But the fact that she scratches away just makes me think she needs more practice.

Should I try to "teach her" by covering her poop in her presence?
 

cheylink

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Yes, I think thats a great idea! Show her how to cover the poop instead of making a mound. Its best to do this when their young but some kitties simply don't have the covering talent. Always be great full she is using the litter! Maia covers hers pretty well, but sometimes I have to clean out the stink bombs!
 

iluvdevons

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I would suggest that you get something like a cat litter locker and put in near the litter box. Ares and Hypnos both cover their poos, but I have a great sense of smell, so I like frequently cleaning the box. With the litter locker, the smell is contained, plus the cats have the added bonus of their boxes being cleaned 3-4 times a day. (The litter locker itself gets emptied once a week.) It has really cut down on the "stinkyness" of the area. Hope this helps!
 

darlili

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well, not all cats do a great job of covering their waste, but I wonder if you might experiment with getting a few more pans and trying a variety of litter. I had a boy with 'litter box issues' and read up a lot about them. Sometimes when a cat stops covering waste, it can be an indication they just don't like the litter.

Or, maybe try varying the depth of the litter within the box - deep on one end, shallow on the other. Maybe she's got a preference that way.

Then again, as mentioned, it can be perfectly normal that some cats just don't cover up - it can even be a sign of dominance in some households.

My boy covers up every so often, but a lot of the times my little girl comes along after him to actually clean up. It's weird, I know.
 

raggiekitty

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Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

Not much you can do - some cats cover, some don't. IMO as long as they are using the pan, who really cares if they cover or not
I agree, not using the box would be a much greater problem....

She is young and will probably get better at it as she goes, my Zoe has, but there are some that just never cover...
 

calico2222

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Just an idea, but if she is an only cat, she may not feel the need to cover it up. Or, it could just be her way. Monster and Gizmo don't cover anything
but Harley tried to do his best with housekeeping and will spend 5 minutes in the litter box just scratching trying to get everything covered up. Now, if I could just teach him how to do the dishes!
 

709juggalette

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My two kittens do not cover their buisness over either...but they are only 9 weeks old.

My mom has two cats and one of them is over 1 yr old and he still doesn't cover his buisness.He was always like that,ever since he was a kitten.One of my sister has tried covering it for him,in hopes he got the point...but he never caught on.

Some cats are just like that.
 

axld

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I totally understand you! My ragdoll Sal (9 months old) is really good with the box and only ever left anything uncovered if the box was full (e.g. if somehow i forgot one evening). My other kitten Iggy (exotic shorthair) is just plain bad! I wonder was his mom taught him
He just leaves anything uncovered at all times (even when both boxes are almost empty). I've tried to show him several times but he seems completely uninterested. He's like, I'm done, what are we doing here still? heheh I do have hopes he'll get better but in the meantime i do get comfort that he at least goes in the box! I keep unscented absorber by the boxes and it does an ok job...

The one thing that did work the odd times that Sal didnt cover up was to put him back in the box. He'd react like "ohhh yuck, why isnt this buried???" Unfortunately Iggy doesnt care!
 
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