house as litter box

My problem is the fact that my cat, who is new to my house only sleeps in my bedroom, but has never used her litter box more than once. She has until this Friday before my mother makes me get rid of her so I was hoping for some good advice. I have just moved her litterbox, her food and water, and her in my bedroom and locked her there. If this seems to be the way to train her the next couple of days let me know...otherwise anyother advice is welcome.

Hi and thanks for posting. I've had a lot of success with isolating a cat when they were eliminating inappropriately, so your idea is a good one to try. Try different substrate material as litter, such as shredded newspaper, or regular clay if you are using the scoopable kind for a while. Sometimes they don't like the actual litter material. Keep it real clean and fresh at all times.

But the first thing I would do if I were you is to have your vet do a thorough examination with lab work to rule out possible urinary tract infections or parasites, both of which could cause this type of behavior, as well as a lot of other health-related issues that may be contributing.

What is your kitty's name? How old is your cat, and do you know anything of her history? How long have you had her? What kind of food do you feed her? (Just being nosey *smile*)

As an aside, did your Mom give you permission to have this cat, or did you just sort of bring her home and let her sell herself? *smile* Either way, you would be a very responsible person if you reminded your mother (gently, please - do this VERY gently!!) that a pet is a lifetime committment, and that you are prepared to accept whatever consequences being a pet care giver may bring your way - including having to clean up after them when you have to. It would be totally irresponsible to even think of getting rid of this kitty without at least trying everything you can to correct the problem. If your mother gave her permission for the cat to live with you, then she allowed you to make that committment and she should allow you to follow it through, no matter what may come IMO.

Please come back and let us know how things go - I am going to worry about you & your kitty until I hear from you again.

Take care and best of luck,

Gaye

Thank you so much for your suggestions and I really appreciate the concern. I will go and try the new litter although I am using what she had in her old home. I have only had Match, my cat, for two weeks. She belonged to a friend and the friend could no longer keep her so she was a graduation present to me. Match however is used to her entire world being a laundry room and not a two story home. I had permission from my mother before I brought her home and I already reminded her that I would take care of the kitty. I have all of her vet records. She was a stray before my friend found her and she is probably no more than three years old. I will try changing the brand of litter and see what happens. Thank you again and I will keep you updated.

Liz

I had the same trouble with my male. I put him in the bathroom for a few weeks with the litterbox and food. I only let him out when I could sit a see what he was doing. This worked very well. I would also put more than one litterbox in your home since you said you have a 2 story home and the cat is not used to that. This may help too. Maybe it is to far for the cat to go. Good Luck!