litter training

i got my kitten last night who was apparently fully litter trained but has been peeing on the bed, i haven`t seen her poo anywhere yeti tried putting her in the litter tray after she wets the bed and showing her to dig but she just curls up there and sleeps......is there anyway i can get her to use it? i`m using clay litter so maybe that could be the problem?? also i`ve had her for an entire day now and she hasn`t done a poo once to my knowledge, should i be worried about this?

First of all, you might want to restrict her to a small room where she can easily find the food, water, and litter box. Some cats don't like one type of litter or another, but most will readily use clay litter, either clumping (for adults) or non-clumping (for small kittens).

If, for some reason, the cat can't find the litter box, it will use a soft place: your bed, a pile of clothes on the floor, etc.

If the cat has been an outdoors cat, you might want to add a little dirt to the litter mix, just so it "smells" right.

thanks for replying
i have her in my bedroom with the litter tray, since she`s only 6 weeks i thought keeping it close would be the best option, i`ve put some paper based cat litter in to see if that works (the woman i got her from was using newspaper but i didn`t think that was good for cats since they like to dig?)

i know the pet store sells sprays that apparently attract the cat to use the litter tray but does anyone know if these are effective?

Be prepared for mistakes. 6 weeks old is not even fully weaned - they still nurse from mom at that age. Its better to adopt a kitten between 10-12 weeks old at minimum. Up to 10 weeks old they need time with mom/siblings to learn behavior/emotional lessons. Taken too soon, they can develop behaviorial problems if they don't have an older kitten/cat to learn from.

It can take up to 3 months to be reliable with a litter pan. Have more then one available for awhile.

Make sure the litter box is small, kitten sized, so that she can easily get in and out of it. If you have too, get a second one, so she can find it quickly. Your place probably seems huge to her.

For my cats I like Nature's Miracle. It's 100% natural, flushable, and there is very little dust to it. And yes, cats love to dig!

If by tomorrow you still don't see signs of her having pooped, start checking in dark places, under your bed, in corners, behind a box, places where she could "hide" to do it. If you do find some poop, don't throw it out, put it in the litter box. The smell of her poop will tell her this is where she is supposed to do it.

Get some Nature's Miracle to clean up and pee and poop stains. It works really, well. I've had a lot of success with it. But for pee stains you have to pour generously enough so the liquid gets all the way down to the under padding of the carpet, so as to completely get rid of the smell.

Be patient with your kitten she is still very young and won't have full control of her body functions.

Keeping her restricted to your room for now might be a good idea.

Yes I have heard that cat attracts can help.

Look for signs that she is getting ready to do it. Kittens usually will go in circles, dig or paw at the area, look furtive, sniff at the ground, and usually search for a corner or dark place, then they will squat.

Also when washing the litter box, just use plain old dish soap and hot water. Please don't use heavy bleach or harsh chemicals. We may think we are doing a good thing by using bleach or other chemicals to disinfect the box, but we're not. In reality, we are really only disinfecting the box for our sake. Even after you rinse out the box, harsh chemicals, especially bleach, leaves a strong smell behind that your kitten can easily smell and that will repulse her. Remember cats do everything by smell! So if the box smells all chemically, it won't be familiar to them.

Also, when you do catch your baby in the act, please don't yell at her. It will only frighten and confuse her. Remember, in her mind she is doing something perfectly normal and won't understand why she's being yelled at. Also she may start to think you are mad because she is relieving himself, not because she is in the wrong spot.

No matter what anybody says *never* rub a cat's or even a dog's nose in it. It's a very cruel thing to do and very counterproductive. Again she won't understand why she's being punished and she will start to think doing her business is a "bad" thing and she will start looking for places to hide so she can "go" without you being around. (I'm sure you yourself have never done this, I'm just trying to explain why it's not a good idea, because some people just don't understand what they are doing when they give out this kind of advice).

When you do catch her getting ready or even in the act, just quickly pick her up and bring her to her litter box. Again, don't scold her if she misses, you don't want her to start thinking that you are mad because she is doing her business. Place her in the litter box and explain to her that this is where she is supposed to do her business. If she then pees, praise her and even maybe offer her a treat. If she was already peeing when this happens, just bring her to the litter box anyways. In time she will start to realize that this is where she is supposed to be doing her business.

It might take a bit of time, but she will learn

I recently brought home a kitten found injured on the road. She is probably about 12 weeks but no doubt an outdoor cat and not used to a litter box. I put her to sit on the fresh litter which she tried to eat (not good!!). I thought then that I should have used some from the other cats' box. But while I was sitting in "her" room, where I had her confined for most of the first week, she started to go -- I could see the poop coming out of her butt -- so popped her into the box and voila, she was litter trained. All of our cats have been amazingly easy to litter train. If kitty is as young as 6 weeks she may not get to the box on time, so I agree with suggestions to keep her in a small room with the box easily accessible.

thanks everyone for yuor replies, they`ve been really helpful

i`ve just been ignoring it when i`ve found wet patches or if i`ve seen her pee i`ve been putting her straight in the litter box.

i managed ot get her to pee on some newspaper which i put under her litter in the box i went out for 5mins this mornign and when i came in again she had done both a poo and pee in the litter box, i think my friends all thinm i`m mad since i`ve been saying how proud i am of her hahah

again thanks for all your help, i just need ot hope that she continues to use the litter box now

That's Great!!!

Do continue to encourage and praise her as she uses her box. At the same time, since she's still a baby, be prepared for accidents

Cats are very territorial, so it is normal your kitten peed on the bed, especially if she is new around. I would recommend you to change the clay litter and see if it works.
Good luck

There's actually Kitten Attract litter now (same line as Cat Attract) - apparently much finer texture for the itty bitties.

But you are right to be so proud! Funny how we all get totally absorbed by our babies' bathroom habits! But, seriously, it's good to know what's normal for them and what's not - if nothing else, to be able to tell the vet.