Digging to China..

Digging and thoroughly covering is just an odd habit some cats have. I have 3 who dig like crazy.

I have no idea why Genever rolled in her dirty litter. Multicat homes, maybe it could be some sort of very weird scent marking (picking up scents like a dog would).

DarkMavis,

I used to have a Kitty (5 year old female) that did the same thing. She came from a feral mother and was semi-feral herself. She used a hooded litterbox because she will scratch scratch scratch and splash the litter everywhere! Scratch the litter, scratch the walls of the box, and yes even the ceiling! After she's done doing her business and scratching in the litter box, she would step outside the litter box and scratch the floor, walls, door, and the bathroom rug. Every morning I would have to straighten the rug out as I would find it in a crumpled mess. It wasn't uncommon for her to be in the litter box for nearly 10 mins. At night she would make so much noise that we'd have to yell at her to knock it off after about 5 mins.

One thing she never did though was roll in the litter, fortunately. Though one morning I did find she pushed a good amount of litter out of the box and got it all over the floor. So I started putting a minimal amount of litter in the box, just barely enough. That seemed to reduce her scratching for about a week then she went back to her old ways. Finally we just accepted Kitty for being a very vigorous digger and learned to shut our bedroom door at night.

We always kept the litter box clean so I don't think that was what caused it. No idea why Kitty spent so much time covering her business. But just thought you'd like to know your kitty is not the only one.

My Hannah spends an enormous amount of time in the box getting it just right for her to do her thing, then she almost goes into a trance after she does her business covering! I've watched her and it's quite comical! She'll spend TONS of time in their covering up and covering up, and covering up!

You've got a normal cat when it comes trying to escape to China. No insight on the rolling in the litter thing. That's gross!

I guess you've already tried different types of litter ??

How about the newspaper litter? (can't think of the name - something like "Everyday News" ??
oh, it's "Yesterday"s News" - it would be more quiet, maybe???

My Chester is a digger. Sometimes he digs clear to the bottom of the box and heaps it up in one corner. The funny part is he almost never covers his poo. He just digs.

He also digs on the floor when he gets out of the box. His back end will still be in the box while he is digging on the floor next to the box. A couple of times I have even noticed him digging in the corner next to the sink.

He will bury his food when he is done.

Fortunately his box is in the guest bathroom so I don't have to deal with the messy floor right away. If I am in a rush I just scoop.

The only other odd habit he has is sometime he will get his back foot wet. I don't know how he does it or why he won't move the foot when it's in the wrong place.

And you know what a cat does when he steps in water. He shakes his foot and if there is litter stuck to the wet foot it ends up on the wall.

Both my cats love to dig too... I got them one of the cardboard scratching posts and it seemed to deter the behavior a bit. They still scratch in the litter box, but not as long. Maybe that can help your kitty?

You know ... That seems like a real good idea!

My cat does this too, he will sometimes spend 10 minutes or more in there just scratching the walls of the box, sometimes he digs so furiously that he kicks out old poo onto the floor.

Sometimes I walk up there and I tell him "It's covered you can come out now" and he flies out to do his "mommy I'm happy I made a poo" run.

I have a digger too. I also live in a small apartment and I attribute at least part of this behavior to boredom, even though I try to keep her supplied with lots of toys.

She also likes to supervise the box cleaning. And proceeds to renovate the newly changed boxes once filled with litter or while I am still pouring it in. This usually consists of mounding the litter up in one corner. (High-sided or hooded boxes are your friend here!)

Mine also tries to dig me out from under the covers in the morning almost everyday.

Since you've only had three, it makes sense why you haven't seen it as much. I currently have 7 in and 2 out. Of those 4 are diggers - 3 in and 1 outside (so there goes the theory some have about it being litter related). I've lived with a lot of cats over the years, and there's always seemed to be one who dug more.

My indoor girl Siri will stand on the rim of her litter box and scratch everything around it BUT the litter. At least I can see her poo shape and texture that way.
Tomas used to dig and cover a lot every time, it has lessoned with age but he'll still do it and avidly covers everyone elses.
Male kitten, Blaan is just a kitten yet - so he could still lose the habit.

At least I can usually tell, by sound alone, who is using the litter box.

Boo the outdoor boy has left piles of leaves and sticks (each a minimum of half a foot tall and around a foot across) for me to clean up... at least I know where all the "surprises" are. He, like other past outdoor cats, also has the habit of digging 2-4 spots before he finds the perfect one to use.

The very basic reason is just that cats don't want to go on their feet and, being a small animal, want their scent thoroughly covered from predators.

I could be way off base, but it sounds to me like is trying to cover odors. It could be that your kitty has a higher than usual sense of smell. Maybe changing the litter type would help. I know you mentioned that you've tried different litter types, but If you're using a clay based litter that will definitely be "louder" when she scratches.


Now there are other type of litters out there that are more of a powder based type and come in scented and unscented like Arm & Hammer. Check out Petco and Petsmart to see the different types they offer. At least with that type of litter it should be a lot less noisy when she scratches around.


Also the litter you are using currently Tidy Cats, is that scented? It could be she does not like the smell of it.


Next thing that comes to mind is when you change out the litter box what are you washing it out with? Are you using bleach or that sort of heavy chemical? How often are you changing out the box completely?


When you do wash out the litter box, just use hot water and plain old dish soap. Nothing else. Your baby could be scratching at the walls etc. because she can smell the lingering odor of chemicals and is trying to cover it up. Especially bleach, no matter how well you rinse it out, most cats will still be able to smell it.

I know that you said you scooped each day, but how often? I would scoop at least twice a day, that not only keeps the litter clean but minimizes odors. I would also avoid using the hood for that reason. Hooded litter boxes tend to keep the odors in.


Only other thing I can think of is you mentioned you have a track mat. What kind is it? Is it one of those cottony types or the plastic ones that have "spikes"? The reason I'm asking is that she might also be scratching so much in an effort to clean her paws. Usually the spiked mats are pretty good for that.


I wish I could think of something else, and If you've already tried something I suggested, then I apologize. Anyways, let us know how it goes. Hope something works out for you!

This thread has me giggling. Ootay (rb 5/09) was my scratcher and digger, and like some others mentioned, after she was done digging, and scratching the sides and walls, she would get out and scratch the floor/newspaper too.

Putting a cardboard scratcher next to the litter box is a great idea, if I still had Ootay I would do that, but I guess she can scratch to her heart's content at the Bridge. (I might try it for the others, though. I don't have much of a tracking problem, but it might cut down on even the little I do get!)

Mazy cat is my roller. It IS gross! At first I thought it was cute and funny how she would greet me at the door, then jump up onto the platform and do spins in one of the litter boxes.

Then one night as I was cuddling her I got a face full of litter dust and realized it's not cute, it's gross, so I stopped making a fuss about her doing it (oh you cute little clown, etc).

I would instead say, Oh NO, Mazy, yuck, and turn my back on her when she rolled in the box, and then, as soon as she got out I would wipe her down with a damp paper towel.

Now she spins on the newspapers outside of the boxes instead. That's still not exactly hygienic, but it's better than IN the boxes!

You might try adding another box for Genever. I don't know how much difference it would make, but it might make her happy, many cats prefer a choice.

Xander is a digger too. Sometimes I think its just an OCD disorder

Do you have enough litter in the box? One of my kitties goes into a digging craze when there's not enough litter. She's actually made grooves in the bottom of one box. As soon as we top up the litter the digging stops.

Peanut was an only cat for the first year of her life. She was found abandoned at 4-5 weeks.

Among other behavior problems, she used to dig like you say your cat does, dig straight to china if she could dig through the plastic.

Alot of her behavior problems were significantly reduced, if not alleviated all together when my boyfriend and I moved in together. He had a cat already, and we adopted Moo shortly after I moved in. I think her problem was a combination of boredom and being away from mom too early. Once she learned from another cat biting hurts, she stopped pouncing/bunny kicking our feet so much, for example.

I don't know your cats history/temperment etc, or if it's even practical for you to bring another cat into the home, but it may help her if you ever decide to bring another cat home.

Sorry I don't know why people are making suggestions for diggers? Diggers don't stop digging. I'm sure my three have joined Diggers Unite.

One time Flutterby was in the litter tray digging for an hour so I took the litter tray away only for her then to dig at the carpet and in the middle of the air. Fluffy will go in and dig after Flutterby and Tales. Tales just likes to flick it all around the kitty room.

I always know who's on the litterbox with my 3. Sophie's the dainty digger, as in 3-4 small digs before she does what she has to do, Jack does about 6 deep digs, but Rosie's nearly through to Australia when she digs, and she's the only one who scrapes her paws down the wall as well

I think it is just the way they learned it. Much will spend 15 minutes in the box scratching every part of the box except the LITTER. The only way we get her to stop is to go in and cover it for her. It doesn't matter if the litter is fresh and she is the first one in there.

I have a digger as well. Monster is big on his digging. He will usually dig about 6 holes before he goes to the bathroom. He has to be completely satisfied with the hole he digs before he will go. Sometimes he will go in the box just to dig around. He always scratches the sides of the box, the wall behind the box, and the floor in front of it.

As I seen was mentioned, Monster will also "bury" his food after eating sometimes. And I've seen him "burying" his vomit after throwing up, before I clean it up.

Personally, I don't get annoyed with his digging in the box. But his litterbox used to be in my room and when I was asleep, it really got on my nerves then.. I actually think its pretty cute.

yup. that first post in this thread sounds exactly like Wilbur. to a "T".

I stopped using litterpan liners because he dug through them.

I had to use a covered litterbox because he got litter and poo everywhere.

I put WAY too much litter in the box to somewhat keep the digging from the bottom. but he scratches the sides, and even sticks his paw out and scratches the door, and the outside of the box.

He comes out, walks around for a minute, then goes back in and digs some more.

tinker is dainty, and doesn't have this problem

Fastnoc, the picture of that little kitten with headphones on rocking away to music just has me cracked up!!! Especially because I am doing the very same thing right now!!!