Mother cat not happy with us moving kittens

tori's-owner

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My cat, Tori, gave birth to 7 kittens on March 14th. They were born under my sister's bed and my cat hasn't moved them since. Well, now they're peeing under the bed (my cat still eats the poo, I guess.) She doesn't seem to want to bring them down to where her litter box and food is. Well, they need to start learning. So my mom told me to bring them down today. We tried last week but my cat freaked out, made a lot of noises, called them, and trying leading them back upstairs. So we put them back in their spot and she was fine. She doesn't mind us touching the kittens and we have touched them since they were born. So the kittens are very very socialized.
But today we needed to bring them down because we can't have them peeing on the carpet. I brought them down today and put them in the family room. In the family room, no one really goes in there. We put the kittens in a bin and set them under the coffee table. The litter box and food are in the same room and I put a flat container down and filled it with litter so the kittens could go in there. Otherwise they can't fit in the litter box my cat uses. I covered the coffee table with blankets so to look in, you'd have to lift the blankets. I thought my cat would appreciate the privacy.
At first the kittens had fun exploring the room. Then I played with them,tired them out, and put them in the bin to sleep. When we left the room, my cat called a couple kittens out and led them to the stairs. I returned the kittens to the bin each time. They're asleep now. My cat was worried so I comforted her by petting her and sitting with her which seemed to make her relax. She is in there now, nursing them. She seems better about it now, but I want to know if there's any way I could make her more comfortable about this. She'd probably keep them under the bed forever if she could.
Also, how can I potty-train those kittens? She's not teaching them. While exploring the room, one peed on the carpet and I had to clean it up. I put them in their litter but they don't know what to do. They all nurse but there's a couple brave ones in the group that eat the cat food and drink water.
Any advice?
 

Willowy

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Keep putting them in the litter, especially right after they've eaten. Eventually their little kitty instincts will kick in and they'll start scratching around in there (their mama won't "teach" them, except by example...it's all instinctual). Usually right about the time they start pooping on their own (which will be about the same time they start eating solid food---the mama won't want to clean up after that). Should be soon, keep trying.
 

kstmommy

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My Gracie just had her first litter and her babies used the litter on their own, probably about 3 weeks. They dug around in it for a couple of days, then one by one they started peeing in it, then eventually pooing. I used a 9x12 shallow baking pan. There's also a litter called Dr. Elseys Cat Attract that has special herbs in it to help new kitties learn where to go, and I highly recommend it. It's like $13 for a 10lb bag but so worth it, especially if they're peeing on the carpet.

Gracie never uses their pan, so their instincts just kicked in. I'm sure yours will too, just have to be patient. Good luck!
 
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