Follow-up to our new stray

Another question...we ended up getting her soil to fill her litter box last night and she used it. :-) Buuut...when do I know when she's ready to be trusted to use it all the time? Before she was pooping on our living room floor in the same spot (did it twice). I keep her closed in the bathroom at night (she loves her little bed set up in there) with two litter boxes, but I'm afraid if I let her out I will find the same mess in the morning.

Each day as you remove waste from the potting soil, add a little kitty litter without adding more soil. Eventually the soil will be gone and the cat will be used to the litter!

Bravo to you for rescuing this sweet cat!

Crystal, this is so wonderful of you!!! It takes time and patience to work with these wonderful animals, but it always seems so worth it.

Re: soiling in the same spot in the living room (or wherever). You may have already received this advice, but in order to help prevent them from using the same spot, the smell must be completely removed. The only thing I'm aware of that really does this is an enzyme cleaner - available from any pet store, or perhaps Walmart. I don't think I've seen it in supermarkets. The one we use is Nature's Miracle - but I'm sure there are many brands. Just so long as it is an enzyme cleaner. They're easy to use, and the enzymes "chew" through the odor. Using most other cleaners - like bleach or ammonia based cleaners - either do not completely remove the smell or enhance (ammonia-based) the smell that attracts the cats to go there.

That, combined with lotsocats advice, will surely work.

For right now, just till she gets the hang of it, I would provide her extra litter pans in other rooms. And as already suggested you need a good enzyme cleaner to remove the stain, otherwise she will go to that same spot every three days and refresh it.