Kitten wont use litter box.

Hey everyone! I'm having this problem with my 3 month old kitten. We got her about 3 weeks ago and at first she was fine and using her litter box. But suddenly she stopped.

She's very comfortable with the house and with the other cat and dog (Maltese), she was super comfortable since day one. I don't know what changed but now she won't use her box and keeps peeing on our clothes!

At first I thought it was the new litter, I assumed she didn't like the crystals so we changed it back to the normal fine grain litter. Originally she would only poop in the box and pee on our clothes but yesterday we found poop too. I've taken her to the vet and she said our kitten was fine, and it was just an issue we would have to solve and figure out why she wasn't using the box. 

We also thought perhaps shes just really prissy and constantly wants a clean box, we've cleaned it multiple times a day to see if she feels more comfortable using it. She doesn't go potty anywhere else except our clothes, not even the hamper is safe. The litterbox has stayed in the same place since she got here, the same spot when she was actually using it. 

At the moment I'm scolding her when she goes on our clothes and when we see her use her litter box we reward her with pettings, lots of affection and a treat. We can't move the litter box to another place as we are currently in a crowded place ( moving in 3 weeks we will be able to locate it somewhere else then). The litterbox is topless and we have another box downstairs (with a top).

I've also made an appointment with another vet for a second opinion. 

I've had several cats all but one have had problems using the litterbox at some point but never this persistent or picky. 

What are some methods you guys have used to correct litterbox issues? Or have any of you had a baby this stubborn? I'd like to correct this issue before we move to our apartment I don't want to have the carpet ruined and lose the deposit. 

Hi, and welcome to TCS

Several things come to mind. Firstly, make sure you clean any accidents with an enzymatic cleaner. Nothing else will remove the odour to your kitten. If she can smell pee/poop on something she'll think it's the right place to go. If she's used clothing, pre treat it with the cleaner before washing, just to be sure.

Next, I know she's using your clothes, but is it also when the clothes are in a specific place? If so, adding another box in her chosen area should help matters.

Litter - try using Dr Elsy's Cat Attract cat litter. It's the most effective litter for training cats to the box. A lot of members have had success with this litter where everything else has failed.

Stress - she may be chosing your clothes because she's feeling terratorially insecure right now. Feliway diffusers throughout the house may help her relax a little. Also, interactive play, especially if you mimic the hunt-kill-eat cycle, will help her claim territory in a positive way (anyplace any cat hunts and eats it's 'prey' becomes its territory).

There's no point in scolding her when she gets it wrong - no matter what you do, she won't associate the accident with the scolding, so all you will achieve is a stressed out kitten. Praise the right action, but all means, but stop the scolding.

When you clean up after an accident, it can help to put the tissue/paper towel you blotted some of the urine up with into the litterbox. With poop, pick it up and place it in the box. That way, the scent will be in the right place for next time.

These article may help
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/litterbox-problems-in-cats-the-ultimate-guide
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/the-dos-and-donts-of-cat-behavior-modification
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/is-your-cat-stressed-out
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/potential-stressors-in-cats-the-ultimate-checklist
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/six-surefire-strategies-to-reduce-stress-in-cats
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/playing-with-your-cat-ten-things-every-cat-owner-needs-to-know
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/cat-play-the-rules-of-the-game

Columbine said:

Litter - try using Dr Elsy's Cat Attract cat litter. It's the most effective litter for training cats to the box. A lot of members have had success with this litter where everything else has failed.
 

Click to expand...

Kitten Attact might work better than regular Cat Attract.

Another good web site to figure out litter box issues is http://catinfo.org/?link=litterbox

Thank you for the replies and all the helpful information! And sorry for replying back super late (I forgot my log-in) 

I stopped the scolding about a week ago and kept the rewards, and generally made her feel more loved and gave her more attention. I haven't bought the kitten attract litter yet since she seems to actually be going in the box now. Unless she got better at hiding where she goes. I'm not sure what was going on, maybe as you said she felt insecure and hopefully this won't be an issue again later on. But for now it's fixed, I'll buy the litter when we move to be sure there are no accidents then.