ggrrrrrrrrrrrr

OKay folks...

New mommy concerned here.

Danielle arrived Friday. She pooped once on Friday.
Saturday she peed once in the morning.

Now it is Sunday evening, and she has done NOTHING in the litter box since yesterday morning...over 24 hours. Now...I would assume this is becuase she is still wired and nervous.... new home, new surroundings....

She has eaten only a little, some wet food and nibble a bit of dry. I only actually saw her drink once, but I know it could be more.

Is this normal for a new cat to not pee or poop for over 24 hours???
Especially if new?

I am worried........ should I go to the vet yet?

Thanks all...

Okay, update.

Not two minutes after I typed that last post, I found danielle clawing the carpet behind some furniture. (A few feet away from the litter box) I said NO and sprayed her...she stopped.

She did it again just 2 minutes later in a slightly different place...I said NO and sprayed her.. she ran. (This has worked great for the dining table)

Okay now the part I feel HORRIBLE about. She had pooped behind the furniture. I didn't see it, and assumed she was just clawing the carpet like I am trying to stop her from. Obviously she did not want to use the litter box, but Idon't know why, she used it twice since here, and it is very very clean.

I squirted her for this.... I know you NEVER do that....OOH I feel so guilty. Why is she now avoiding the box when she did go in twice????

Perplexed and confused.......ggggrrrrrrr OOh my poor baby....

Should I now move the litter box over to the area she pooped on? I have just cleaned and treated it with Nature's Miracle stain and odor remover, but I know she could return to those sites....I also covered them now with foil.

What do you suggest? HELP!!!!!!!!

Are you using the same litter that they used at the shelter? If not, that might be the problem. When I have a new baby arrive, I put him/her in the litter box about 20 minutes after they ate (I don't free feed). You might also want to put the box in a different place now that you squirted her and she might not want to go near that spot again. Also, is her box a covered one? Some cats like mine don't like uncovered boxes. Also, you might want to get her some of the disposable scratching posts to put around on the floor for her to use instead of your carpet. My mom also had a show that that would never use the box during the weekend of a show. He'd wait until he got home and then booked for the box. He learned after a few shows that it was ok to use the box at the show.

Frannie

Frannie.....

To answer your questions, at the shelter they only used strips of newspaper. So as advised by the shelter, I put strips of paper OVER the litter (Fresh Step).....

It is a hooded pan, although I can easily take off the lid, that is a good idea...... She did go twice though, with the hood...

She wont use the scratching posts yet. I have three, and she wont use them. I have used catnip, coaxing, everything...she is not gettin the idea. I have sisal, carpet and berber things for her to scratch..she likes my plush carpet.

I am now worried about the box. By the way, the Nature's Miracle odor and stain remove smells almost as bad as the poop. Ugh!

wwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

She is probably very confused. She has just spend a fair amount of time in a small space. You might think about putting her in a very small room with her food, water, litter, bed and if you have a small scratching post. Once she has gone in the box on a regular basis (about a week). Try letting her have the run of the house again. Make sure the litter box is in a quiet but convienient place. She just may be getting confused with all the new space and freedom. I dont like the natures miracle either. It also seems to take a whole bottle to work. You might want to look into some Nok-Out. I swear by it and will never use anything else. If you want to read about it, go to www.nok-out.com

Sandie...

In my apartment, there is nowhere to put her in a small confined space... everything is very open.

Can I get Nok -Out in stores? With all the air traffic problems, if I order it, it might take a month to get here...


Thanks

Hmmm, I know theres a distributor in NY. If you go to www.kalever.com and then click on the Koncepts it will take you to her site. You can ask her if there's a dealer near you. Can you use a bathroom for her?

Our bathroom is very small. It is an apartment bathroom. There is no room for the box, and her food, and my husband and me........

I tried taking the hood off the litter box. And I added more paper over the litter, so it would feel more like the paper from the shelter. I hope that helps. She DOES know where the box is..she goes to it often, passes by it, and used it twice.

I will try that link that you gave me...thank you.

My sweet little angel, the poop machine! :LOL:

For right now, I would use shredded newspaper. I know that it does not mask the smell, but it is what she is used to and until she gets used to you, it would probably be the best thing. I would also change it as often as you can, most cats are finicky about the smell, and when I had my blind kitty I used newspaper and also washed the box out everyday. Being blind (although your baby is only half blind) their senses are more acute than ours are. Good luck with her, and try to relax, because once you do, so will she...

Just a side note. She could be stressed by the water spray and by being shouted at, especially if she's a special need kitty. This in itself could cause litter box problems. Go easy on her and let her adjust before you pull in the heavy guns of discipline.

Make sure you spend lots of quality time playing with her and soothing her and like Hissy said, just try to relax for now

Maybe the people who lived in the apartment before you had cats, and she is finding spots where they wet and is marking over their marks to establish the territory as hers.

Yes, thank you everyone....

Last night we got some newspaper, and put shredded paper in the box. I don't care about the smell, I just want her to go in there. I will clean it out every time, I don't mind.

She is drinking a bit more...whew! ..... Have yet to see her use the box with the newspaper in it.

Thanks all.....

Will keep you posted.

Okay.........

WE put just newspaper in the litter box. No litter, nothing else, just like she had at the shelter.

She went in twice of her own accord, but did nothing in there.

Now she just peed on her cat bed.

what to do??

I can appreciate your position...

I had a similar problem with an older cat.... I finally changed the litter to a clumping litter and now she uses the box all the time.... although when she is done, she launches herself out of it as soon as the last drop or poop is out... lol

Good luck....

Actually, a sign of hope (keeping fingers crossed)

I put the hooded pan and the open pan side by side.
Both with just newspaper, which is what she had at the shelter.

She peed in the open one, and my husband told me that this morning around 5:00, he heard rustling...so he went to check, and she had both peed and pooped in the open box!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


This is curious, as I had the hooded pan open for several days, and she refused to use it, but who knows. Maybe now she is settleing in.

If she contintues this way, I plan to GRADUALLY add litter under the paper, and hopefully over time remove the paper bit by bit. But I realize this may be a long process. \\That is okay. I am just thrilled she used it twice.

Thanks guys....