I Need Urgent Help With My Cat Sammy

MY MUM HAS TOLD ME THAT I HAVE TO MAKE SAMMY GO OUTSIDE AT NIGHT TO DO HER BUSINESS BECAUSE SHE MAKES TOO MUCH MESS IN THE ITCHEN WHERE THE LITTER TRAY IS BUT THE THING IM WORRIED ABOUT IS AS SHE IS A STRAY SHE MAY RUNAWAY AGAIN IS THERE A WAY I CAN MAKE SURE SHE WILL COMEBACK AND I NEED THISHELP WITHING 30 MINUTES

sorry for using capitals but by the time i realised it was all in capitals it would have been too late and i would of had to write it all again

What if you promised your mum that you'd get up a bit earlier in the mornings and clean the mess up? Being a mum myself, I know these promises aren't always followed through, so you'd really have to stick to it, and get an alarm to make sure. Tell her to give you a week to prove you'll do it before starting to put her out, especially as there's a very cold spell of weather due this week.

oki will try anyone else want to shed some light?

You could put a mat or newspaper under the tray to catch any messes, maybe get a tray with higher sides. Could it be somewhere besides the kitchen? That is a wonderful idea just presented, if you were to promise to clean up any messes Sammy made every single morning without fail. There is no guarantee that any kitty allowed outside won't run away or be injured by outside dangers. Hope this helps, please let us know.

i know but she just doesnt like the smell either
could i just use air freshener to clen up smell
?

That won't usually eliminate any odor, but it does help. Could Sammy sleep each night with you in your bedroom with your door closed? You could bring her food, water, and litter tray in there so she has access to everything she needs.

Try a higher sided litter box. Try fake grass underneath the box to knock off any litter from between the toes. Clean up daily. Try a diffrent type of litter, one that does not track as much or cleans up easier. Scoop the solids daily.

The one we use here is Feline Pine. It starts as pellets and turns into a wood shaving/powdery substance when used. Its very easy to sweep or vaccume up, and controls oder well. Its very absorbant as well.

I do not suggest letting the cat out to do its business. Cats are not dogs and it is very likey it will not come back (at least not quickly) or will get into trouble and possibly hurt. They do not just run out to the front yard, do their thing and bounce back into the house like a happy puppy. Don't forget, if you have to start letting it in and out thats a lot more work for you over that cats lifetime then if you teach it to use its litter box and let it do so.

Also having multiple litter boxes might help as cats do not generally like to do both things in the same box. Something else you might try as well is to distract the cat after it goes before it can make a mess by offering it a toy, treat, your voice in a friendly manner calling it, etc. Of course dont terrorize it after it goes, thats not the intent.

Good luck

ok thanks cirque i will try that

www.citypet.com this little machine will knock down your odor problem. If your kitty is a stray, she needs at least two litter pans to use. You should scoop out the pan daily even twice a day. Get a bucket with a tight fitting lid and put on the bottom an air freshener strip, then line the bucket with a plastic bag. Put the waste inside the bag, and seal the bucket tightly. Then at the end of the day take the bucket to the waste outside, pull the bag out, tie it up and toss it away. Also clean your litter pans at least once a week (use rubber gloves) and make sure before you put in fresh litter that you spray with the bottom with a type of cooking spray that doesn't allow food to stick to frying pans? This stops the waste from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

Also your kitty is used to being outside, it is unnatural for a kitty from the outside to pee and poop in the same litter pan, she really needs two- though the kitchen is not a place that I would put litter pans. Is there no other room you can use? Perhaps clean out a cupboard in a bathroom and put the pans in there?

Best of luck-

In re-reading this, I noticed you mentioned smell. What smell is it that bothers her, the solids or liquids?

Odor can be caused by the types of food the cat eats. Try not to feed it fish or lamb based food is one way people have recommended to cut down on the oder from the waste. Also worms can cause odor as well, so if it is really bad it might be a case of worms and a de-worming or two might be in order.

Be sure your cat has enough liquid to drink as well, fresh water daily is a must have requirement.

There are also devices that are supposed to help odors like Ion filters or air filters. I have not tried any myself just for the litterbox area, but there are a few mentions of them in the forums here with links.

Is your litter box open or closed, and what type of litter are you using? Generally its recommended to use an Open litter box to actually allow the litter to "breath" more. Also if you had to use a nice airy bathroom vs a small stinky one, which would you choose? Remember a cat's nose is many MANY times more sensitive then ours as well so if its even a little stinky to you, imagine how they feel.

Do you feed wet or dry food and what type?

i feed a pouch of tesco finest cat range in the morning and night and a handful of go-cat during the day but she normally has beef - chicken or turkey in jelly or gravy

a;so cirque could you make me a siggy plz?

baking soda in the litter tray will elimintate the smell of the urine. also Wilkinsons does and odor eliminator for about 99p that my cat doesnt seem to mind.

buy a big plastic storage box from there too, the type for kids toys. the litter cant get out but your cat can jump in and kick it around to her hearts content. they cost around £4.99

i have to keep my cats litter tray in my room so these are all tried and tested things! burning a scented candle burns off some of the smell after the cats used the tray as does lighting a match, letting it burn for a while then blowing it out. (i know i dont need to say this but dont leave the candle un-attended, the smell of burning kitty hair wil be far worse than the smell of kitty poop!)

also get a glade plug in (type of air freshner that goes in your plug socket) they'll mask the smell a little too.

Please dont let your mum put the cat out at night though, a fox whilst most probably wouldnt harm a cat (though that is debatable) could scare her away from home. night time is also the worst time for animals getting injured or wandering too far.

It is a bit more expensive but you could get a covered litter tray that can't spill. I used one in my bathroom for a long time and there was no smell - they also have a filter on top that deals with odour.

so what happened with sammy?

she is aloud to stay now but im gonna get some cat tray liners and some paper to put underneath trayso its easier to clean and all that

Good to hear she is allowed to stay inside to do her business. I would have told my Mum how would she like it if I sent her outside to do hers!

some cats dont like tray liners coz they catch on the claws and rustle when they use the box. just a warning!

i'm glad she can stay in now, its freezing around here and snowing quite badly. brrrrr!

Is there any place other then the kitchen you can put the litter pan? A laundry room or spare bathroom?

Also.... I found some plastic trays people use by their doors to put winter boots on that I put under my litter pans. Saves a lot of mess for me!