Is this right??

Its been a long time since i've had an indoor cat and seen how they are with their litter boxes but here is my question-

my little boy kitty didnt have a mom cat to show him the ropes, he was hand raised..and he seems to make a mess with litter outside the box (i.e. tracking out..excessively, small clumps in other rooms sometimes, i think he gets poop on his butt because i found poop (a really small piece) too. also..i took the lid off his box because my dog isnt at my place anymore, and i have a large towel underneat, but he will go and scratch it which doesnt help keep the litter on the towel. i also have a mat but he will reach out and paw at that also.

i notice he does it also sometimes when hes eating and just paws/scratches at the table or like around his food..seemingly for no reason. i am just wondering how much litter is too much outside the box and i forget sometimes he was hand raised so i realize he didnt have another cat/mom to show him how not to be messy..maybe im wrong??? just wondering if thats the norm or what! thanks!

It's normal for strays and ferals to do this. They are burying their food so predators don't find them. Nothing to worry about.

i got my cat from a breeder. he is a bengal, and he isnt making a mess of his food, its the litter. he just paws around the bowls. i dont care about the food. but the litter part just gets tedious im just wondering if making such a mess is a result of not having a mom cat. ??

Some cats like to dig around more than others. You say you took the lid off the litter pan - I always used a lidded pan when I had a cat that liked to let litter fly around. Can you put it back? And don't use a clumping litter. As for the food, as Hissy says, he is pawing around it to try and bury it, that is what his pawing motions mean.

My two are always flicking their litter all over the place but i just keep a small dustpan and brush beside it to sweep it up.

hm..yea im not annoyed with the food because hes not actually burying it or making a mess. i was asking about the litter. even with the lid on he tracks it everywhere, so it doesnt make a huge difference. and its on carpet i dont have enough room on any linoleum like area so sweep it up. i wish i did! but i have to vaccuum it. the lady i got him from mentioned the mother thing, not maybe learning a cleaner way not to get litter every where and in other rooms. we've had indoor/outdoor cats in the past but i dont recall that much of a mess, lol. o well. as for litter i'll use what i please whether its crystals, clumping, or the pellets. right now im trying the pellets. but my mom used to get fresh step so if the pellets seem to fail..maybe i'll get that. i'll just see how it goes and either go back to crystals or clumping. but probably clumping because its easier with getting out the urine. thanks!

Alex does this too, and I got him when he was six weeks old. Mom really didn't have a lot of time to teach him the ways of the litter box. I just keep a dust buster near by at all times. It is tedious to clean up these messes daily, but it's just part of cat ownership sometimes.

Originally Posted by MusicTeacher

Alex does this too, and I got him when he was six weeks old. Mom really didn't have a lot of time to teach him the ways of the litter box. I just keep a dust buster near by at all times. It is tedious to clean up these messes daily, but it's just part of cat ownership sometimes.

Click to expand...

yea..i got river at maybe 9 weeks?? or so..i know he wasnt 12..and he didnt have a mom cat at all..but yea, you gotta do what you gotta do! i just hate when he brings litter clumps on the couch or in my bed but we'll see im still experimenting with different types of litter to see which one works best! lol

Here's an idea for you I have used it many times, Maybe you could get a plastic mat and put it under the litter box, they sell plastic carpet runners in in a roll and there big so just cut off a section the size you need it and that will help, plus you'll have plenty left for future uses, not expensive either,

Walmart has it I'm sure

Originally Posted by halfpint

Here's an idea for you I have used it many times, Maybe you could get a plastic mat and put it under the litter box, they sell plastic carpet runners in in a roll and there big so just cut off a section the size you need it and that will help, plus you'll have plenty left for future uses, not expensive either,

Click to expand...

hmmmmmmmmmmm..that is good!! i do have a dinky matt for the front entry..but i want to put something that will fit all around....i'll check that out! thanks!

Originally Posted by chiclett_33

i got my cat from a breeder. he is a bengal, and he isnt making a mess of his food, its the litter. he just paws around the bowls. i dont care about the food. but the litter part just gets tedious im just wondering if making such a mess is a result of not having a mom cat. ??

Click to expand...

I don't understand. If he came from a breeder, why didn't he have a "mom cat"?

Originally Posted by Loveysmummy

I don't understand.

If he came from a breeder, why didn't he have a "mom cat"?

Click to expand...

she said that the mom cat didnt produce milk or something weird like that. she had to bottle feed him and i dont know if there were many other cats around at that point...i have heard it before but i just forget, lol.

Hi chiclett,
What you are experiencing with the litter is very normal for small kitties. Mine are just over 5 months old and still do it, one (Duke) more than the other (Cosmo). He downright PLAYS in it, but that's exactly why they say not to use clumping cat litter until they are least 6 months old, because they are known to play in it, and occasionally eat the kernels (EW).

Usually, they do get better at it as they get older.

Lora

thanks! yea i talked to karron again (breeder) and she has his sister and says she does it too! lol im thinking of getting a top entry litter box though..later to see if that helps..has anyone used those?? top entry litter box things...

Originally Posted by chiclett_33

thanks! yea i talked to karron again (breeder) and she has his sister and says she does it too! lol im thinking of getting a top entry litter box though..later to see if that helps..has anyone used those?? top entry litter box things...

Click to expand...

I know a breeder that uses the top entry boxes. She has them for all of her cats so she must like them a lot! I haven't used them myself though.