Are all cats this modest?

[linni]

Our 2 1/2 year old black darling of a cat is VERY modest about his litter box habits. If we happen to walk past him when he's using his box, he'll crouch down, or he'll meow expressing his displeasure.

His litter box is in the same room where we store a lot of boxes, and yesterday afternoon we were working in there- my hubby and our two grandsons. Well, Cappy came downstairs, walked in the room and meowed loudly. Then he walked past us into another room and meowed again. I kept saying, 'What's wrong, Cappy?" Finally, my husband said, 'I know what's wrong, he wants to use his litter box."

So, we all left the room, and he strutted in, did his thing, and then we came back. So, I don't know if this is modesty or something else, but he has been known, to bury his poop, leave, then walk back, sniff the air and go back in and cover it up some more.

lin

 

[strange_wings]

It depends on the cat. Some are, and some aren't Here I have Tomas, Sho, and Sherman inside that don't care - I can walk over and poke them while they're pooping/peeing and all they'll do is give me a grumpy look and complain. Outside MewMew and Boo ignore me, too, in fact Boo will squat a couple of feet away and poop...

My more skittish cats in general (with the exception of Boo) are more shy about being watched using the litter box. Blann will look annoyed but won't run off. All of the girls will run and act like I caught them doing something bad.

The solution is just to have enough boxes throughout the home for your cat(s). That way if they want the privacy of an unoccupied room they can have it.

 

[addiebee]

My Rex is like that... he will either run... or stop what he is doing, like squatting about to urinate... and give this "do you MIIIIINNDDD!!???" kind of look!

The others don't really care. And I am the litter pan inspector cuz I need to know if they are having waste elimination issues.

 

[ducman69]

Neither of my cats mind if I watch them, and Buttercup in fact seems to prefer it.

She trills at me going back and forth to the litterbox, so I follow to roll its and clean it but then she ends up using it before I have a chance.

I do always praise them for going potty and when teaching them to bury their poop they used to get treats afterward, so perhaps she thinks she's giving me a present.

 

[3catsn1dog]

GiGi isnt modest whatsoever. Now that she has a box in the living room she literally will wait till all eyes are on her and then go potty....Like she relishes the fact that we all can see her doing her business...Hercules however is a big girl about going potty....He will pace the catroom if Im in there and keep looking at me like Um get out mom I gotta go!!!!!

 

[otto]

I love these stories.

I have a funny one about Ootay

. When ever I took her to the vet I always brought along her porta-potty, because, since she had so many issues, I never wanted her to have to wait.

Anyway I had her out at Cornell University Companion Animal Hospital one time to see the internal medicine specialist. Ootay tolerated the exam, and being taken away for the ultra sound. She was a Very Brave Girl, and seemed to like the vet and the student just fine.

I told them I thought she'd like to use the litter box, so I set it on the table and removed the lid. She immediately got in it, as we all three just stood and stared at her. Just before she started to squat, she looked up at us, each one in turn and Squawked.

We all responded instantly by turning away and muttering things like "Oh I should do such and such" or "oh excuse me Ootay". It was very hard not to laugh at the way this tiny elderly cat was bossing us around, but she made it clear she did not want to be watched in her porta potty, and we all understood.

 

[nsdragonfly]

love hearing these stories...my 6 month old sophie runs every time she hears me in the cats bathroom and stands with her feet on the edge of the litter box and watches me clean it out....as if to say...do you know how long it took me to bury all that....*L...

 

[luvmyparker]

Before I brought Parker where I am now, his litter box was downstairs in the laundry room. Any time someone was in there doing laundry, he'd rush down there, sit and wait till we left then go in and inspect his box as if he was making sure we didn't use it. Its like their poop is some sacred thing that they treasure dearly.

 

[otto]

Originally Posted by nsdragonfly

love hearing these stories...my 6 month old sophie runs every time she hears me in the cats bathroom and stands with her feet on the edge of the litter box and watches me clean it out....as if to say...do you know how long it took me to bury all that....*L...

Mazy is like that too, she is The Litter Box Police. Queen Eva seems to have taken on the job of Deputy, as she too must hurry down to inspect when I scoop.

They also both often hurry down to supervise any other cat using the bathroom.

I keep the litter boxes downstairs in my little utility area. When Ootay

got too frail to take the stairs I put a box up here in my bathroom for her. Mazy had a FIT! She kept going in and trying to scoop the litter out of the box.

Litter Boxes do not belong in the Human Bathroom. She did finally get used to it, but never approved. She was all the time checking it and telling me if it needed cleaning, telling me if there was litter on the floor that needed sweeping, by pulling the little broom and pan I kept nearby for that purpose.

Here is what Mazy thought of the Litter Box in the bathroom (when Ootay left us I removed it much to Mazy's relief)

 

[otto]

Originally Posted by LuvMyParker

Before I brought Parker where I am now, his litter box was downstairs in the laundry room. Any time someone was in there doing laundry, he'd rush down there, sit and wait till we left then go in and inspect his box as if he was making sure we didn't use it. Its like their poop is some sacred thing that they treasure dearly.

 

[c1atsite]

Thankfully Penny & Daisy aren't modest because I live in an apartment that's not that big. Ashlie's

(RB family cat from years ago) litterbox was in the basement/laundry room of our old house so she had tons of privacy. I don't think I ever actually saw her use the box, although she did.

 

[kh2b1]

These are such great stories. Cats can be so odd.

I once had a cat that actually wanted me to follow him to the litter box - when he urinated. For some reason he wanted me there with him as he used it. I suspect it may have been because he had issues with urinary and kidney stones. It was unclear as to whether he was in pain. That could have been why he wanted me to watch him. It could have been because when he first developed problems I would follow him to the litter box to make sure everything was coming out ok. It could have just become a habit to him to have me there. He would wait for me no matter how long it took me. One time I got distracted and a couple hours later I realized he was waiting for me to go with him to the litter box. I felt so bad. Shame on me.

My other cats are very discreet about using the litter box so I often don't know they're in it until they've already finished and they're digging around. I miss having a cat that actually wants me to come and watch. Most people would probably think that's strange. I think it's a good way to make sure everything is coming out normal in a multi-cat household. When the vet asks me if a particular cat is using the litter box ok and what the stools look like, I have no idea because no one wants me around.