Cat Won’t Bury Poop— Need Help And Suggestions

[xenathecrazy]

I have a one year old female cat and she has good litterbox habits as in she always uses it. Problem and it’s a big one, she doesn’t bury her poop most of the time and then ends up getting it stuck to her fur and paws and tracks it around.

I have a Nature’s Miracle corner hooded litter box which I think gives her plenty of room. Would changing her litter box help? She paws at the walls but doesn’t cover. Is there any reason for this and are there any suggestions to deal with this? We have all new carpeting and I’m a bit of a clean freak and this is just getting to be too much with the baths and scrubbing poopy floors.

 

[duckpond]

Many cats do not like a covered litter box, they feel cramped, even if they have room. and they may want to get in and out quick as they cant see whats going on around them? I would try a large uncovered box and see if that makes a difference.

Litter could also make a difference, if the litter is rough, like clay, large crystals, or pellets she may not want to dig and cover, it may hurt her feet.
I use the grass litter that is so popular now, its soft, and easy for them to dig in. I also like Litter maid walnut litter, but i can only find it at walmart. It is soft as well, and does not track bad, it may be my favorite litter right now. If you use the grass you will want to have a mat to catch any tracking. Another litter i like a lot is Dr. Elseys respiratory relief crystal litter. its soft and does a great job with smells.

Even if you dont want to try these 3 i would suggest find as light weight litter, with no fragrance as you can find. And try an uncovered box. Might help, but at least its something to try

 

[susanm9006]

Some cats just don’t cover their poop. Not sure why, they never learned from their moms maybe. If you catch her in the midst of using the box, cover her poo for her and she might catch on. Also, you need to be an extra large litter box, as big as you can find at the pet store or even a shallow plastic tub. Giving her more room to turn around and move will help her not walk on her feces and track it out of the box.

 

[xenathecrazy]

I’ve always used unscented clumping litter. I’m currently using the new Tidy Cats Unscented one. It’s like really tiny balls. I’ve used Dr Elsey’s but the regular one (blue bag) not the respiratory one, or Arm & Hammer unscented clumping. Maybe I’ll try something softer, but I do want it to clump.

 

[xenathecrazy]

Many cats do not like a covered litter box, they feel cramped, even if they have room. and they may want to get in and out quick as they cant see whats going on around them? I would try a large uncovered box and see if that makes a difference.

Litter could also make a difference, if the litter is rough, like clay, large crystals, or pellets she may not want to dig and cover, it may hurt her feet.
I use the grass litter that is so popular now, its soft, and easy for them to dig in. I also like Litter maid walnut litter, but i can only find it at walmart. It is soft as well, and does not track bad, it may be my favorite litter right now. If you use the grass you will want to have a mat to catch any tracking. Another litter i like a lot is Dr. Elseys respiratory relief crystal litter. its soft and does a great job with smells.

Even if you dont want to try these 3 i would suggest find as light weight litter, with no fragrance as you can find. And try an uncovered box. Might help, but at least its something to try

Which grass litter do you use?

 

[duckpond]

Which grass litter do you use?

Right now i use Abound, our local Kroger store carries it. If its not available i use pioneer cat smart cat, i get it from chewy. I also use the Litter maid walnut litter, it clumps as well, but i can only find it at walmart.

 

[xenathecrazy]

Right now i use Abound, our local Kroger store carries it. If its not available i use pioneer cat smart cat, i get it from chewy. I also use the Litter maid walnut litter, it clumps as well, but i can only find it at walmart.

I have Kroger and I think I've seen the Litter maid at Walmart.

 

[duckpond]

I have Kroger and I think I've seen the Litter maid at Walmart.

Great, then you can try both. I have 5 boxes, so i keep both out all the time. I have x-large boxes so i buy two bags of grass, or walnut for each box. The walnut is about the same consistency of clay, the grass is fluffier so they sink in it a bit more. It took a few weeks for my guys to get use to the grass litter. They did better at first if i only used about 2 inches, and just changed it more often. The walnut there was no issues with them getting use to it. They use both without issue, the grass clumps a bit better, but it tracks a bit more. The walnut tracks less, and maybe better with poo smells, but if you scoop to soon before the pee clumps dry it can break apart with a few little clumps more than the grass. They are both fragrance free, dust free, and never a pee smell. I like both quite well. Natural litters will tend to not clump as well as they get older, so i fill the boxes up, then dont top up, when it gets low i clean and refill, i do it every other weekend.

The scoop can also make a big difference with these litters, they do not work well with a smaller scoop. If you use one that was designed for the pellet type large litter its much easier. I use this one and love it.

 

[xenathecrazy]

Is the walnut litter softer than regular clay or about the same?

 

[rubysmama]

My Ruby rarely covers her poop, but (thankfully) doesn't get it stuck on her fur or paws. She does paw at the sides of the litter box, but usually manages to *not* cover her poop.

An uncovered litter box might help your girl, as then she could hop out of it from any side, instead of having to head to the "door" and possibly walk in her poop. Worth trying, for sure.

Here's a link that might help:
How To Choose The Right Litterbox

 

[duckpond]

Is the walnut litter softer than regular clay or about the same?

It is quite a bit softer than clay. but not as Fluffy as the grass. So its a little easier for cats to get use to i think. they dont sink down in the walnut as much as they do the grass. but once my cats got use to the grass, about 2 weeks, they like it as well.

 

[duckpond]

I have been trying to pay attention the last few days. It seems with mine, they pee more in the walnut litter, and poo more in the grass litter