Is there any way to have a litter box that only 1 cat (out of 2) will use?

[konuku]

My 2 ragdoll kittens (almost 7 months) are brother and sister. The brother almost ALWAYS poops right outside of one of the boxes and has done since I picked him up from the breeder. He does pee in the boxes, though.

I have tried different litters, different boxes, different locations, different litter depths, etc. to no avail. He either just seems to prefer the smooth wood floor for some reason OR maybe he doesn't want to share the boxes?

In yet another attempt to correct his problem, I was hoping to try to see if there was a way just to have one box for him in order to see if he might actually use it for pooping. He gets along well with his sister, but she is the dominant cat, so I thought that that might be an issue. I have noticed that he will often smell the boxes before he decides to use it (or not!).

However, I cannot think of a way to prevent her from using the box. Any time I can gotten a new box or have changed the litter, she makes sure she is the first in it to use it.

Am I crazy thinking this? If not, any ideas?

Thanks so much.

 

[amandatay97]

Hello! Have both your cats been neutered? It does appear to  be a behavioural problem that can be corrected. If this behaviour has been repeated for quite a few months, the male kitten will probably deem it proper to poop outside the litterbox Perhaps you can try keeping an eye out for him when you are at home and immediately put him into the adjacent litter box if he shows signs of pooping all the best!

 

[konuku]

Hi there and thanks. Yes, they are both neutered.

I do try to catch him and put him in a box, though I am sometimes not around or he'll do it when I am in the shower or cannot hear him digging at the wood floors. He'll jump out and then I'll put him back in, then jump out again, back in, etc. He'll either eventually poop in the box or this "in/out" activity will throw off his groove, and he'll decide he doesn't have to poop anymore.

Yes, it almost feels like he thinks this is the "norm". I have also put his poop in a litterbox and then put him back in the litterbox so he can smell that poop belongs in the litterbox. He'll smell and then jump out. But then poop on the floor the next time. Sigh.

He once pooped mostly in the litterbox, then jumped out and finished pooping on the floor! Huh?? So, there is something he does not like about pooping in a box.

I asked the breeder within 2 days or getting him. She said that she did not know why he was doing it, but he must have done it at her house too because even when I got him at 18 weeks, it felt ingrained. So, she was either unaware (she has quite a few cats) or did not want to admit it.

Yes, I do need some luck or an epiphany. I don't want to spend the next 15+ years of my life cleaning up poop outside the litterbox everyday! Plus, I also have to ask cat sitters to do it too, which is really not great.

 

[pepsiandmax]

How many boxes do you have? Jakson Galaxy's rule is 1 box per car + 1. So with two cats you are suppose to have 3 boxes.
And are they/him declawed? It is often painfull for declawed cats to walk/sit on litter.
Don't have any other advice except for more boxes, different ones, maybe all over the house. See if maybe you can find one he likes. And maybe try different litters in the different boxes.
This is just things I know Jakson Galaxy tell prople
One way to help with the mess he is making is to put down a puppy pad outside the box.
Hope this could be helpfull

 

[konuku]

Thanks. I have read lots and lots of articles and followed all their advice. I have 3 boxes. I have used different boxes with different litters in each box. He has peed in all of them but has pooped outside all of them too. I have put them in various areas around my apartment but he likes this one area, which is where I am concentrating on now. 

No declawing. Awful and highly illegal in Europe.

I even put foil all around the boxes but that did not deter him either. He just went right next to the foil, and I really don't want to cover my entire floor in foil.

 

[jcat]

Could you put a microchip-reading cat flap in the door to a small room and program it for his microchip only? That way his sister wouldn't have access.
PetSafe PetPorte

There are also much cheaper ones with a magnetic "key" that's attached to the collar.
Katzenklappe Staywell 932 mit Halsbandmagnet