New here, question about litter box habits

[katina128]

Hi, I'm Katina. I have a wonderful 7mo kitten named Smokey. He's a sweet kitty and I am so in love with him. I have a covered litter box in my bathroom for him. He uses it just fine. My problem is that he doesn't cover up his mess. He scratches in the walls of the box and of course, that doesn't cover up his mess or his odor. Silly kitty.

Should I take the lid off, or how can I get him to cover his messes so that the stench is kept to a minimum in there. Thanks in advance!!

 

[kittylova]

WELCOME!!

Is it a big litterbox?

 

[hell603]

Cats can be very finiky about the way litter feels. Most likely he dosen't like the texture and is just going tru the motions by scratching the sides of the litter box without having to touch the litter.

Might want to try another brand..

 

[katina128]

It's a big covered one by vaness, I think. I have tried a gazillion different brands, so I don't think it's the litter. I know I've tried all the brands at walmart so far.

 

[tru]

This might sound silly, but I showed one of mine that scratched everything but the litter about covering one day when he finished. I believe I did that twice in hopes that he would understand.
Noww he still scratched all around the box, but he also usually gets his mess totally covered in the process.

Who knows if it might work or not, but may be worth a shot to wait till your little guys finishes his job and then take the scoop and throw the litter up over the mess a couple times.

 

[urbantigers]

Not all cats cover. You can try to encourage him but he's not silly or naughty - he just doesn't want to cover it!

Is he an only kitty? Covering their waste is as much about leaving a signal for other cats as it is to be neat and tidy - if there's no other cat to leave a signal for he may not feel the need to cover it.

 

[katina128]

He's the only cat. I just assumed they all covered. They should, IMO.

I flush, they should cover.

I'll try catching him in there and see if I can teach him to get the litter instead of the side of the box. It isn't that he doesn't try, he does. He just gets the sides of the box instead of the litter.

 

[cheshirecat]

My kitty doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t usually cover his stuff wet or solid. It doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t bother me so much because it doesnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t seem to smell and itâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s easier to find when scooping.

Today I realized that when I have visitors in the house he will cover everything. He wonâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t use the box while they are here but the next time I go to scoop it will be buried.

It is said that cats cover their stuff as a way of hiding from predators. Maybe this is my catâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s way of telling me he is comfortable with me.

 

[katkisses]

LOL! Cody had to 'teach' Dolly how to cover it up! Dolly would go use the box, turn around and smell it, then jump out the box-buut Cody wasn't about to have a smelly house and would immeaditly go and cover it up. Eventually everytime Dolly went to the box Cody would follow her, she'd jump in and do business, after she was done Cody would jump in with her still in (but after she was done) and cover it as if to say "look Doll, you do this. We don't want a stinky house!" LOL, and after a while Dolly caught on and now she covers it herself.

I have no idea how to 'make' them cover it up.... maybe get a really tall rubbermaid container to use as a litterbox, that way he can't grab at the sides and 'go through the motions' witout really covering it up? I know what your talking about, the cat grabs at the sides of the litterbox instead of the litter, I have had tons of cats that did that, but I have always had a multicat home and there was always a OCD kitty who would cover it for the lazy cat.

 

[katina128]

I don't have room in the bathroom for anything bigger, but I wonder if taking the lid off will help. I'm gonna go try that. My kitty is defeinitely a bit too comfortable if that's the case cuz Momma would like him to cover it up.