Outside toilet options?

[seventh]

Hi all!

My partner and I have both grown up with cats, and we're now living together in a suburban area. We have a terraced house on a fairly well-trafficked street. The house has a small garden, but as it is rented, our landlord had the whole area covered in gravel to reduce maintenance issues.

We've been given permission to get a cat, as long as it's an 'outside' cat, and (obviously after kittenhood) will not be left in the house unsupervised for any significant length of time (this is fine as my partner works from home). The house is lovely and I don't want to disobey his rules as it was hard enough getting permission at all!

I grew up in deep countryside, and my childhood cats had a five-acre field and large wooded areas and hedgerows to do their business in. However, any cat that my partner and I get now will only have a small gravel yard, which clearly won't be very attractive for it to dig in! I don't want to encourage it to roam too far,and I also want to make house-training as easy as possible for a young cat.

I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions for measures we could take to provide a safe, clean outside area for our cat to toilet in? Various friends and relatives have suggested a child's sand-pit or a large flat tub of soft soil, but I'm worried about both keeping these clean, and not attracting every neighbourhood cat in the area. How practical are these options, or is there another way?

Does anyone have any ideas or advice? Just to clarify - we don't have a cat yet, but are carefully considering all the pros and cons and changes that need to be made before we make a decision.

Thank you so much!

 

[catapault]

Great that you are thinking about this before just getting a cat.

Does not be left in the house unsupervised for any significant length of time mean the cat would be left outside at night while you are sleeping? If yes, I'd think long and hard about getting a cat.

Keeping the cat outside when unsupervised (you are at work, your partner goes shopping, cat is outside and it is winter in the snow and cold or it begins to rain) is an awkward situation. Would your landlord allow you to have a "catio" - an outdoor, screened-in, escape-proof protected area - for your cat?

This would keep your cat safe since you live on a fairly well-trafficked street. Your catio could have an insulated little house such as people have for feral cats, and a covered litter pan.

 

[seventh]

Hi,

Thanks for your response!

My landlord doesn't want the cat alone in the house for more than a couple of hours. So it'll be fine inside whilst we're asleep as we'll be able to investigate any noise from mischief!

We have a well-built, rainproof and warm garden shed that belongs to us (not the landlord) which we will put a cat-flap into. It's empty except for some gardening things (kept in a secure lidded trunk) and a shelving unit of wide wooden shelves screwed securely to the wall. We're planning on lining the shelves with old carpet and providing a few soft comfy kitty beds at varying heights. So the cat will definitely have somewhere to go that's dry and warm on the rare occasions we're not home to let it in.

Our main worry is where it will toilet! I don't want it to be a nuisance so would much rather provide an area in our own yard. I just don't know what would be suitable. The main question is whether there's a good material that can withstand rain/outdoor conditions, or whether we'd need to create a covered place.

 

[catapault]

The shed sounds terrific. One question, two actually.

Does the shed have any windows? I think in the daytime it will be more attractive to the cat if it's not completely dark inside.

Why not put a litter pan inside the shed? Litter pans are leakproof. After all, you don't want anything leaking out. If the litter pan is outside and it gets rained on it will not be attractive for kitty to use, and likely not at all functional.

If you install a cat flap for the shed why not also make a cat's equivalent of a chicken run. Kitty can get outside, get fresh air, and - most important - will be safe from traffic / cars on your nearby fairly well traveled road.

Just a thought - if you do have a catio / cat run - could you make a shallow planter and put a sod of grass in it? Kitty would probably enjoy laying on grass more than on gravel.

If cat is loose to roam around it will likely find a neighbor's garden with lawn and plants will be more attractive than a gravel-covered space. The neighbors might not be too happy about this . . . .

 

[seventh]

Hi again!

Yes, the shed has a big plastic window. It's quite nice in there - i've sat happily in it for a few hours when I once locked myself out!

I think any kind of cat-run building will most-likely be ruled out. landlord is very possessive of his property, and neighbourhood rules about what is appropriate and scenic for the area are strict.

I really love the idea of having grass in a shallow planter! I think I'll do that whether we decide to get a cat or not!

There are quite a few neighbourhood cats and I know my neighbours fairly well. I've already discussed having an 'outside' cat with a few of them, and no one has raised any "not in my back yard!" objections. The people immediately next to me on each side have no dig-up-able plants and while I know it can be a nuisance I hope that i have a good enough relationship with them that they'd come to discuss any problems with me.

As i say - we're still considering whether it's practical or not - so no decision has been made yet! We'd choose whatever is in the best interests for the cat, of course.

Thank you for your help!

 

[rosiemac]

Are you from the UK?.

I'm pleased your taking the cat in at night because the last couple of winters have been really cold

I also have a shed, and in the winter l leave it wedged open about 8" because we get foxes. When l went to fill the bowl of kibbles up for them one morning, there was the big boy from around the corner from me sitting in a box keeping warm

This is him. Not sure of his name but l call him Bruiser because of his size