Trying to switch from litter to wood pellets but...

[jdanham]

We have 2 unrelated Abyssinian males, 4 and 5 years old that we have tried to switch from clumping litter to wood pellets. It's been almost a year and have tried all the gradual methods (attractants, mixing with litter etc) but it wasn't until we switched the actual litter boxes to their original ones that things seemed to have turned around. BUT, now we discovered that one of them is peeing in a pile of bedding stacked on a guest daybed!

We are about to completely give up on this because of how long it's been, and there are no medical issues going on. These cats are by nature very willful and I am of the opinion that one of them is basically saying, "screw you, I want my old litter!"

Anyone have a similar experiences and other options to suggest? As of today we have scooped out all the pellets and added a fresh layer of litter along with completely removing all the bedding from that area and sprayed with grapefruit aerosol all through the vicinity hoping to dissuade any further 'deposits'

Thanks!

 

[di and bob]

You need to get a good enzyme cat urine destroyer to completely get rid of the smell. To me, winning that battle is not as important as your cat's possibly being persuaded to go somewhere else. Cats absolutely hate change and obviously yours don't like their boxes or litter changed. To the point of peeing somewhere else. You have tried for almost a year. I would get a good clumping litter to make cleanup easier and leave it at that. Don't let peeing in the house become ingrained in them. Wood pellets are nice, but not worth all this stress.........

 

[mentat]

As urinating on the bedding is a new symptom after a year of new litter, ensure this is not related to other stressors first, i.e. other changes to the environment/routine, or medical cause such as pain or inflammation. Your pine litter may not be the stimulus for inappropriate urination. Ensuring they have at least 3 large, open litter boxes, is standard to ensure adequate resource options for 2 cats. Ask yourself if the cats' dynamic with each other is unchanged and harmonious. If you, other family, neighbors or other people outside the home are different or new, affecting the cats' environment. Is vertical and horizontal living space consistent. If reverting back to clay litter led to appropriate urination habit returning for both cats, you have your answer. Here's hoping there is no more soiling on the bedding.

 

[Krienze]

We tried to switch to pellets once and our cats did the same thing. We were in the middle of a hurricane though and had to use what we were able to get at the time and tried to just use it to use it up so it didn't go to waste and the cats absolutely hated it. One of my girls wouldn't even get in the box x.x

 

[jdanham]

As urinating on the bedding is a new symptom after a year of new litter, ensure this is not related to other stressors first, i.e. other changes to the environment/routine, or medical cause such as pain or inflammation. Your pine litter may not be the stimulus for inappropriate urination. Ensuring they have at least 3 large, open litter boxes, is standard to ensure adequate resource options for 2 cats. Ask yourself if the cats' dynamic with each other is unchanged and harmonious. If you, other family, neighbors or other people outside the home are different or new, affecting the cats' environment. Is vertical and horizontal living space consistent. If reverting back to clay litter led to appropriate urination habit returning for both cats, you have your answer. Here's hoping there is no more soiling on the bedding.

Thanks for the reply, we have pretty much ruled out environmental/medical as potential causes for the change - and I have to add that since we reverted to having 100% of the previous litter, I've not found any traces of rogue urination. We are always checking for the usual things when our boys behavior changes. The two cats are very different in their personalities, and one is more tolerant than the other to change. Anyway we are not out out of the woods yet but appreciate all the feedback!

 

[jdanham]

You need to get a good enzyme cat urine destroyer to completely get rid of the smell. To me, winning that battle is not as important as your cat's possibly being persuaded to go somewhere else. Cats absolutely hate change and obviously yours don't like their boxes or litter changed. To the point of peeing somewhere else. You have tried for almost a year. I would get a good clumping litter to make cleanup easier and leave it at that. Don't let peeing in the house become ingrained in them. Wood pellets are nice, but not worth all this stress.........

Thanks - so far with eucalyptus oil and vinegar in the wash things seem to be coming out OK. We have pretty much come to the same conclusion, as much as I hate putting the soiled litter into landfill. One thing I didn't mention before about this adventure was the one who I suspect is urinating on the bedding is the one who earlier in the process we actually took away the original litter boxes - caught him pooping on the carpet in the same general area. The other cat is very chill by comparison so I am 99% he's not the culprit here.

We're monitoring things now, just had a second night with no evidence of urination outside the old litterbox with new litter. Fingers crossed we can move on from this little drama!

Here are a couple of pics for your enjoyment. You can see the mischief in Russell's (the ruddy colored one) eyes...The other one is Leon, a totally laid back creature he is

Regards
Dan

 

[IndyJones]

Is there a reason for not wanting to use regular litter that they like? (back pain, asthma, etc.) if not, I would not try to force a litter change on them. They are clearly telling you that they don't like the new litter.

Ps if the environmental impact of putting litter in the trash bothers you you can actually put litter in the green bin organics if your city has them. That's what I do. Make sure you use liners for the bin though.

 

[jdanham]

Is there a reason for not wanting to use regular litter that they like? (back pain, asthma, etc.) if not, I would not try to force a litter change on them. They are clearly telling you that they don't like the new litter.

Ps if the environmental impact of putting litter in the trash bothers you you can actually put litter in the green bin organics if your city has them. That's what I do. Make sure you use liners for the bin though.

OMG if our city's Green Bin service allowed cat litter that would be awesome. We're on the west coast in Canada where it's not permitted but on the other side of the country it is (only clay or organic types).

The reason we got onto the wood pellets was they're more acceptable and sustainable; highly recommended by a few friends and so we took the plunge last year and, well, we're going to revert to what they like for now. The thing is, if we found a cat litter that the city program accepts, it's still a major change for the cats...