Litterbox woes - how to solve them? ( mander.xyz )

I got a weird problem involving both of my cats (Siegfrieda, to the left; Kika, to the right).

Kika is rather particular about having her own litterbox(es), and refuses to use a litterbox shared by another cat. Frieda on the other hand is adept to the "if I fits, I sits, I shits" philosophy, and is totally OK sharing litterboxes.

That creates a problem: no matter if properly and regularly cleaned, the only one using litterboxes here is Frieda. We had, like, five of them at once; and Kika would still rather do her business on the patio.

How do I either teach Kika "it's fine to share a litterbox", or teach Siegfrieda "that's Kika's litterbox, leave it alone"?

lvxferre OP ,
@lvxferre@mander.xyz avatar

Thank you guys for all those ideas! Sorry for the late reply.

A few highlights on ideas mentioned here:

  • @0x0's idea of testing different litters might work. Frieda used to be a street cat, so she'd rather use dirt or grass (or finer litter), while Kika was always a home cat so she prefers more typical gravel-like litter.
  • @atx_aquarian mentioned odour removers. I didn't try them, I used alcohol instead. Got to try it too.
  • A lot of people mentioned smart systems that allow/deny entry for a cat based on the microchip. I gave those a check, and they're outright expensive here in Brazil. (Import taxes are specially harsh on electronics, plus cost of living is smaller than in Europe and CA/US so stuff like 100 euros or dollars is actually a big deal here.) I might want to try a poor man's version of that though, by not allowing Siegfrieda to access my bathroom at all, and placing Kika's litterbox there.

A relevant detail that I didn't mention is Kika's age - she's already 16, and cats get a bit stubborn when old (not that we humans are any different...). But I think that a mix of the solutions that you presented might work.

QualifiedKitten ,

I see you mentioned elsewhere that automatic boxes probably won't be sufficient. While I generally wouldn't recommend a litter box that fully disposes of the waste automatically (because scooping the poop might be the first or only warning sign of health issues), something like the Cat Genie might help.

If Kika is willing to use an enclosed litter box, you might create a litter box enclosure using one of those pet doors that can be set to unlock only for specific animals based on their microchip or a collar tag.

s38b35M5 ,
@s38b35M5@lemmy.world avatar

Try training Kika to use the toilet? My Grandmother's cat was the same way back in the 80's, and my uncle (yup, he still lived at home in his forties) trained the cat to use their downstairs toilet. Problem solved.

Edit: we kids always tried to catch her doing it but never did, but wed see the evidence after the fact.

0x0 ,

Try using a different brand of litter in Kika's box? If you're exceptionally lucky, you'll land on a litter that only Kika likes.

Heavybell ,
@Heavybell@lemmy.world avatar

Probably a dumb suggestion but… I know you can get cat feeders that will detect your cat's microchip and only let them in. I wonder if you could get a litterbox that uses similar tech to only open for Kika?

ubergeek77 ,
@ubergeek77@lemmy.ubergeek77.chat avatar

This was the first thing that came up in a search. Looks like there's a few sizes too:

https://meowspace.biz/product/meowspace-microchip-system/

It looks pretty pricey, but considering microchip pet doors on their own cost about that much, this seems like a cheaper option than DIYing some contraption involving a microchip pet door.

Look around for this kind of stuff OP! It exists!

FuglyDuck ,
@FuglyDuck@lemmy.world avatar

I mean I could probably do it with around 100 bucks in hardware….

Convincing the CIA or NSA or FBI or half a dozen alphabet soup agencies that you really need their facial recognition code in a FOIA request…. That’s both priceless and probably expensive at the same time.

Probably easier to just do some machine learning stuff. Cat recognition, no chips needed.

SkyezOpen ,

Op might need some electrical engineering but I'm fairly certain there's a homemade solution using an rfid tag on a collar.

wesker ,
@wesker@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

I had a cat like this. The only solution was to scoop the litterbox multiple times a day, so it always seemed fresh.

There are also auto-cleaning boxes.

lvxferre OP ,
@lvxferre@mander.xyz avatar

Even when cleaned, she still refuses it. I think that she smells "the annoying kid used this box, now it's ruined forever!". The only solution is to clean the litterbox with alcohol, retire it from usage for a few days (so she forgets about it), and then reintroduce as if it was a "new" litterbox.

As such I don't think that the auto-cleaning box would help either.

wesker ,
@wesker@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

I know there are feeders that use a collar tag to only allow food to specific cats. Maybe there's a litter box with a door that has the same tech?

lvxferre OP ,
@lvxferre@mander.xyz avatar

I'll give it a check. If this exists (and if it's available in Brazil, and reasonably priced) it would solve my problems really well. Thanks for the idea!

wesker ,
@wesker@lemmy.sdf.org avatar

I can confirm they make pet doors with this technology. If you can't specifically find a litterbox that has it, you could build a DIY box that does.

atx_aquarian ,
@atx_aquarian@lemmy.world avatar

I like the "private bathroom" ideas better, too, but, if you find yourself having to make a constant cleaning strategy work, after all, then on top of cleaning, perhaps try using something like Elimin-Odor after cleaning (if you didn't already try that) to specifically neutralize what she might smell? They claim it's designed to neutralize odors enough that a cat won't associate an "accident" spot with future bathroom eligibility.

Today ,

When you find out, please please let me know. I have three cats, five litter boxes, and still everyday the one shits on the floor beside the box. I'm actually happy to clean up the poop because about every third day she also pees beside the box which is much worse.

lvxferre OP ,
@lvxferre@mander.xyz avatar

I'll let you know if I find a solution. Your situation reminds me my sister's cat though - he "used" the litterbox halfway (his front paws inside, his back paws outside), and then did it on the floor next to the litterbox. Might be worth checking if that isn't what's happening. (She solved it with taller boxes)

Today ,

I've tried several different boxes and litters. We have five boxes but they all 3 want to use one. The problem kitty was my mom's. She would use the box, meow, and my mom would scoop it immediately. Instead of going to use one of the other four boxes that are completely clean, she poops on the floor beside everyone's favorite box.

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