Cat training question!

[Hane]

Hi! Cat newbie here. I am now the long-term foster auntie to Asher The Kitty, a dark gray mixed breed about five years old. He is a darn near perfect cat: not destructive, doesn’t climb on things or knock them over, gets along with everyone, is healthy, isn’t a picky eater, an overall delight—except for one thing:

(gross-out warning)

He almost consistently poops right next to his litter box, instead of in it. (He pees in the litter box like a champ.) I have been putting down a puppy training pad next to his litter box, and now he always poops on it, considerately folding over the pad to cover his mess and making it easy for me to clean up.

I’ve tried everything I can think of: scooping out his litter box one or twice a day, changing litter brands. My niece (his real mom, who got him from a cat rescue about a year ago) had the same trouble and no success either. She suspects this is the reason he was re-homed. (Former owner claimed he didn’t get along with their other cat, which is most likely baloney, because the cat rescue people loved him and were sad to see him go.) She tried spritzing him when he did this, but admits it’s almost impossible to catch him in the act.

Any ideas?

 

[Coconut Flan]

Clean the mess immediately and scoop the pan as soon as he does anything in it.  You might try a second littler pan.  I thought the vet was crazy, but apparently some cats will only do one kind of business per pan.  It worked for us with that cat unless another cat left urine in the pan.  

Have you tried the attractant spray?  It's supposed to attract the cat to the pan.

Dr. Elsey's litter if you haven't tried it.  Pricey, but wonderful.  It worked like a charm on one of ours.  

My MIL swore by shredded newspaper for cranky cats.  Also the more piney litters sometimes appeal.  Just because they'll urinate in something doesn't mean they'll poop in it and the reverse.  Cats can be weird.  We had one who asked to go outside like a dog.  I made him a spot behind a hibiscus bush.  

[Ash]

Some cats will not poop where they've peed. Definitely try a second box. And don't put the two boxes side by side, because the cat will view that as one big box. Try separate rooms. If you have more than one floor in your home, put them on different floors.

[Hane]

@Coconut Flan and @Ash, thanks for the two-box suggestion! Now to find a place where I can unobtrusively fit a second box. Wait—upstairs (infrequently used) bathroom it is!

I’m taking him to the vet for a checkup tomorrow and hope to get more info then. 

Edited February 1 by Hane

[Coconut Flan]

Hidden away is good.  Some cats like privacy.  My neighbor's cat used a rug until she put his box in the garage.  

[ifosterkittens]

Jackson Galaxy has a playlist on different litter box issues videos you may want to check out, but this video addresses your question: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35RQ3wuxIg0&list=PLAJvHNBwbBNuzFZeHRkBmQaiPG-sqZjIZ&index=11 

Good luck!

Edited February 1 by ifosterkittens
Different link

[Giraffe]

@Hane how'd the vet visit go?

 

[Hane]

16 hours ago, Giraffe said:

@Hane how'd the vet visit go?

 

Really well! The vet confirmed all of the good advice everyone here gave me. Asher is perfectly healthy except for a scab she found under his chin, and he got his shots, a feline AIDS/leukemia test, and a mani-pedi. She also gave me some dietary advice for him. 

[Hane]

@Ash, my vet confirmed that I have a cat who won’t poop where he’s peed. I’ve noticed that, whenever I’ve scooped out his box after he’s peed, he will deign to poop in it. Thanks to @Coconut Flan for the tip!

I am now his unpaid personal assistant. He will wake me up in the AM (too darn early) by meowing loudly and walking/kneading on me, which prompts me to get up, scoop out his box, and fill his food and water bowls.

Food question: What do I do when he refuses to eat his wet food? I make sure he gets plenty of water. He used to eat both his wet and dry food the first time he was staying with me. Then, when he was staying with his real mom and her then-boyfriend, he segued over to all dry food, the way the boyfriend’s cats did. Now Asher won’t touch his wet food, and I’m concerned because I know he needs to eat at least some wet food for his urinary health. (Fun fact: I gave him some primo unseasoned fish from my leftover sushi, and he wouldn’t touch it!)

 

Edited February 17 by Hane

[Coconut Flan]

First there are cats who won't eat wet food.  My neighbor has one.  As long as they drink enough water, it may not be a problem.  His tastes may have changed and a different wet food might appeal.  I usually try water from tuna.  It isn't the healthiest, but it's a good test.  If they won't go for the tuna water, they may just be dry food cats.  If kidney health becomes a problem, there is a special dry kidney diet.  

I'm so happy you figured out the cat's litter issue!!!  

Edited February 17 by Coconut Flan