My cat is middening, and it's quite maddening
Discussion
See what I did there?
Our cat is fairly timid. He's fine with us - the family - but he's reserved with strangers for the most part. And he doesnt like change. He's suspicious of new things in the house, especially if they are big. He skulks around them low to the ground, and becomes very skittish.
When we first got him he was a kitten. We confined him to the kitchen/diner for the first 6 weeks or so as instructed by the breeder. That's where his food tray is, and where his litter tray is.
A few weeks ago we replaced te doors in the diner with bifolds. Like most cats, ours watches Cat TV - the garden through the glass doors. He was pretty wary of these new doors. First middening incident.
This week we pulled out one of the built in kitchen cabinets and replaced it with an American style fridge freezer. A lot of the stuff that was in that cabinet in in boxes in the next room waiting for a new cabinet to be built. The f/freezer overlooks where the cat's food tray is.
And so the problems began. He didn't eat for 24 hours, apparently terrified of the new fridge. We tried stroking his forehead and rubbing the fridge with our hands. No joy. Then he peed on the bathroom floormat. And crapped on the study floor. Now, this evening, he's peed again on the study floor and crapped again on it.
Up to now, I don't think he's ever failed to use his litter tray in the house (sometimes he goes outside). But I'm pretty sure he hasn't used it for at least 72 hours. This evening's deposit was preceded by him walking past and away from the litter tray.
It's pretty obvious that he is highly stressed by the change of furniture in the kitchen diner. There's not much we can do about that though other than hope that time heals all. But is there a trick to reintroduce him to his litter tray? Such as chucking him in it and holding the door shut (it's more of a box than a tray).
All help from cat psychologists gratefully received.
Our cat is fairly timid. He's fine with us - the family - but he's reserved with strangers for the most part. And he doesnt like change. He's suspicious of new things in the house, especially if they are big. He skulks around them low to the ground, and becomes very skittish.
When we first got him he was a kitten. We confined him to the kitchen/diner for the first 6 weeks or so as instructed by the breeder. That's where his food tray is, and where his litter tray is.
A few weeks ago we replaced te doors in the diner with bifolds. Like most cats, ours watches Cat TV - the garden through the glass doors. He was pretty wary of these new doors. First middening incident.
This week we pulled out one of the built in kitchen cabinets and replaced it with an American style fridge freezer. A lot of the stuff that was in that cabinet in in boxes in the next room waiting for a new cabinet to be built. The f/freezer overlooks where the cat's food tray is.
And so the problems began. He didn't eat for 24 hours, apparently terrified of the new fridge. We tried stroking his forehead and rubbing the fridge with our hands. No joy. Then he peed on the bathroom floormat. And crapped on the study floor. Now, this evening, he's peed again on the study floor and crapped again on it.
Up to now, I don't think he's ever failed to use his litter tray in the house (sometimes he goes outside). But I'm pretty sure he hasn't used it for at least 72 hours. This evening's deposit was preceded by him walking past and away from the litter tray.
It's pretty obvious that he is highly stressed by the change of furniture in the kitchen diner. There's not much we can do about that though other than hope that time heals all. But is there a trick to reintroduce him to his litter tray? Such as chucking him in it and holding the door shut (it's more of a box than a tray).
All help from cat psychologists gratefully received.
Try this stuff...
http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pets/cat/cat-lit...
It has some herbal scent which draws the cat to it,
we had problems with our kitten and this sorted the problem instantly
hope this helps
http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pets/cat/cat-lit...
It has some herbal scent which draws the cat to it,
we had problems with our kitten and this sorted the problem instantly
hope this helps
http://www.icatcare.org:8080/advice/cat-behaviour
Have a read through the above website, lots of very good info on there to follow.
We always have to advise a vet check to rule out a medical reason but that's obviously upto you to decide.
Have a read through the above website, lots of very good info on there to follow.
We always have to advise a vet check to rule out a medical reason but that's obviously upto you to decide.
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