Unsophisticated or just Uncomfortable

Note: this post is all about poo.

Rex has a problem that Pascha does not. After he defecates, often times he'll find the nearest carpet (aaak!) and scoot his butt along it in what I thought was a very unsophisticated way of cleaning his rear.

Pascha has never done this, and I ignorantly never questioned the difference. I guess my subconscious thought she was better taught than that.

But when Rex did it today I decided to look it up. Maybe find a way to stop it, since, I really don't want that stuff on my carpet.

It turns out he may have a problem with his anal sacs, and he'll probably need to go to the vet to have them treated.

More on that HERE, in case you ever noticed this about your pet.

Photos when they're not in the Bathroom

We need a little balance in this blog. More to follow. Videos too!















Rex's head has not caught up to his body yet.

Success

Day 12

Hooray for Duct Tape!


My tower of toilet training kitty litter has grown taller and taller, and is now completely stable thanks to the help of duct tape.

No more spilling, no more pooping and leaving it uncovered for fear of the litter box moving around too much. Things are much more under control.

Also, I had another recent revelation. Up until now, I've kept the toilet seat DOWN because it's safer for the cats and easier for them to jump on. If I'm going to get them comfortable going to the bathroom in the toilet, I need to also get them comfortable with the toilet seat up.

This has caused issue.

Pascha loves to play with water, and this now includes the water in the toilet. While my toilet is clean and it's cute right now, I have a feeling this could be Big Trouble once the toilet training is complete.

I am asking for suggestions to help me train her to keep her paws out of the toilet. So far spraying Fooey (Bitter Apple, a non-toxic spray used to keep cats away from things like cords) on the water does very little. Anyone?

Day 6

Everything is going smoothly, except for the more frequent cleanup of litter on the floor. The cats are using the litter pan about 4 inches from the ground, still way too low for them to need to jump.

I am thinking that in order to make sure they are entirely comfortable I will eventually buy or make for them a little step stool. That way they wont ever have to jump if they don't want to.

I also need to find a way to secure the litter pan to the ground or the papers while it is getting increasingly taller. Any suggestions on how to do this?

Day 3

Today I decided to start the process of raising the litter pan. I went to Whole Foods, got myself a delicious cookie and snagged about a dozen week-old Austin Chronicle magazines. They are perfectly sized, free, and no one will miss them since Thursdays are new issue days. I'll head back next Wednesday for more.

Here's the height I raised it for today. It's practically unnoticeable, but I guess that's the point.




The cats are always interested in what I do with the litter box. Usually Rex likes to hop in for a quick pee as I clean it. Inevitably, one of them will decide the perfect time to use the litter box is right after I've cleaned it. One of the things I need to look out for is that the cats don't look for other locations to relieve themselves (i.e. the sink) as I increase the height of the pan. As this becomes more of an issue I will take more cautious measures to try and combat that temptation. Water and foil tend to help. More on that later.

Day 2

Day 2



Just to make things clear, the date on the post might be a different day than the actual day of the context of my post. This photo, for instance, was taken yesterday. This post is about Day 2.

So, my cats like to kick litter around!! This was expected, but the constant cleaning was something I was hoping not to encounter.

I am continuously telling myself that this will be worth it, even though I cleaned the litter box approximately 4 times yesterday.




Onward!

The Pan

For this challenge, I bought flushable litter (Swheat Scoop is very good) and a heavy duty roasting pan that fits inside the diameter of my toilet. It's quite a change from the previous bathtub-sized litter box they enjoyed. The pan is slightly larger than Rex's ass, but it will have to do.

And, here we go.

The Setup

For my instruction, I am using the book Potty Talk by Toast by Trisha Yeager Menke. I found her book to be the most honest and true to everything else I had read on the subject. If this doesn't work out, I will in no way put the blame on this book but rather my misunderstanding of the instructions.

So, as you can see we have the current litter box next to the toilet. It's been here for a while and the cats are very used to using it in this location.

Day 1

This blog is going to be a no frills, no long paragraphs, simple walk through of my process training my cats how to use the toilet.

First of all, I should introduce you.

On the left we have 1 1/2 year old spayed Pascha, and on the right we have 7 month old neutered Rex.

Pascha is very outgoing and loving, though very shy around strangers.

Rex is basically the same constant cool all the time. So surprises.

I am curious to see who teaches who in this process, or if they just do it at the same time (or, gasp! not at all!)