Not only did Pascha jump into the toilet pan without hesitation after I moved the hole back a bit, but she also put her two front paws on the toilet seat! Usually I had to place them there carefully for her, so this is truly a good sign.
Also, in other news, Rex put all fours on the toilet seat the other day. He's practically already there.
Showing posts with label solutions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label solutions. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Foot in Water!
Ack!
Today was "New litter pan Day" which means I cut a larger hole and replaced the old litter pans. Pictures to follow.
Unfortunately, I JUST stepped into the bathroom and found Rex had accidentally let his foot slip into the toilet!! This could be really bad. He jumped out and began kicking his leg. I cleaned his leg not knowing what was in the toilet, but the problem is that I was not sure if he had already gone or not!
If the cats become traumatized while using the toilet like this, then we could have a problem.
More later...
________
UPDATE: Ten minutes later - Ok, so apparently Rex had NOT used the toilet and just freaked out when his foot fell in. The good news is that I just watched him put three legs on the seat and do his business straight into the toilet. There was some splashing, and that's something I need to find a solution for, but he was does not appear traumatized. I immediately gave him a treat.
Today was "New litter pan Day" which means I cut a larger hole and replaced the old litter pans. Pictures to follow.
Unfortunately, I JUST stepped into the bathroom and found Rex had accidentally let his foot slip into the toilet!! This could be really bad. He jumped out and began kicking his leg. I cleaned his leg not knowing what was in the toilet, but the problem is that I was not sure if he had already gone or not!
If the cats become traumatized while using the toilet like this, then we could have a problem.
More later...
________
UPDATE: Ten minutes later - Ok, so apparently Rex had NOT used the toilet and just freaked out when his foot fell in. The good news is that I just watched him put three legs on the seat and do his business straight into the toilet. There was some splashing, and that's something I need to find a solution for, but he was does not appear traumatized. I immediately gave him a treat.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Big Day - Moving the Pan into the Toilet
So the basic process for this whole thing goes as follows:
1) Make the pan smaller and use flushable litter
2) Move the pan up the side of the toilet
3) Move the pan into the toilet
4) After a month, cut a small hole in the pan
5) After cat gets used to it, make the hole gradually bigger
6) Once the hole is practically gone, take the pan away
Of course, if it were this easy we wouldn't have books and blogs and things telling us in detail how this process works.
As of December 2oth or so, I decided it was time to move to step 3 - into the toilet!!
This sounds really fun and great - but certain things had to be considered:
1) My toilet seat is angled inward, making it hard for Rex especially to balance well on it.
Solution: I bought a new $20 toilet seat from Target. It had a flatter seat and was made with an antimicrobial plastic material. This made me feel a little better, and the cats have a much easier time standing on it.
2) A turkey roaster disposable pan is great for holding turkeys (or say, cats) when it's resting on something like a table. Once you suspend it, the risk of puncturing through can be higher. Cats stand on their toes when they poo, and the small surface area of their foot made me a bit nervous. I actually punctured my first one with the litter scooper and had to replace it.
Solution: Two turkey roasters, with the inner pan's rim folded in. This provided a stronger surface, and will help later with the hole puncturing process (more on that later).
3) Securing a litter pan - If you have a couple of toilets in the house then duct tape the hell out of that pan and don't worry about it. But what happens when you have only one. What are you supposed to do? Un-duct tape it each time you want to go to the bathroom? No.
Solution: Velcro strips! Oh man, how nice it is to just lift the pan out to use the toilet, knowing those Velcro strips can hold something like 40 lbs before they split. These have worked great. Just lift the toilet seat and place some strips on all four sides of the toilet rim, making sure to measure where they will meet up with the pan.
4) The newspapers next to the toilet seat - If you just take them away, then they will not recognize where the pan has gone.
Solution: Like everything else in this process, gradually take more and more away until they only need a couple for a step stool (if desired.)
1) Make the pan smaller and use flushable litter
2) Move the pan up the side of the toilet
3) Move the pan into the toilet
4) After a month, cut a small hole in the pan
5) After cat gets used to it, make the hole gradually bigger
6) Once the hole is practically gone, take the pan away
Of course, if it were this easy we wouldn't have books and blogs and things telling us in detail how this process works.
As of December 2oth or so, I decided it was time to move to step 3 - into the toilet!!
This sounds really fun and great - but certain things had to be considered:
1) My toilet seat is angled inward, making it hard for Rex especially to balance well on it.
Solution: I bought a new $20 toilet seat from Target. It had a flatter seat and was made with an antimicrobial plastic material. This made me feel a little better, and the cats have a much easier time standing on it.
2) A turkey roaster disposable pan is great for holding turkeys (or say, cats) when it's resting on something like a table. Once you suspend it, the risk of puncturing through can be higher. Cats stand on their toes when they poo, and the small surface area of their foot made me a bit nervous. I actually punctured my first one with the litter scooper and had to replace it.
Solution: Two turkey roasters, with the inner pan's rim folded in. This provided a stronger surface, and will help later with the hole puncturing process (more on that later).
3) Securing a litter pan - If you have a couple of toilets in the house then duct tape the hell out of that pan and don't worry about it. But what happens when you have only one. What are you supposed to do? Un-duct tape it each time you want to go to the bathroom? No.
Solution: Velcro strips! Oh man, how nice it is to just lift the pan out to use the toilet, knowing those Velcro strips can hold something like 40 lbs before they split. These have worked great. Just lift the toilet seat and place some strips on all four sides of the toilet rim, making sure to measure where they will meet up with the pan.
4) The newspapers next to the toilet seat - If you just take them away, then they will not recognize where the pan has gone.
Solution: Like everything else in this process, gradually take more and more away until they only need a couple for a step stool (if desired.)
Holiday Break
I've been sort of absent from this blog during the holidays - but I can assure you that I have not been absent from the toilet training process. No, sir.
To recap - the cats' litter box was right up next to the toilet last (check out that pic of Rex below), and certain issues needed to be resolved before we moved on.
Issues
Preference to use other places as litter box - Pascha has become ever-picky about the cleanliness of her pan/box. Before, when we had a huge litter box, we could be a little lazy and clean it out every other day and be fine. Now, if it is not entirely clean (and she will inspect), then she'll hop into the sink.
How I fixed this - I made sure to take note of when they used the box. Then, right afterwards I'd clean out the bad litter and spray a little pet litter refreshing spray. If Pascha went over to the box and used it immediately, I made sure to have a declious treat waiting for her. If she hopped up in the sink and started pawing, I put her in front of the pan until she used it. Then I'd also give her a treat. The trick is to stop getting her to expect that the box is dirty. As soon as she could reliably hop into the box knowing it would be clean, then the problem went away.
Messy Bathroom - The bathroom became a complete, disgusting mess ... real fast. Litter kicked everywhere. In order to keep this process healthy for me and the cats, I had to make sure the area around was in good condition. Don't just clean the pan, be prepared to sweep every day, and mop at least once a week in the bathroom. Keep deodorizers nearby.
Drinking Toilet water - Just one or two sprays of bitter apple in the toilet helped a lot. This problem will fix itself once the litter pan goes inside the toilet.
To recap - the cats' litter box was right up next to the toilet last (check out that pic of Rex below), and certain issues needed to be resolved before we moved on.
Issues
Preference to use other places as litter box - Pascha has become ever-picky about the cleanliness of her pan/box. Before, when we had a huge litter box, we could be a little lazy and clean it out every other day and be fine. Now, if it is not entirely clean (and she will inspect), then she'll hop into the sink.
How I fixed this - I made sure to take note of when they used the box. Then, right afterwards I'd clean out the bad litter and spray a little pet litter refreshing spray. If Pascha went over to the box and used it immediately, I made sure to have a declious treat waiting for her. If she hopped up in the sink and started pawing, I put her in front of the pan until she used it. Then I'd also give her a treat. The trick is to stop getting her to expect that the box is dirty. As soon as she could reliably hop into the box knowing it would be clean, then the problem went away.
Messy Bathroom - The bathroom became a complete, disgusting mess ... real fast. Litter kicked everywhere. In order to keep this process healthy for me and the cats, I had to make sure the area around was in good condition. Don't just clean the pan, be prepared to sweep every day, and mop at least once a week in the bathroom. Keep deodorizers nearby.
Drinking Toilet water - Just one or two sprays of bitter apple in the toilet helped a lot. This problem will fix itself once the litter pan goes inside the toilet.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Behold: The Step Stool
Temporary, but effective! Yes, it is a shoebox.
Please excuse my horrible photo quality but my camera broke on election night and now I have to resort to my phone.
Friday, November 21, 2008
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?
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?
Saturday, November 15, 2008
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?
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?
Thursday, November 13, 2008
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.
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