If you have a cat who doesn’t use her cat litter box, it might be the type of cat litter you buy for her. Cats are fussy about a lot of things, and the cat litter brand you think she’ll likes might end up offending her for a number of reasons. If she doesn’t like it, your cat will communicate the only way she knows will get your attention – she’ll stop using the cat litter box.
There are a confusing number of cat litter brands to choose from. Some are made with humans in mind. These types often contain perfume or some type of smell that pleases you and me, but not necessarily to kitty.
A cats’ sense of smell is much more sensitive than a human’s. Cat litter that is drenched in a pleasant (for humans) scent may be very offensive to your cat. If her sense of smell is overwhelmed, she’ll avoid the cat litter box.
If you suspect your cat doesn’t like her cat litter, this can be an easy problem to fix. For example, if you faithfully supplied her with a brand she liked, but you decided to switch brands, she’ll stop using the cat litter box if it doesn’t meet her approval. In this case, switch back to the previous cat litter brand.
It may feel like defeat, but if you think about it in terms of saving money, time and frustration because you’re not cleaning up cat messes, then everybody wins.
You may have had to switch cat litter brands because her favorite brand is no longer available. If this is the case, experiment with similar brands and see which one she prefers.
Here’s an easy way to test cat litter brands to get kitty’s approval:
Set up two litter boxes. Each box should have a different cat litter brand. Leave the boxes down for a few days. At the end of your test period, see which box accumulated the most deposits. If one box was preferred over the other, you have your winner. You may need to repeat this test a few times before your cat decides you got it right.
If you have several bags of cat litter left over from your tests, donate them to your local feline rescue organization. They can always use any type for their rescued kitties.
If you switched cat litter brands because your nearest pet store no longer carries it, consider making a trip to one a little further from your home. The trick is to stock up with a large number of bags so your trips are as infrequent as possible.
Cats are demanding creatures. Since we don’t speak meow, and they can’t talk, cats communicate clearly (according to kitty logic) with radical, startling actions. It’s up to us humans (isn’t it always?) to translate our cat’s wishes and concerns.
By paying attention to past events (like switching litter brands on kitty), we can decipher and solve many cat litter box problems.
