My new kitten has a problem.
She keeps going in the litter pan and racing around in it and playing with the litter like crazy. She keeps jumping in and out of the box like she is hunting. I keep it clean and scoop immediately after she goes.
She is litter trained and always goes in for her potty, but afterwards she plays. She is so drawn to the litter she constantly goes in it.
There has been zero accidents so far, but this behavior is driving me crazy. I also have another box of non-clumping litter, which she refuses to use.
She comes out dusty with litter stuck to her fur and paws especially since she keeps testing the water bowl with them. I tried washing her paws, which she hates. There is litter particles all over the floor which she tracks everywhere.
I have two questions for all of you experienced ragdoll owners.
1. Is this behavior normal? Or is she a weird kitty?
2. What can I do to deter this behavior?
I would really appreciate some advice? :-)
It sounds like normal kitten play to mey, nothing unusual. She just needs to pick a better place to play.
You might try having a covered litter pan, she may avoid playing in the litter pan with a covered box, but also be cautious, she may try avoiding the litterbox, if she doesn't like the change.
If you are there when she is playful and enjoying the litterbox as a playground, bring out a interactive toy, a teaser wand and play with her, it is good bonding time, it give her a chance to get out energy, as well as keeping her out of the litter box.
It may just be a phase she is going through. However, when our kittens enjoy the litterbox, they are usually just learning to use it.
I am sure we will have some other forum members with good suggestions.
Best Wishes!!
Purrs,
Stormi
One does see this in kittens, but it tends not to last. I would do NOTHING to keep her out of the pan, but keep her clean after her play. Anything you do to keep her out can result in avoidance of the pan and you do not want to do that. She should not have clumping litter, which she is more likely to get really stuck to herself and may be dangerous if she cleans it off or eats it. You may want to move the water farther away and on a large towel so that her feet will be less wet when she gets into the box.
Try more interactive play with wands and the like to use up some of this energy.
This is a stage that will not last, so do not worry too much about it.
Hi,
We found both of kittens also did this,
Our girl only did it for a very short time and our new boy has almost grown out of doing it to,
When our older raggie is actually using hers the younger boy will hop into the other one and play as he follows her around everywhere
We have two trays but right near each other as we had a short lived avoidance problem with our girl and two trays seem to help her get over it,
We didnt want to do anything to discourage them from feeling comfortable with there litter boxes,
Puff did not play in his litter but he did sleep in the litter pan, at times. Puff is now 6 months old and I can say that he outgrows his behaviors so just have patience and that stage will pass... onto something else! Puff was biting often and now that seems to be just about over. he also had litter pan issues- not using the litter pan when he was 12 weeks old and for a few weeks after but he was sick and after flagyl, his symptoms resolved. soon he will be perfect!! Happy New Year to you, Judy
If you really want to change your litter. I have introduced non-clumping litter to cats who have hated it but eventually learned to use it. I started by putting the non-clumping litter in the tray first and covering it completely with clumping litter. Each day I would gradually decrease the amount of clumping litter. If they didn't like it one day, I would put a little more the next day back to where they were comfortable. After time, I have always been able to convert them - it just took time and patience. Good luck!
diverting off topic a bit but
well Enzo will usually do his business whatever is in his tray so i thought i might just spoil him and get a big bag of worlds best........ he ended up thinking it was a huuuuuuggggggeeeeee food bowl and tried to eat it all!!!
needless to say he is back on the woodbased litter it makes a terrible mess but at least he doesnt eat it!!
Diwan did that when he arrived at home. He used to have silicate litter in his cattery so the fine clumping litter I had was the big hit with him.
He spent a lot of time in there especially as Cyrano wasn't very friendly with him at that time. He drove me crazy because he used his paw to scoop litter out of the box... and no, the door of the box was no obstacle... he pushed with his head to keep it open and helped himself with the litter.
I must say I was glad when it stopped after a month or so.
Clumping litters are not safe for kittens, although some feel comfortable with the organic ones that claim to release the clump if eaten.
My birman refused every non-clumping litter I presented him... I tried to switch them to other litters without any success several times. They just didn't go until I put their old litter back... And of course the fact that they tried to eat them all didn't really rock my boat either.