1. Have As Many Litter Boxes As You Have Cats

It is important to have at least as many litter boxes as you have cats. In a multi-cat household, cats are by nature territorial and do not generally share well. Ideally, in homes with more than one cat there is 1 litter box per feline and then 1 extra box even, which helps to reduce this territorial competition.

Recommendation

Don’t feel you need to group all of your boxes in one location, by having boxes in different sections of the house you improve ease of access, the importance of which will be discussed in Rule 4. If you have a multi-level house, would you not prefer to have a toilet on each floor?

2. Use Unscented Litter Only

Cats can be incredibly picky, and this applies to their litter preferences as well. Many cats don’t like the scents applied to some litter varieties and will actually refuse to use them, choosing instead to do their business elsewhere in the house.

If you’re worried about trying to mask odour, it’s the next rule that makes the difference.

3. Keep It Clean With A Daily Scooping Regimen

This not only makes your home more pleasant and keeps your cat interested in using his litter rather than the floor, but it also is best for their health.

Benefits:

• Reduces litter (and urine / fecal), traction around the house. Because nobody likes poop tracks.
• Feline Urethral Obstruction, a byproduct of highly concentrated urine that produces crystals and debris that clogs the urethra, can be a potentially life-threatening condition if not caught early. A common cause for this is a filthy litter box a cat doesn’t want to use, causing the cat to instead hold its urine as long as possible in order to avoid the litter for as long as it is able.
• Changes to the frequency or consistency of your cat’s deposits can be a very good indicator of potential health problems. By scooping daily you’ll spot the problems early and even be able to provide your veterinarian with a fresh fecal sample.

4. Ensure Your Cat Has Unobstructed Access

Sometimes, as humans who wish to have a beautiful home, we try to get smart and tuck litter boxes away so they are quite hidden from the eye. As much as we like to conceal our cats’ dirty work, however, they aren’t always quite as enamoured with our efforts, and a litter box that is hard to access is often one that is left unused. Cats do prefer privacy when going about their business but it should not be hard for them to either get to their box or comfortably use it.

If you have questions about what types of litter to choose for your cat and home or how to best care for them, ask your veterinarian today.