How to train an adult cat in a tray?

The appearance of an adult pet in the house can be associated with a variety of situations - from the desire to make the animal happy from the shelter to receive an unexpected gift. In any case, the cat or cat will require attention, care, and a certain training, because not all tailed pets are ready to immediately learn the rules of behavior in the home. How to make it clear to the animal that it is necessary to cope with natural needs in a strictly defined place? Is it possible to once and for all determine this moment in relations with the animal and how to accustom an adult cat to the tray, if before that he lived on the street?

The first and most important thing that a person who has received an adult pet faces is the need to meet the basic needs of the animal. A cat or cat that is experiencing stress needs its own place to relax, eat, and have natural needs. Moreover, the process of accustoming an adult animal to the tray, even if it was previously familiar with this subject of hygiene, can be delayed for various reasons. For example, a pet may not like:

• filler, as well as its presence or absence in the tray;
• the smell of new plastic from the tank;
• seat chosen for the toilet;
• size or shape of the prepared cell.

Despite everything, cats are very clean animals, and they try to relieve physiological need in one specific place. It’s good if a new pet moves with its tray, so it will be easier for him to navigate in a new place.But most often, the training starts from scratch and it is better to be patient, because the cat is guaranteed to have its own view on the choice of a place for the toilet. These fluffy animals are predators and prefer to relieve themselves in places hidden from prying eyes. At risk are areas under the bathroom, behind cabinets, under sofas and beds, as well as any other dark corners of the new home.

A cat who lives on the street usually has established sanitary and hygienic habits and is deprived of a natural environment for himself, begins to use for these purposes completely not the items that the owner plans to offer him. In addition, an uncastrated animal may additionally leave odorous marks in an attempt to claim rights to the territory.

To make it easier for the new pet to get used to the tray, it is worth taking care of the availability of the hygiene item.

This restriction does not apply to closed toilets in the form of houses - with proper care, they can be located anywhere.

Before you start accustoming an adult cat or cat to the tray, you should purchase all the necessary materials to build a convenient and safe space for the animal’s toilet. This moment is especially important in those cases when the pet first has to master this skill. It is important that the tray is sized and with sufficiently high sides.

Allocate trays of closed and open design. In the first case, the product is produced in the form of a full-fledged house with a door and a system for filtering odors, in the second, ordinary open rectangular, oval or square shaped cuvettes are used. It seems that the purchase of a closed tray is the best solution for any pet owner. But in practice, for cats and cats living on the street earlier, such an encroachment on their freedom is a serious stress.

In addition, cleaning the tray with the box on top is significantly complicated by the features of its design. If the pet has health problems, the assembly and disassembly of the entire structure will have to be performed repeatedly throughout the day.

A much simpler solution is a regular open tray with sides. The best choice for cats are designs with fairly high sides, wide, where you can freely fit and even hide from prying eyes. Compact animals are recommended to install trays with low sides. The presence of a lattice is a plus if the animal dispenses with the filler or was previously familiar with such a toilet design.

Special cat litter is a real salvation for pet owners who do not practice free-walking for their pets.

But it is better to immediately accustom the animal to the purchased filler, with the preparation of which at any time of the year there will be no serious problems. It is proposed to use granules that absorb unpleasant odors, moisture and facilitate subsequent cleaning as a material for filling into the tray.

Among the most popular filler options available on sale are the following:

• woodymade from pressed sawdust;
• silica gelconsisting of transparent granules similar to those placed in shoes for protection against moisture;
• mineralmade from crushed raw materials;
• based on industrial waste.

The initial stage of accustoming the animal to the toilet is best done using wood fillers that have the usual structure for the animal.But do not forget about regular cleaning of used sawdust. As you get used to it, switching to silica gel as a filler will become a more hygienic option. It is much safer, hygienic, easy to clean.

Clumping mineral fillers are a good solution for owners who do not stay at home for a long time. At the habituation stage, they can be mixed with sand - this option is suitable for cats and cats that previously lived on the street. But even the highest quality and most expensive composition does not guarantee that the pet will easily get used to the new rules for him. Moreover, cleaning the tray, whatever the backfill material, will have to be done regularly.

How to determine the best place for a cat's toilet in the house? First of all, it is worth paying attention to the behavior of the animal. If it seeks to turn a dark pantry or balcony space into a toilet room, it will be enough just to provide unhindered access to the installation location of the tray, and a compromise will be found. But not so simple. A constantly open door to the toilet or bathroom can create discomfort for people living in the house.

Hallway is a poor choice for installing a tray. It is too noisy and lively, the pet will not be able to relax, feel quite free. In addition, the animal may simply prefer shoe shelves or shoes to the cat's toilet.

Another bad option is the kitchen. Here the administration of natural feline needs will violate the rules of sanitation and hygiene. In addition, animals generally prefer to share places for eating and going to the toilet. And watching a pet wishing to get rid of excess “ballast” while eating is still a pleasure.

In living rooms in Russia, a toilet for a cat can be found infrequently. But in Europe and the United States, trays of closed type, peculiar houses with a removable top, which greatly facilitate hygienic care, are most often used. With the right choice of filler and thoroughly cleaning the toilet for the pet, no extraneous odors will threaten the comfortable co-existence of a person and a cat.

Even an animal that is well acquainted with hygiene rules in a new place of residence may become confused and begin to use any suitable corners in the apartment as a toilet. It is very difficult to quickly train cats or cats that previously used free-range walking in the tray. Teaching them new skills will be quite difficult. But it’s even more difficult to get a street cat to observe hygiene habits, if previously he simply wasn’t familiar with them. Nevertheless, these problems have a solution.

• Compromise approach. If the place is chosen correctly, but there are some problems with accuracy, sometimes the owner himself should compromise. In general, cats do not mind using the space of a bathroom or a toilet for a toilet. But the animal can cope with its needs in the completely opposite direction from the tray. And here it is better to simply move the cat's toilet and give the pet the opportunity to quickly adapt to new conditions for him.
• Difficult access. If the acquaintance with the tray took place, but the cat or cat stubbornly chooses completely different, not too suitable places for the toilet, it is worth making the animal difficult to access dark corners and secluded sections of the floor. With no choice, even the most moody pets are usually sent to the tray. But you should not relax. Once choosing a convenient place for himself, at the slightest opportunity, the cat will again use it as a toilet.
• Full control. With the complete absence of hygiene skills, it will literally be like a kitten to teach a cat to walk in a tray.That is, to attribute the animal to the place of departure of natural needs at the slightest sign of anxiety, after a long sleep, or after about half an hour from a meal. It will be useful to scrape the pet’s foot over the filler - the usual action will calm him.

For marks left in the wrong place, thorough cleaning is mandatory, as well as the use of sprays that repel the animal.

It can be difficult to accustom an animal to a tray that has lived on the street from an early age and has no idea of ​​basic hygiene. However, incidents happen when you change your place of residence with domestic cats. Among the most common reasons for a complete refusal to visit the selected tray host can be noted as follows.

• The need to share a toilet with several animals. Many cats are simply not ready to use the same cuvette as their relatives, preferring an individual latrine. The problem is solved simply by purchasing an additional tray.
• Health problems. If your cat regularly leaves tags where it’s not, you may need to consult your veterinarian about her illness, chronic stool disorder, or urinary incontinence.
• Poor quality or oversized filler granules. Here the problem is solved exclusively by experimental means.
• Wrong seat choice, inconvenient or too tight tray design. It is also worth offering a new member of the family various options for the design of the toilet, experimenting with the size and place of installation.

Having eliminated all the causes of discomfort, you can easily find a compromise even with a cat who grew up on the street and solve the problem with her toilet once and for all.

Other tips to help train your cat in the tray can be found in the video below.