Some people will be outraged by the very thought of this,that such an intimate hygiene item as a toilet will have to be shared with a cat. And someone, on the contrary, approves of this prospect. Most cat owners will find a lot of positive aspects in the fact that the cat does its business not in a tray, but directly in the toilet: there is no smell, and the tray does not have to be cleaned every day, and the filler is not scattered around the toilet. And therefore, many cat owners think about how to train a cat to use a toilet. But, it turns out, there is already a whole system for training cats to use a toilet. This system has been tested (very successfully!) and approved by more than one hundred cat lovers. And if you have set a goal to teach your cat to use the toilet, then you should use this "method". However, for its successful implementation, you need to take into account some points.
Prerequisites
First of all, it is worth understanding what to teachA cat of any age can use the toilet. But! Training an adult animal will take more time, and if your pet is still too small, it simply may not cope with this "program". Therefore, it is best to accustom a kitten to the toilet at the age of three months to a year. And one more condition. Before you accustom a cat to the toilet, you must teach it to use a litter box. And only a litter box! Moreover, the litter box for it must be a permanent and "universal" toilet. If the cat litter box is not in the toilet, but in another place, then you need to gradually move it to the toilet. Do this by moving the litter box on the way to the toilet every day by twenty centimeters. Depending on the character and sense of "shyness" of your pet, this stage can last a long time. But you can start training only when the kitten goes to the litter box next to the toilet. If your kitten is accustomed to the litter box, is not capricious and is not looking for another “toilet”, then you can safely begin its training, which lasts about a month and takes place in several stages.
Growing to a new toilet
How long will this stage last?depends solely on the characteristics and temperament of your pet. On average, the first stage of training a cat to use the toilet lasts from ten days to one month. But it is possible that you will be able to grow to the new toilet in a week, and it may take you more than one month. The goal of this stage of training is to raise the tray to the height of the toilet. But you need to do this in such a way that the kitten does not even notice such “growth”. To do this, you need to gradually put newspapers and magazines under the tray, raising it above the floor by two or three centimeters (more is possible) per day. Calculate the speed of lifting so that in about ten days the tray “grew” to the same level as the toilet. But if the rate of lifting the tray that you calculated affects the behavior of the animal, slow down the speed. This way you will teach the kitten to jump into the tray, and it will gradually get used to the height. The main thing here is patience on your part. Do not scold the kitten or force it into the litter box, because you can only train a cat to use the toilet by its own free will.
Getting acquainted with a new toilet
As soon as the tray has grown to the height of the toilet,we move on to the next stage - reinforcing the skills. This will take two or three days, and also the innate curiosity of your pet. At this stage, the kitten should get used to the sight of the toilet. Most likely, he will not limit himself to simple contemplation and will try to explore this new and interesting object. Do not suppress the research interest. Give the kitten the opportunity to study the toilet seat. The main thing is that nothing scares him at this moment. Therefore, take care of the stability of the entire structure, remove the circle with the lid from the toilet, remove everything that can fall and scare the kitten, do not flush the cart into the toilet in his presence. Otherwise, a frightened animal will never want to master the toilet and, especially, use it as a tray.
Moving to a new toilet
And now the kitten is already on it (on the toilet), nothingis not afraid, jumps all over the toilet like a young goat, but still relieves itself in the tray. And a logical question arises: how to train a kitten to use the toilet as a tray? The second stage is just the beginning of such “training”. At this stage, the tray is moved to the toilet seat. How to do this? Also gradually: on the first day, the tray is moved onto the toilet by one quarter (three quarters rest on a stack of newspapers). The next day, the tray should already be half on the toilet, half on the newspapers. And if the kitten reacts calmly to all your manipulations and does not show dissatisfaction, then on the third day the tray is completely placed on the toilet. Having placed the tray on the seat, secure it (for example, with double-sided tape) so that it remains motionless when the kitten moves. And do not forget to remove the newspapers as far away from your kitty as possible. Otherwise, the kitty will use the stack of newspapers itself as a toilet.
Mastering a new toilet
The final and most important stage is"Weaning" the kitten from the tray. At this stage, you need to make sure that the tray remains in place, but is inaccessible to the kitten. Cover the tray with adhesive tape crosswise so that the kitten cannot fit in it. And do not forget to leave a free space between the "inaccessible" tray and the rim of the toilet, where the animal could relieve itself. Already accustomed to going to the toilet in this place, the kitten will use the free space you left for its intended purpose. Another option for the final stage. Remove the tray completely, and place (hang) a plastic strip ten to fifteen centimeters wide with filler poured on it inside the toilet. The kitten will be able to dig it, but not sit on the strip. And will be forced to relieve itself while sitting on the rim of the toilet. They say that this option is more effective and is less painful for the animal. Or you can try to do without filler on the tape. Just take the tray out of sight (and the newspapers there too), so that the smell that comes from it (no matter how well you wash the tray) does not provoke the cat to search. The animal will jump on the toilet, as usual and as it is accustomed to - and the tray is gone! And it is nowhere! What is left for a smart cat? Only to do its business, sitting on the toilet.
Possible problems and solutions
At the last stage, already inspired by successThe owner may be faced with the main difficulty: the animal categorically refuses to use the toilet and insistently demands that the tray be returned to it. Do not argue! Return the toilet to its place and try everything from the beginning. Well, and if it does not work the second time, then use a trick. Start cutting a hole in the center of the tray. First a very small one, then a little wider, then even wider, until only the sides of the tray remain. Throw away the sides, and rejoice at the success! This tricky method takes longer, but is also more reliable. Cases of complete failure in using this method are unknown (if, of course, everything is done according to the rules). The main thing is to be patient before training your cat to use the toilet. This process can be quite long, but the game is worth the candle. No smell, no spending on filler, no nervous meowing early in the morning (if the tray is full) - beauty! Both the owner and the cat are happy with their non-standard tray. What else do you need? We recommend reading:
