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October 2014 Moms
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NBR: Cats stopped using litter box to poop.

angeltennis3angeltennis3 member
in October 2014 Moms
Ok, I am at my wits end and need advice.

We went on vacation for a week and came home. We have two cats, and have always kept two oversized litter boxes for them in our basement, well away from their food and water. We clean them every 3-4 days. Up until our vacation, we have had zero issues with their litter box usage.

While we were on vacation, they must have bumped our basement door closed so they lost access to their litter boxes. So when my parents came to check on them 3 days in, there was a small amount of cat poop in our dining room. They cleaned it up, cleaned the litter boxes, and figured that was the end of it

They came back the next day to check, and the cats were still using our dining room despite having their litter boxes available and clean.

Once we got home, I hoped the behavior would stop, that maybe they were just upset we were gone for so long, but they are still using the dining room and I am home all day today.

Any advice on retraining them to use their litter boxes?
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Re: NBR: Cats stopped using litter box to poop.

  • bumpuser10309732bumpuser10309732 member
    Shut them in the room with the litter boxes for a couple days. Also once cats start going some where it's really hard to get them to stop because the smell is now there. At a pet store they have this stuff you put in the spots to get rid of the smell to the animals. It's made by nature's miracle and it gets rid of the smell. It's seriously awesome! I've dumped it on old spots and soaked up pee from the carpet pad. Super gross! ALSO you can mix white vinegar with water and soak the area. That also neutralizes the smell but of course it smells like vinegar. That fades eventually.
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  • Emerald27Emerald27 member
    Definitely what PPs said.

    Block access to the dining room however you can. Use something especially designed to remove the scent of cat feces to clean the floor. Keep the cats in close proximity to their litterboxes until they begin defecating there instead.

    Cats can be such little monsters! :P

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  • AargAarg member
    Are your cats male or female? When my mom was pregnant with my youngest sister, our female cat for about 3 weeks would not use the liter box at all and would use what ever room my mom used most often as her liter box. Our vet said that she was marking her territory before baby came.

    Could be the same thing.
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  • angeltennis3angeltennis3 member
    Thanks everyone! I bought some stuff to get rid of the smell for the cats and plan to use that after the carpets dry from a thorough shampoo. We also have two spare litter boxes we use for extra long vacations so I filled those up with litter, too. I sure hope this works!!

    Both cats are male. One is EXTREMELY attached to me so I think he may be the culprit. Little stinker...literally.
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  • k9agilityk9agility member
    You can also try feeding them on or near the spot where they were pooping. The do not like to eat where they poop. The other suggestions were all good and you you should definitely keep 1 more little box than cat! Good luck!
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