toilet train my cat

Well, Thistledown has been doing her business in the toilet consistently for a while now. Poop is the only touchy issue…apparently she likes her privacy, so in the morning I’ll shut her in the bathroom for an hour and it’s like magic. I go in there to let her out and there’s little kitty poops in the toilet. I never thought I’d get that thrilled over catshit!

So. Foil around the toilet, no more CK, and about two tablespoonfuls of litter on the back of the seat.

MY CAT POOPED IN THE TOILET ALL ON HER OWN! SQUEEEEEE!

I guess I’ll keep the litter on the back of the seat for about a week, and then start to slowly decrease the amount if she continues to poo regularly in the toilet. YOU CAN DO IT KITTY

All right, so I’ve had something of a setback. I visited my folks for six weeks, and since Thistle could not be persuaded to go #2 in the toilet my mom insisted on bringing back the litterbox. Oh noes! I was really frustrated.

Fortunately, although Thistle did use the litterbox for some #1, she prefers the toilet. Once, when I was in the shower and cut off her access to her “litterbox” bathroom, she went to another bathroom, where my mom was hanging clothes. The toilet lid was down, so she hopped in the tub, squatted over the drain, and peed. Ingenious.

My only problem is poo. She holds it for a week at a time, which makes me worry that she’ll give herself megacolon. And when she does go (and go she does…a week’s worth of poo is a pretty epic amount) she doesn’t usually use the toilet! She does sometimes, but not always. She’s dead-on about the peeing, but the poo is hit and miss.

I just took the poo that she deposited behind the toilet and chucked it in the bowl, in the hopes of her getting the idea. I also spread some litter on the seat (like many of your cats, the litter seems to seal the deal). I hope that she gets better about this, because if she keeps holding it I’ll have to go back to the litter for her health!

I just put down aluminum foil (again!) and am so frustrated I could spit.

Woke up this morning to find another pile-o-poo neatly tucked under the rug. Dang it, kitty, you were pooping in the toilet just fine a week and a half ago!

Will clean rug and remove it from bathroom. It’s obviously far too tempting. WTF, Thistle! Now I’ve got to hoof it to Safeway for more enzymatic cleaner and some quarters for the washing machine.

Any suggestions for keeping my cat from crapping on the floor?

So Thistle has been a rockstar about the whole thing. I never had to worry about her paws being on the seat or accidents…that is, until I removed the litter and just left the last plastic CK ring. She seems to enjoy piddling in the toilet, but #2 is just too much to ask. The other day I went to go straighten out the bathroom rug (she loves to rat it up for fun) and I discovered a big pile of kitty poo, which she had thoughtfully covered with the rug. How thrilling.

A few big sighs and a great deal of enzymatic cleaner later, we’re back to having litter in the ring. And guess what? She pooed in the toilet bowl today without a fuss. Now I’m trying to figure out how to break her of the litter habit. She doesn’t use the litter – she just likes it there for emotional support, I guess. Any words of wisdom?

Thistle’s been very good about using the CK – not a single accident yet! She doesn’t like pooping in it though, so she just decides not to poop until she can’t hold it anymore. Nevertheless, she does her business in the CK and once in the bowl. Huzzah!

Just took out the third ring. Is it just me or are they a royal pain to remove? I’ve cut myself on the plastic before (ewww…at least I’d washed it).

Hey! I finally got a CK and am doing my best. Thistle was wary at first, and she had loose loose stools the first week (stress?) but some lactobacilla turned that around. Now I’ve punched out the first ring, and not all is well. She’s peeing just fine (even aiming for the hole! Yay kitty!) but so far, no poops. I can’t find poops anywhere else, and her tummy seems full, so I think she’s just not passing them. Any advice? She doesn’t seem distressed, she’s got a good appetite, she’s hidrated and her coat is groomed, so I don’t think she’s painfully constipated. I think she’s just hoarding.

EDIT: Five minutes after I typed this, I found kitty standing proudly over a ton of poops in the CK. MUCH PRAISE!