Pet training guides: Housetraining your cat | Newsolio

One of the most frustrating aspects of owning a cat for many people is getting kitty to use the litter box all the time, every time. This article will outline some simple tips, and a bit of basic cat psychology that will make housetraining your cat painless and effective!

Pet training guides: Housetraining your cat

First and foremost, it is important that your cat knows where the litter box is! This may seem overly simplistic, but it?s amazing how many folks will bring home a new cat, turn it loose in the house and expect it to find and use the litter box all on its own. A very well trained cat may, but for your average cat, or especially a kitten, that?s a great way to make your carpet (or couch, or bed?) kitty?s favorite new place to go potty! Before you bring home a new cat, it?s a good idea to have a single room set up where you can contain the cat for a few days to a week before introducing it to the whole house. This will give the cat plenty of time to get used to where the litter box is, and learn the correct place to relieve them selves. Most cats are very clean by nature, and will happily use a box if it is convenient and comfortable for them. Establishing a good habit is much easier than breaking an old bad habit.

Once your new cat is comfortable using the box while contained to one room, you can let him roam the house. If you have a young kitten, it is a good idea to take the kitten to the box to relieve its self after eating, or first thing upon waking up. Kittens don?t have the control an adult cat has, and can find themselves with the sudden urge to go too far away from the box to make it (much like human children who are learning to use the toilet!). If you have a very large, or two story home it is a good idea to have more than one litter box to ensure it?s always more convenient for your cat to get to an appropriate place, than an inappropriate one.

If it?s clear that your cat knows where the litter box is, but is still not using it 100% of the time then you will need to move onto further problem solving. It?s important to keep in mind that cats learn much better from positive reinforcement than from punishment. It is much more effective to praise your cat for doing good, or prevent an accident from happening than it is to punish your cat after the fact.

If you have a cat that has always been good about using the litter box, but is suddenly going in other places it could be an indication of a health problem. Many cats will urinate in inappropriate places when they have a bladder infection (and a heavy worm load can cause inappropriate defecation). In this case, taking your cat to the vet for a check up should be done before you take any other corrective actions.

Once your cat has a clean bill of health, he will hopefully go back to using the litter box. Or, if you have a new cat that is having issues the following are some suggestions that may help:

First, make sure all the areas where the cat has urinated or defecated in the past have been very thoroughly cleaned. The best cleaners for eliminating pet smells are those that contain active enzymes. If you have moved into a new home, and the former owner had pets it?s a good idea to go ahead and thoroughly clean all the carpets and floors.

Second, take into consideration any changes in your cat?s environment. Have you added a new pet? A new baby? Changed your schedule? Cats are very sensitive to change, especially the addition of a new cat. It may be necessary to have a litter box for each of your cats. If there have been other changes in your life, spending a little extra time petting and soothing your cat can sometimes help.

Third, it is extremely important that the litter box be kept clean. Many cats will refuse to use a dirty box. Ideally, the box should be cleaned at least twice a day. Picky cats may require it to be cleaned after each use!

Fourth, make sure your litter box is comfortable for your cat. Make sure it?s not too big, or too small. Some cats will refuse to use a covered litter box, some must have their privacy! It may be necessary to try a few different litter boxes and see which one your cat prefers. If you have a small kitten, make sure the kitten cat get into the box!

Fifth, make sure you are using a litter that your cat likes. There are so many different litters on the market now from very fine textured clumping litters to very coarse recycled wood and paper litters. If you are changing litter, do so slowly adding a little more of the new litter each time you change your cat?s box. If you are unsure of a new cat?s preference, again, just experiment and see which he prefers.

Sixth, again? make sure the location of the box is convenient for your cat! If it?s in too high traffic of an area, or too far away from where your cat typically resides it very well may go unused.

And last, but not least, make sure you praise your cat any time you catch him ?in the act?. It?s important that your cat understand he?s doing good when he uses the box. By making the litter box a comfortable, convenient place to go and letting your cat know you are pleased with his use of the box you should have him reliably housetrained in no time!

Source: http://newsolio.com/pet-training-guides-housetraining-your-cat,1835

google tv cornel west marzieh vafamehr marzieh vafamehr lady liberty lady liberty the rum diary