As every cat lover knows, the companionship of a feline friend has no equal. But the unpleasant task of keeping a litter box clean and odor free leaves much to be desired. Nobody wants the daily chore of scooping cat waste, picking up tracked litter off the floor or dealing with the dust and heavy bags of litter. A unique alternative to the litter box is to train your furry friends to use the bathroom toilet.
If fears of dear puss slipping into the toilet bowl has you a bit squeamish, rest assured that puss has no interest in taking a swim, either. Fact is, with the success of special kits to assist the cat in making the transition from litter box to toilet, you’ll wonder why you didn’t make the change sooner.
The way the kit works is to give the cat the idea that the litter box has simply been changed to a new location. Cats instinctively dig a hole to do their duty, and a younger cat will typically re-cover the waste once they’re done. Older cats tend to develop the habit of using the litter box and leaving the waste exposed in all its glory. While young cats are more quickly trained, older cats make the preferred candidates for toilet training despite their bad habits and their age.
The process begins with the insertion of a special plastic pan manufactured to fit the peculiar shape of the rounded toilet bowl. This tray literally suspends the cat’s familiar litter over the toilet bowl, with the cat completely unaware of the water below. The cat simply does their business in the way to which they are accustomed. Interesting thing is, the special tray is just a bit flexible: not so much as to dump the litter into the bowl, but enough to make the cat uncomfortable about walking around in it.
In addition, there isn’t as much room in a toilet bowl space as the cat is accustomed to in the spacious area of the litter box. Puss will tend to feel more comfortable with this new arrangement by delicately perching on the edge of the toilet seat while dropping the waste into the tray.
The learning process should not be expected to progress quickly, however. Cats are extremely habitual animals, so the transition to the bowl may take a little time for them to become comfortable with the idea. Removing the old litter box is a must for the training to proceed with success, giving the cat no other option than to use the litter in the toilet.
The tray will need to be taken from the bowl and replaced after humans use the toilet for their own relief. Having a second bathroom toilet for this part of the training is obviously the easiest way to go, but training can still be accomplished with a shared toilet despite the temporary inconvenience. As long as doing away with the litter box altogether is the desired outcome, the short training period will be well worth the effort.
Once the cat is using the toilet without incident, the amount of litter is gradually decreased until there is no litter in the tray at all, with the waste going directly into the tray. At this point the tray can be removed altogether and the cat is completely trained to use the toilet. The toilet seat must remain open using this technique, but the convenience and the relief from litter box duty will result in a more pleasant experience for everyone.
