Training Your Cat - Toilet Train Your Cat

Training Your Cat - Toilet Train Your Cat
An intelligent cat is not necessary for training your cat – even to toilet train your cat. My cat does not appear very intelligent but I still found it fairly easy enough to train her.
You need a litter box that gives your cat plenty of room to move and it must be low enough for your cat to climb over. Try an automatic cleaning box which can be bought for $70-$100 at any Target , Wal-Mart or pet shop. The automatic cleaning type has a rake that scoops the feces  into a storage bag.

Or you could use an old baking pan, a plastic container or a cut down cardboard box. Line these with plastic liners such as plastic garbage bags.

There are many commercial cat litters available. When training your cat, avoid scented litters. Many cats do not like the smell and so you may find it difficult to toilet train your cat. Also avoid using clay clumping litter for young kittens as accidental ingestion can be dangerous. You want to toilet train your cat, not kill him! You can use shredded newspaper or soil or sand from your garden.

Place the litter tray in a quiet area because cats like privacy and make sure your cat knows where it is.

Do not allow your new cat full run of the house. Contain him to the room you spend the most time in so you can watch him and make it easier and quicker to toilet train your cat.

To toilet train your cat place him in the litter box a couple of minutes after he has finished eating and a couple of minutes after he has awoken from a sleep. Cats  prefer to bury their urine and feces. His instincts may take over and he will begin to dig and scratch at the litter by himself. 

Give him some time to sniff around. If he doesn't start scratching, take hold of his paw and simulate a digging and scratching motion.

When your cat uses the litter box give him lots of praise. If he doesn't use it don't force him. You must never use a raised voice to toilet train your cat or you may make him afraid of it.

Establish a routine of placing your cat in the litter box each hour. He may not want to go every hour but this will reinforce the idea of where you want him to go. It also helps avoid too many accidents. If you see signs that he is about to go, pick him up without scaring him and place him in the litter box. Once your cat has used the litter he leaves the smell of  urine which will encourage him to use it again. Make sure the litter box is always clean as cats do not like using heavily soiled litter boxes. Scoop out feces frequently, change the litter and wash litter boxes once a week.

More interesting and informative information on training your cat can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat_intelligence#Using_the_toilet