More kitten madness!!

poconnor16

Hello good people of the Boards,

you have recently helped me with my new 7 week old kitten, answering all my concerns and helping me sleep a little better at night.

Well I am glad to report she is now 3 months old and in great form. An absolute bundle of madness!! So now I need some tips on teaching her what 'no' means.

Most of her behaviour such as curtain climbing, claw sharpening, getting into everything I tolerate - kittens will be kittens. But her latest game is not good. She is fascinated by her litter tray and its contents. So now she likes to jump into it, kicking all the kitty litter all over the floor (and the other stuff it contains), chasing it around etc. Is there anything I can do to discourage this?
I dont want to give out to her when she is near the litter tray as I am afraid she will be confused and stop using it.
She understands a strong, firm NO in all other cases - but not when it comes to this?


Help! There is litter everywhere as I speak....LOL:rolleyes:

Shenshen

poconnor16 wrote: »

Hello good people of the Boards,

you have recently helped me with my new 7 week old kitten, answering all my concerns and helping me sleep a little better at night.

Well I am glad to report she is now 3 months old and in great form. An absolute bundle of madness!! So now I need some tips on teaching her what 'no' means.

Most of her behaviour such as curtain climbing, claw sharpening, getting into everything I tolerate - kittens will be kittens. But her latest game is not good. She is fascinated by her litter tray and its contents. So now she likes to jump into it, kicking all the kitty litter all over the floor (and the other stuff it contains), chasing it around etc. Is there anything I can do to discourage this?
I dont want to give out to her when she is near the litter tray as I am afraid she will be confused and stop using it.
She understands a strong, firm NO in all other cases - but not when it comes to this?


Help! There is litter everywhere as I speak....LOL:rolleyes:

*lol Educating cats is sooo tricky, they always seem to manage to get the message completely wrong.
So maybe if you got her one of those big covered litter trays? Something like this?

Caroline_ie

My 6 weeks old kitten buries socks in the litter box. She has done it 3 times since I got her last saturday

DeadlyByDesign

:)I know all about this one. A solid no is really the best you can do. As it grows older it will learn that this is not a productive activity as in general cats do not like their own mess. Your one seems to be a bit mental though and has taken to playing with it.

Cats in their nature will follow a "guideline" of what they are and are not allowed to do. They very much play by theri own rules, such is the nature of our feline friends.

MsFifers

I think your kitten will grow out of a lot of that crazy behaviour. They are really only that manically playful for the first year and then get a bit more (a bit!) calm.

Have you lots of other things for the kitten to play with? If it has fun other stuff to divert it away from the litter box & curtains, that might be your best approach.

I find cardboard boxes to be the best toys for cats - you can cut doors & windows in them and toss in some feathers & screwed up bits of paper for it to kick around. They have great fun poking their paws through the holes & jumping in & out. Ref: http://www.simonscat.com/thebox.html

I had a piece of carpet once that was the best thing ever for the kitties - I rolled it up into a tube & they crawled through it, rolled around & unravelled it with their claws etc.

A good tall climbing frame is great for a kitty that loves to climb. I have a thing called Kitty Hide & Play that hangs from the back of the door & has lots of holes & levels for them to hang out in.

Make sure you rotate the toys & get new shapes of boxes etc or else they get bored.

Zapperzy

Paper bags with the handles cut off are another favorite, as are corks from bottles of wine.
If you don't go for a covered tray then you could try a normal tray with a lip going around the edge, we use one for our cat anyways because she can be a bit determined to cover her pees/poos sometimes. :rolleyes: Most petshops sell them.

poconnor16

These are all fantastic ideas, thanks guys!

I might invest in a covered litter box; just hope she will use it.

She has loads of toys, so no worries there. But I think it might be a great idea to rotate them as advised. I have her ruined with them all laying about the place. I have to try to cardboard box thing as well, she would love that. She is a huge fan of chasing a tennis ball out the hall way. When we get in from work she practically demands this by running out the hall, waiting for us to throw it.

She is an extremely hyper kitten, but I wouldn't have her any other way. God love her she was a frightened ball of fluff the day I rescued her so it's so great to see her now.

Thank you to all, again!!

irish1967

Simons cat !! lmao. Classic ! So true.

Shanao

Cats really are insane when it comes to climbing in and out of things. We've got a big covered litter tray (thankfully this cuts down on them kicking the stuff out by a lot) but one night, one of them managed to drag a bath towel into the litter box!! Feckin' loonies. The covered litterboxes are great though, cuts down on the smell and the litter all over for the floor. You might have to take the door off it at first though until she's used to it; some kittens cant really figure it out for a while.

poconnor16

Well, went to MaxiZoo last night and picked up one of those covered litter boxes - bobs your uncle! I left the door off for a while to let her get used to it, but after some sniffing around and hopping in and out, she christened it.

It actually the cutest thing ever....kinda pink with designing on it. Far nicer than my bathroom...hahaha

poconnor16

Oh and here she is looking up her next purchase on E- Bay..:)

Caroline_ie

since we're talking about ebay, I got this collar for my kitten. I got a kitten size but she's still too small for it.