training cats

[Cate H]

Weare trying to get rid of our cat litter and encourage our cat to pee and pooh outside using the cat flap. She now has got the mesage about poohing outside but pees on the settee in carpets etc. Have tried to train her by pushing her nose in the pee, telling her off and putting her outside...this seemed to work with the pooh!Do we have to live with cat litter pemanently. We live in a rural area.

[TIGGERLIT]

hi
you should never ever rub an animals face in it, that is probably why she is peeing everywhere. at the moment its quite cold and cats do not like cold. i work in a pet store and the sale of litter trays goes up as cats dont like to go out in the winter. when a cat pees in the places where you are saying it means she is getting stressed and is trying to tell you. you are better off putting the tray down again and waiting till it gets warmer. you have to think about if you would like to go out and pee or would you rather stay indoors and do it? same thing. rubbing its face in it will make matters worse. you only have a couple more months then it will get warmer.

[ganesh]

I agree, cats are naturally very 'clean' animals and to push her nose in the pee must be awful for her and I don't think it works anyway.Have you actually put the litter tray just outside for a few weeks,then moved it gradually further from the house,then put some of the litter on the garden.
I am currently doing this for my kittens,and it seems to be working.
It is particularly wet and windy at the moment,so I don't blame her,it's very difficult to break habits with cats.
Make sure you get rid of the smell off the carpets as well,this may discourage her .
Good luck.

[LottieAnne]

Rubbing a cat's nose in its pee is just downright cruel. Also it has the opposite effect - it just encourages it to use that same spot again. Although I have a flap I also always provide a litter tray. If they use the tray I can see that they are fit and healthy and they are not making a nuisance of themselves in someone else's garden. Also a cat is very vulnerable when urinating or defecating outside. It is much safer indoors and probably realises this.

[genna3]

i agree with eveything that the others have said, it's mean and makes me angry, but you probably thought it would work.....on the other hand if all the advise you have already received doesn't work (which i doubt)then you can try a spray you can get from the pet shop which you squirt into the litter tray and then whilst constantly moving the tray towards door you continue to spray and then start spraying some outside in the garden etc, where you would like her to pee.

[Cate H]

thanks for your replies. I have never had a cat before (she was a stray kitty!) so am only learning! Remember the method I used (i.e rub nose in pee) was a method used in my youth to house train dogs which worked....making the pups welcome in any room of the house which is what I would like for my cat (and my cat would love this too!). Will put the cat litter down again and try once more in the summer. Thanks.