I got a weird problem involving both of my cats (Siegfrieda, to the left; Kika, to the right).

Kika is rather particular about having her own litterbox(es), and refuses to use a litterbox shared by another cat. Frieda on the other hand is adept to the “if I fits, I sits, I shits” philosophy, and is totally OK sharing litterboxes.

That creates a problem: no matter if properly and regularly cleaned, the only one using litterboxes here is Frieda. We had, like, five of them at once; and Kika would still rather do her business on the patio.

How do I either teach Kika “it’s fine to share a litterbox”, or teach Siegfrieda “that’s Kika’s litterbox, leave it alone”?

  • Dr. Wesker@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
    14·
    6 months ago

    I had a cat like this. The only solution was to scoop the litterbox multiple times a day, so it always seemed fresh.

    There are also auto-cleaning boxes.

    • Lvxferre@mander.xyzOP
      17·
      6 months ago

      Even when cleaned, she still refuses it. I think that she smells “the annoying kid used this box, now it’s ruined forever!”. The only solution is to clean the litterbox with alcohol, retire it from usage for a few days (so she forgets about it), and then reintroduce as if it was a “new” litterbox.

      As such I don’t think that the auto-cleaning box would help either.

      • Dr. Wesker@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
        7·
        6 months ago

        I know there are feeders that use a collar tag to only allow food to specific cats. Maybe there’s a litter box with a door that has the same tech?

        • Lvxferre@mander.xyzOP
          5·
          6 months ago

          I’ll give it a check. If this exists (and if it’s available in Brazil, and reasonably priced) it would solve my problems really well. Thanks for the idea!

          • Dr. Wesker@lemmy.sdf.orgEnglish
            8·
            6 months ago

            I can confirm they make pet doors with this technology. If you can’t specifically find a litterbox that has it, you could build a DIY box that does.

      • atx_aquarian@lemmy.world
        2·
        6 months ago

        I like the “private bathroom” ideas better, too, but, if you find yourself having to make a constant cleaning strategy work, after all, then on top of cleaning, perhaps try using something like Elimin-Odor after cleaning (if you didn’t already try that) to specifically neutralize what she might smell? They claim it’s designed to neutralize odors enough that a cat won’t associate an “accident” spot with future bathroom eligibility.