Hi all, so as some of you may know, i had a friendly mama cat come here and stay with us for a while with no known owner. After searching for months for the owner, going to the vet, and asking all the neighbors it seems that from the vet’s opinion she was dumped as she must have gotten pregnant was the only explanation. So since the mama cat had 4 babies and we already and one cat (unfortunately our other fur baby Luna was hit by a car) we made the decision to keep one. So i had given the other babies and their mama up for adoption as it would be cruel to care for so many babies and be as busy as i am, but now i have the issue of litter training him. He seems to be having trouble catching on where as my other kittens previously did not. Any advice would be great…
Hi! I’m new here and I happened to see your post. Being a mama to 4 cats myself I thought maybe I could help. The way I’ve always trained my kittens is to take their front paw and pull it through the litter the same way they do when they’re covering it up when they’re finished going to the bathroom. It just lets them know that that’s where they do that. I hope that helps 
It looks like @KerriEvan has some great advice! And hmmm, sometimes animals learn from each other- perhaps the new kitten will be able to pick it up from watching the older kitty? 
Apologies I don’t have much more to add, I’ve never litter-trained a cat before, so I’ll be watching along to learn too! 
Blessed be!
Having litter trained a few cats in my life, I agree with Kerry sometimes they just need to be shown how to do it and the other cat could potentially teach him where to use the bathroom.
I would also suggest that if he doesn’t catch on soon, try getting another litterbox. Some cats are very picky about where they use the bathroom and won’t share a litterbox with other cats. I had a cat like that recently. He refused to share a litterbox with my other cat so we had to get another one. That helped solve the problem!
Whatever happens, I wish you luck! Litter-training cats can be difficult, especially since we can’t speak to them or read their minds 
@MeganB oh dont i know it. My oldest cat is very very picky. She will only use a certain type of litter and she has to have a coved over it, but the door flap had to be removed. If we use the wrong litter she will use it right outside of it or pee in my bed. I actually had to buy a liquid resistant covering for my mattresses, one in my room and the other in the quest room
My cat is the same! If her litter is scented or too large of granules or something then she won’t use it.
My grandmother’s cat 
, lovingly called Prego (down to 11 pounds when my grandmother was with her from close to 15, we thought she was pregnant when we found her)… went to the litter box & when she would come out. Stand in front of it until my grandmother would get a baby wipe & wiper her bum…
Personally, I’m torn on my feelings about which one I could even side with at this point or who was more I don’t know 
, as it was now a thing that happened on a daily basis when she went in the litter box… 
That cat… 
I agree with @KerriEvan, I have done this as well.
It is also helpful to put the kitten in the litter box often, after eating, playing, and waking up. These are natural times to need to evacuate the bowels and bladder.
Bahahaha @Susurrus cats have such personalities!
So true, @MeganB and @Mistress_Of_Herbs cars can be super picky.
Merry meet, and thank you I have tried this and it is slowly paying off but he still tend to have little accidents here and there. I have seen him use the litter tray so when he does i do not disturb him but when he makes a mistake i just clean in with lemon scenting anti-bacterial wipes and let him know i am upset. Honestly he doesn’t seem to understand so i was hoping since i heard cats don’t like citrus smells he may not try to go there again
Yes i have been keeping my older cat inside at night so he is not lonely and also secretly hoping he sees him using the litter tray and copies. I also leave the dirty litter tray a day longer so he see that “oh that’s where that goes” i guess. I am afraid if i change it too quick he may not catch on.
Thanks it is but i am not so much in a rush to get him to do it but my husband is not a fan of little surprises here and there lol
I have tried the recyclable ones, clay and even the clumping but i have had the most luck with clumping…
Well she sure is given the royal treatment lol. I swear cats have a whole new level of personality and attitude they do
He’ll get the hang of it and the citrus is a great idea. You’re right! They don’t like the smell at all. I also use angry orange. It’s pricey but really helps with the smell. Best wishes with your training!!
It sounds like you’re on the case and are doing a lot of good things to help the new kitten learn the ropes- learning takes time, but I hope he catches on soon! 
Wishing you both good luck- blessed be! 
Hi 
I am a qualified feline psychologist and the first thing i would say is make sure you always have two clean litter trays. The general rule is one litter tray plus one per cat. So for two cats you would need to have three litter trays and so on
Most kittens prefer open trays until a little older when they feel safer in an unknown, enclosed space…each cat is different though.
Make sure the litter is changed frequently and that it isn’t to hard on the pads of the kittens paws…this can put many cats off of using a litter tray.
Don’t clean with a harsh cleaner which will take their scent away. Use a non bio detergent which will still allow them to recognise the tray/scent as their own and their own territory.
Please let me know if i can be of any more help 
Thank you this helps a lot. I have one litter tray set up outside for my older cat s he doesn’t like to stay inside too long and even then he is not using it, however with the kitten he is doing much better and haven’t seen an accident in the last few days. As you said i haven’t been washing it out with any harmful chemicals as for now it is generally clean and i use liners but if i have to i will use only detergent if needed. Thanks for the advice i really appreciate it
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