Household Pets: Problems faced during Litter Box Training

Not all owners are good trainers, but all of them do put in effort to discipline their pets and face certain challenges. The biggest problem is faced during litter box training. If there is a problem with the pet, it should be handled with care and the habit should be positively reinforced on it. Basically, the point is that the training method should be fun for the owner as well as for the pet.

If the animal excretes outside the box, it meant that the pet has a disliking for the box. The disliking can happen if the litter box is small, unclean and filled with litter most of the times. The box should be cleaned regularly and disinfected; otherwise an unpleasant odor will fill the area. Care must be taken that disinfectant doesn’t have a scented smell. If the smell is too scented or strong, the owners can switch to air fresheners and cleaners that have a mild smell. Another reason for disliking the litter box is because of its texture. Most of the pets like litters boxes not made out of hard clay but made out of a more fine grained, soft material.

Any good pet store will have a wide range of litter box collection. The owners can choose the most suitable one depending on the nature of their pet. If there is adequate place at home, an alternative to the litter box can be found. A particular corner in your lawn can be filled with soil, sand or wood shavings. The wood shavings shouldn’t be of coca husk or cedar as it can be harmful for the animal. Another good option for litter is laying down chicken feed. And if size is a problem with the pet, the owner should obviously get a bigger one. Usually the size preference will develop when the animal is growing big in size.

Some animal have surface issues, that is, they prefer surfaces with a specific texture. The preferable surfaces are clothes, carpet, bed and anything soft along with using the litter box sometimes. Pets which have been declawed can also develop surface issues. For such animals, the litter box can be replaced with a towel. It would be lot better than the animal excreting in beddings and blankets. And if the animal has already soiled places other than the litter box, those places should be cleaned with an intense enzymatic odor remover, because if the animal smells its pee, it will be going to use the object or place again to pass.

Pets can even have location preferences. In this case they won’t care about the surface provided to them. This is a lesser problem, because the pet won’t ignore the litter box and the litter box can be placed in his preferred location. Usually the reason behind this preference is because of the place being too cold or hot, or cut off or too busy but some places are unacceptable, as it can be unhygienic for the other family members and also that place will be filled with odor from the pets excreta. If the pet has a fancy to use a particular room, the owner can keep the door shut for that particular room. It should be denied access to that area. If the area is open, it can be disinfected by a very strong smelling cleaner. Commercial repellants meant especially for the pets are available in the market. Scat mats can also be used to cover up that area.

Pets can be very fussy sometimes. Some won’t like to urinate and excrete in the same litter box. If this is the case, they should be provided with two different boxes. Owners must try to reward the animal with food or toys, when it uses the litter box properly. This gives it more encouragement. Sometimes the animal can even have a urine marking problem. This condition can be successfully treated with the help of medicines. These medicines are used to alter the behavior of the animal. A good vet can be consulted in this regard.

Even after all these efforts, if the pet still insists of using the same location for passing, an acrylic blanket which is easily washable can be sewn with a waterproof material at the other side and can be placed. Disposable housebreaking pads are also available at most of the pet stores. This is even easier as once it gets soiled it can be simply disposed.

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