Toilet Training Your Cat

Are you tired of cleaning out your pet cat's litter box? If so, you might want to try training your cat to use the toilet. It may sound crazy, but it really is possible to teach some cats to use the toilet for their bathroom needs rather than using the litter box. Not only does this help you avoid having to clean litter boxes, it also helps you avoid getting that litter box smell in your home.

Getting Yourself Trained

When training your cat to use the litter box, it is important to remember that it is a step-by-step process that will take some time to complete. In addition, some cats are easier to train than others. Therefore, if you have multiple cats, it may take you longer to train one cat than it does to train another. You will also need to train yourself to make certain you create the best possible situation for your cat to use the toilet. Namely, you need to get into the habit of leaving the lid up and the seat down so your cat can get into proper position to use the toilet. You also need to get into the habit of keeping your bathroom door open when it is not in use.

Turning Your Attention to Your Cat

Now that you have trained yourself to create the proper setting for your cat, it is time to focus your attention on your cat. First, you need to simply move your cat's litter box so it is in the bathroom and located on one side of the toilet. Make sure you show your cat where the litter box has been moved to and give your cat a few days to get used to the new location.

After cat has become accustomed to the new location, put something under the litter box in order to raise it up about an inch. You might use a cardboard box, newspapers, a phone book, or anything else that can successfully and safely elevate the litter box a little. You will then continue adding height to the litter box until you have the box up to the level of the toilet. For some cats, you may be able to add a couple inches per day. Others may be less tolerant and you will only be able to raise the box an inch every few days or so.

Moving to the Toilet

With your cat now feeling comfortable with the height, it is time to move the litter box to the toilet. Then, after waiting for your cat to appear comfortable with the change, get a metal bowl and fill it with cat litter. This bowl will go inside the toilet bowl for your cat to use. If you are lucky, your cat will keep its front two paws out while it uses the litter box inside the toilet. If not, you will have to gradually teach it to keep its paws out. Either way, your goal is to get all four feet on the toilet seat with the front two in the front center and the back to straddling the sides. Teach your cat to keep out one paw at a time until it is finally keeping out all four.

With your cat successfully squatting on the toilet seat, you now need to start reducing the amount of litter in the bowl. Do this gradually until there is none left. Then, start to gradually add water to the bowl. After you have reached the stage where the bowl is quite full of water, you can remove the bowl and your cat will now be successfully toilet trained!

CS Swarens is the president of Find a Pet Online. 800 998-7065 For additional information on dogs, cats, birds, horses, and exotic pets visit the internet's pet resource including pet classifieds at http://www.findapetonline.com. Research over 430 pet breed profiles at http://www.findapetonline.com/breeds.html