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Pawing at litter...
I have two wonderful rescue cats whom I have lovingly dubbed "Crazy"
and "Lazy." Crazy was a stray that I took in after a co-worker found him and offered him up. I've had him for almost a year now. He's been to the vet, had his shots and, aside from being overweight (which is being addressed with diet and play), is perfectly healthy. But he's appropriately named, because he's driving me nuts. I suppose it's because he was a stray and had to take measures to ensure that his scent was covered in the "wild" suburban landscape, but Crazy paws at the area around the litterbox. All around the litterbox, which I keep in a spare shower stall (because there's absolutely nowhere else to keep it). I'm talking standing up on his hind legs and scraping (with his non-declawed front paws) at the tile until the noise makes my teeth itch. Did I mention that this generally happens at around 4 am? It's something akin to: Crazy (around litterbox): "*SCRAPESCRAPESCRAPESCRAPE*" Me: *waking up, angry, shouting groggily* "Quit that!" Crazy (chastized): "Mew?" *silence for half an hour, then repeat anew* At this point, I would kill a man for a decent night's sleep. I understand the logic behind it (burying his scent, survival mechanism, etc.) but that doesn't mean that I like it or that I know how to stop it. This cat does the same thing around his food dish (attempting to "hide" his leftovers from predators or competitors), which doesn't bother me so much because it's not as loud. As I said, moving the litterbox isn't an option (when I lived in my last apartment, the litter was in the laundry room and the pretty little freak scratched the heck out of the washer/dryer with this pawing) and he's perfectly healthy. My other cat doesn't do this, but she wasn't a stray (she was rescued from a bad situation). It doesn't help matters that Crazy does all of that pawing yet doesn't even bury his poop! Any suggestions at all would be welcome by both me and my employer, who doesn't believe "the cat kept me up all night" as an excuse for falling asleep on the job. |
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Pawing at litter...
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#3
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Pawing at litter...
Buddy's Mom wrote: Just my opinion, but perhaps Crazy is doing this to awaken you. And, it is working! So... Any suggestions for stopping the behavior, short of pretending to be asleep (which gets old after 45 minutes of claws scraping on tile)? I can't wear earplugs, because I wouldn't hear the alarm in the morning! |
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Pawing at litter...
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#5
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Pawing at litter...
I would try a couple of things, such as putting a rug under the litter box with an adhesive that you can remove later (ask someone at Home Depot for a recommendation). Then he can scratch the rug but you won't hear it. Or could try putting two way tape all around the litter box. He won't scratch that for long! Of course litter will stick to it and it will be a mess, but it may break him of this habit. See, maybe I wasn't entirely clear, but the issue is that he scratches the *wall* - the tiled wall of the shower stall. I may try taping a small rug to it, but I doubt that will work in the long run. I'd rather break him of the habit than muffle the sound. Another option might be to get a little sound machine and set it to play white noise to drown out the scratching noises. Wouldn't work - I'm a heavy sleeper, so white noise wouldn't even come close to drowning out the nails-on-a-chalkboard noise he makes! Thanks for the suggestions. |
#7
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Pawing at litter...
wrote in message oups.com... I would try a couple of things, such as putting a rug under the litter box with an adhesive that you can remove later (ask someone at Home Depot for a recommendation). Then he can scratch the rug but you won't hear it. Or could try putting two way tape all around the litter box. He won't scratch that for long! Of course litter will stick to it and it will be a mess, but it may break him of this habit. See, maybe I wasn't entirely clear, but the issue is that he scratches the *wall* - the tiled wall of the shower stall. I may try taping a small rug to it, but I doubt that will work in the long run. I'd rather break him of the habit than muffle the sound. Another option might be to get a little sound machine and set it to play white noise to drown out the scratching noises. Wouldn't work - I'm a heavy sleeper, so white noise wouldn't even come close to drowning out the nails-on-a-chalkboard noise he makes! Thanks for the suggestions. Hi, I am having a similar problem at the moment. I don't allow my cats in my room at night, as three of them are under 1 year, decide to play or fight at 3am and I never sleep. One of my girls, however, thinks it's her room and has recently started scratching the door. Very loudly, for a long time, at all hours. So I share your frustration. One thing that works (partially) is tying some noisy, inconvenient things such as pan lids or wire coathangers onto bits of string so that they hang over the area the cat scratches, so that when the cat scratches, the objects get in their way and also make lots of noise. Hard to sleep through, but it worked for a while. Now I am trying the spray bottle. The minute she starts scratching, I open the door a crack and squirt her thoroughly. try and do it without them seeing you, as it will then seem like the direct result of them scratching. As my girl's very bright, she seems to be getting the message. Make sure you only do it while they are scratching, and stop as soon as they stop, so they get the message that it's about the scratching, not the room or the shower. Just some ideas, hope they help. |
#8
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Pawing at litter...
I don't think I'd try spraying this cat while he's scratching, since
he's in a litter box. She could very well train him to stop using the litter box if he's disciplined or scared while in it. I think I would do all possible to find another place for the box. Is there any other corner where it will fit? You can put a pretty screen in front of it so it is out of view if that's the problem. Good luck, Rhonda meeee wrote: Now I am trying the spray bottle. The minute she starts scratching, I open the door a crack and squirt her thoroughly. try and do it without them seeing you, as it will then seem like the direct result of them scratching. As my girl's very bright, she seems to be getting the message. Make sure you only do it while they are scratching, and stop as soon as they stop, so they get the message that it's about the scratching, not the room or the shower. Just some ideas, hope they help. |
#9
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Pawing at litter...
"Rhonda" wrote in message ... I don't think I'd try spraying this cat while he's scratching, since he's in a litter box. She could very well train him to stop using the litter box if he's disciplined or scared while in it. Absolutely, I agree. I was under the impression that he was outside the litter box, scratching at the shower walls. It would depend whether this was his 'litter ritual' or whether he is just scratching for attention. Do yuo know whether he does this everytime he goes to the toilet, or just at night time? If he does it every time, then Rhonda is correct, don't spray him. It's likely that he feels it's not sufficiently covered, maybe a larger litter box with more litter? Does he like to dig a big hole? Try just putting it in the middle of your loungeroom at night so he can't scratch any nearby walls. I'm not sure. meee I think I would do all possible to find another place for the box. Is there any other corner where it will fit? You can put a pretty screen in front of it so it is out of view if that's the problem. Good luck, Rhonda meeee wrote: Now I am trying the spray bottle. The minute she starts scratching, I open the door a crack and squirt her thoroughly. try and do it without them seeing you, as it will then seem like the direct result of them scratching. As my girl's very bright, she seems to be getting the message. Make sure you only do it while they are scratching, and stop as soon as they stop, so they get the message that it's about the scratching, not the room or the shower. Just some ideas, hope they help. |
#10
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Pawing at litter...
clearly my reading comprehension skills need work!
What about double sided tape on all the shower walls? It shouldn't hurt the tile, and he will hate it. wrote: I would try a couple of things, such as putting a rug under the litter box with an adhesive that you can remove later (ask someone at Home Depot for a recommendation). Then he can scratch the rug but you won't hear it. Or could try putting two way tape all around the litter box. He won't scratch that for long! Of course litter will stick to it and it will be a mess, but it may break him of this habit. See, maybe I wasn't entirely clear, but the issue is that he scratches the *wall* - the tiled wall of the shower stall. I may try taping a small rug to it, but I doubt that will work in the long run. I'd rather break him of the habit than muffle the sound. Another option might be to get a little sound machine and set it to play white noise to drown out the scratching noises. Wouldn't work - I'm a heavy sleeper, so white noise wouldn't even come close to drowning out the nails-on-a-chalkboard noise he makes! Thanks for the suggestions. |
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