Cat stands in litter box but pees outside (!)

[jack_aka_lake]

Any ideas? He’s an old, outside cat who comes in more now. He will use the litter box (large, rectangular & about 5” high) but stands in it and ends up urinating outside of it. Maybe an enclosed litter box with lid? Taller box?

[booktigger]

It could be that he is getting arthritic and unable to squat, so I would go for a covered tray and puppy pads.

[susand]

I understand the advise wrt litter boxes for arthritic cats is an LARGE, OPEN tray because they have difficulty moving around in a small or covered tray and also one with LOW SIDES as they can’t negotiate high sided litter trays very well. Soft litter, such as fine clay, rather than something like silica that is a bit sore on old paws is also something to consider. Also, avoid filling the tray with too much litter because if his paws sink into it that will cause him to have difficulties with balance and moving around.

As a human with bad arthritis, I can see the sense in this advice as I can see how difficult a litter tray could be for a little cat with stiff painful joints.

I agree with Booktigger that puppy pads round the tray are a good idea, if the above fails.

Other things to consider are putting little steps up to the bed and sofa as jumping will be painful. Make sure any shop bought or improvised steps are firm, not wobbly and are non slip otherwise pus may not feel safe using them and might decline to do so. I got some faux fur covered foam pet steps on eBay which are great and my cat uses them all the time for getting on and off the bed. The aesthetics of a set of faux fur covered foam steps in my bedroom are not particularly pleasing to me but hey.

[mr_frisky]

Anyone know where you can buy large, low-sided trays? There don't seem to be any on the internet.

[susand]

Pets at Home have some xtra large ones which are nice and big so try your local store. The sides aren’t especially low on the one I have but I’ve cut one side down to uses as an entrance/exit. You could also improvise, using an old roasting tin or a tea tray or something like that.


EDIT: I just put “litter tray for arthritic cat “ into Google and several came up. Cat’s Protection online shop had one that looked very good.

[Mollycat]

Anyone know where you can buy large, low-sided trays? There don't seem to be any on the internet.

How large are you looking for? So far the largest I have seen is around 20 inches by 13 inches, but unfortunately 8 inch high sides.

[Mollycat]

When my friend's 12 year old cat lost a back leg, they used a letter tray for the first days until she learned to hop into the normal low tray.

There has to be something somewhere for large breed cats ... some Maine Coon ideas here https://mrbosscat.com/best-litter-box-for-maine-coon/

[susand]

Scrolling down your “Maine coon link” Mollycat, there are a couple of excellent ones for mobility impaired cats on there. I think Walter may be getting a new litter tray for Christmas. Thanks for posting

[papa cat]

I have a similar problem with my cat, but he has persistent diarrhoea which sprays out on to the floor. I have tried a couple of options, both are equally successful
Two Litter trays
Get two litter trays (or a tray and a covered box with a low entrance) Place them end to end with litter in one and leave the other empty.
His natural inclination (as you have noted) will be to go into the tray with the litter in it. The empty tray will collect any spillage or overspray and you can clean it up easily. You could try something absorbent like puppy pads, flat (unshredded) newspaper or cardboard maybe in the first tray but he might mistake that for litter and the problem will not be remedied.
A doormat or litter mat
If you don't want two trays, lay down an area of thin plastic, a cut up plastic bag from the supermarket would suffice temporarily, but I have used a plastic carpet runner that is cut to the appropriate size, but if it is urine that may run off and still soil your floor.

A readymade option could be this
https://www.amazon.co.uk/GULLAMBO-Door- ... s9dHJ1ZQ==
or this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Elcoho-Machine ... 203&sr=8-3
or this https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09DN51QQ4/
or this https://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from ... _PrefLoc=1

Some of those are both absorbent as well as being waterproof and machine washable.
Be sure to order one that one big enough, CHECK THE SIZE BEFORE ORDERING I bought two of another brand and they were way too small and useless!

I eventually settled on the option of a mat, as it's slightly less intrusive.

[mr_frisky]

I had a look in Pets at Home today and there are Extra large trays, but sides are a bit high.

I decided to use a grow bag tray (very large and very low-sided).

[susand]

Good idea!