Issues with Kitty Litter pan

[Michele B]

We have several cats. Yes, we have several kitty litter boxes as well!

The problem is that since we've moved into a new place, the cats (maybe just one, but I don't know which one) has started scooping up the pee pads underneath the litter boxes and trying to scoop them into the box, too!

If I don't catch it and straighten out the pee pad, it then gets peed on, then I have to take everything apart and put a new pad down....something I only try to do a couple times a week, NOT every day or so.

When we moved, we moved into a newer place with nice, but vinyl wood-look floors where before we had tile. I never worried about the cat smell, as I was always able to clean up any "misses" from the tile, but I feel like now, the vinyl will hold any smells worse. Or the urine will get under the seams and destroy it in time.

See, we didn't use the pee pads on all the litter boxes before. Only one where an older cat has a tendency to hang her butt outside the box and pee, but now we cover the floor under all of them. So I didn't have to worry about the pee on the floor before, because the old lady didn't go into the other rooms, but now she can and sometimes does, so we prepared all the litter boxes. Now ALL of them are always scooped up and crumbled into the boxes. We use totes with a side cut out, as we have a "spray boy" as I call him! There isn't a litter box with sides high enough to hold in his spray except a tote.

My question is WHY do they insist on scooping up the pee pad and dragging it into the box? We've tried holding it down with something (like a chair leg where feasible), more litter, less litter, different litter....ACH!!!

Other than taping it to the floor (which I'm sure would damage the finish), I do not know how to make this new behavior stop.

Thank you for being here, and for any advice you might have!

[Ruth B]

My guess would be that the pee pad smell of pee to them, even if they haven't been used it could be they have a scent that is meant to encourage them to be peed on, and your cats are just trying to be clean and putting anything that smells of pee into the litter tray, where they believe it should be, (I'm assuming that by pee pad you are referring to what I know as a puppy training pads, something designed to help a puppy know were to pee).

My suggestion would be to get some large trays to go under the litter trays, you can get some for the garden, or for cleaning oven racks that are about a metre square, I'm not sure of your litter trays, but hopefully that would be big enough to go under them. They then catch any accidents and would protect you floor. Alternative put a cheap flat MDF board under the tray that will absorb all but the worst accident and isn't anywhere near as expensive to replace as the flooring. Pee pads placed on the board or tray around the litter tray rather tan actually under it might also be easier to clean up and replace if you feel they are still necessary.

[fjm]

Another option would be large pieces of vinyl, or plastic protection mats. Or even tile pieces of mdf with cheap tiles. Anything that is heavy enough to stay put and easy to clean, in fact.

[Michele B]

Thank you all for the suggestions!

I can look into getting a piece of vinyl "runner." A left-over piece from a roll.

We had some from a small closet we put a new floor in, and we used pieces of it under the food dishes. As you say, it's easy to clean up. But I have NO idea what happened to it after the move. Lots of stuff still missing.

I think I can even find some kind of the same pattern as our wood-look planks, so it will be less noticeable if anyone comes over (which doesn't happen often - since most of our friends claim to be "allergic to cats"). IMAGINE!!