When a cat stops using the litter box, there’s always a reason. Your first impulse could be to shout at the cat, but remember that will just frighten and confuse your cat. Despite common belief, cats are not vengeful, and they  are not going outside his box to get revenge. We always want to end positively with our animals. So if mistakes happen and you can catch them or you see them on the carpet, put them on the litter and if they go, use praise.

In turn we need to analyzed and understand what may have triggered this change from your cat using to the litter to not using the litter, such as adding another cat, loosing a cat, declawing your  cat, or something terrorizing them may have inadvertently caused the problem.

Remember the longer the behavior persists, the more likely it is to become habit. If you have more than one cat, you may want to use a color stain to see what cat is going where.  Your vet can give you a special non-toxic stain given by mouth that will show up in the urine( if you want).

Since there is a type of surface upon which your cat eliminates soft rugs or tile you can modify your litter to match it. If she likes soft surfaces like carpeting, buy a softer, finer litter, and put a carpet remnant in her box. If your cat likes tile then put tile in the litter box with some litter over it.

Make sure your litter boxes  have a 360-degree view. This will give them confidence while they are in the box and make them less prone to ambush. Also, place the box so that he has more than one way out (i.e. don’t have the box surrounded on three sides). Finally, place multiple boxes in multiple locations to give your cat more options.

Cats may dislike the litter you use, especially if you’ve recently and suddenly changed brands. If you must switch brands, do so gradually, adding more of the new litter to the old with each cleaning. Most cats prefer their litter unscented, and an inch or two deep.

Finally, give as many boxes as there are cats in the house—plus one.This decreases competition and gives each cat a box of their own. This great for the cats and make sure that where their litter  stays it is in a calm, quiet and safe place.

If the dog scares your cat and they were in the litter, the litter can be seen as negative now and they wont use it. If your cat was declawed the feeling of harsh litter can also be a huge reason they are not using the litter. Finally the main reason besides sudden changes in the household is medical reasons.

If your cat has suddenly  stopped using their litter look to see if they are having trouble urinating or crying while urinating. This could be a UTI (urinary track infection). Common in male cats and something your vet needs to take care of. Also if your cat has a history of kidney or liver disease that can cause them to consume more water and thus pee more.

Finally spraying can be the last culprit. Even though unspayed cats are usually the one to spray 10% of neutered males and 5% of spayedfemales can spray. Spray is usually on vertical objects and can begin due to multiple cats in the home or feral cats outside.

Cats not using the litter is a hard and common battle but if you can pin point why your cat is uncomfortable then the solutions get easier.