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Crazy Cat
I recently bought a large potted plant.
The problem is with my cat. He now feels
that this plant is a good place to go potty.
He is an indoor cat and he has a litter box he
has used for years. Since I got the plant though,
he would much rather use it!
He is slinging dirt all over the place and
I am sure his digging in there isn't helping
my new plant.
Any suggestions on how to get him back
into the litter box without having to
get rid of my plant?
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you should try and spray the cat with a little bit of water whenever he/she goes around the plant. just use an empty bottle of windex or something but use the same bottle every time. that's what i did when my cat used to go on countertops. it works pretty quickly, 2 weeks tops. it may seem cruel to spray a cat with water but in reality, it is just water and that's what cats drink so it can't be that bad.
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They make a spray. It is called Hartz Stay Off Training Aid. There is a link below to show you what it looks like.
What you want to do is spray it in the area around your plants (NOT in or on your plants!) to keep kitty away. Repeat the process every 24 hours until he stays away from your plants.
The dirt in the litter box trick works to a degree, but your cat will still be interested in your potting soil, since it is ok for him to use dirt in his box. But don't rule it out, because it can be effective. It just depends on the cat, really.
Aluminum foil does work at keeping cats out of places they don't belong, such as baby cribs before baby comes home, but I, personally, don't trust it in my house plants. Aluminum foil contains nasty chemicals that can seep into your plant's soil, considering the soil is damp.
Spraying him with water can be effective, but the downfall is, if he decides he still wants to use your plant to potty, he will continue to do so when you aren't looking, but he'll run like mad when he sees you with the squirt bottle.
The spray I told you about is what I found to be effective with my cat. He, too, was fond of our houseplants. The spray won't hurt him, and it has a strange smell. The smell is what keeps them away. It only took a few days to train him to stay out of the area where we keep the plants.
Which ever method you choose, remember: Consistency is VERY important with training your pet!
[Link](Mouse over link to see full location)
ygs-29/f
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DON'T DO THAT DIRT OR WATER-BOTTLE CRAP. WRONG.
I had this exact same problem with my cat and the answer is simple. All you have to do is make it not want to go into the plant. How? Get some alluminum foil. Place sheets of it around the base of the plant,then tuck the edges into the pot so the kitty can't see it before he/she jumps in. As soon as it jumps in the pot, the tin-foil will crackle, and send the cat into a state of shock, making it never want to jump into that darn plant again! Do this for about a week or until he/she stops jumping into the plant. I know it sounds weird but it is both hilarious and helpful. To this day, my cat has not jumped into our huge potted plant since the tin foil was put in. Good Luck! :p
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Try putting dirt in his litter box instead of the clay. And make sure he knows that you have made the change. Maybe two cups of dirt mixed with the clay will solve the problem, rather than filling the whole litter box with it. I would re-pot the plant if I were you, he probably urinated in it, and that is not good for the plant. If you don't want to keep dirt in the litter box forever, (and why would you) you could get some nylon net, it is like a mesh, they sell it at fabric stores, and wrap the pot in the nylong mesh. Gather it under the foliage and tie it with string. You can still water thru it. The cat won't be able to get in there and scratch around.
Michele
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you could say bad cat and squirt it with a water bottle when it goes to the bathroom in the plant and then throw it in the litter box.. lol that's what we did to our cat! because we all know its hard to punish a cat.
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The cat goes potty in the plant, because it's in his instincts. That's were wild cats go, so he just knows that. Think about it, if you were a cat, would you rather go potty in gritty litter that sticks to your paws, or would you rather go on soft, moist dirt?
As for a solution, you can get chemicals that will make the cat not like the plant, but those might kill the plant, or you could just get rid of the plant.
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