My cat stopped using the litter box!

[buttercup923]

in August of last year, I adopted two kittens.  They are now both a little over a year old.  They have consistantly used their litter box from day #1.  Today is day #4 that one of them had decided not to poop in the littler box!  He is still peeing in the box, but he's been pooping in the same spot directly in front of the litter box.  Any advice or suggestions???  

[teddybears4ever2]

The other thing that you have to make sure you are doing is getting the smell out.  If they smell cat bathroom anywhere they will continue to use it.  Baking soda, vinegar and water should get that out.  Have you tried placing the litterbox where he will use it?  Maybe you could put the litterbox where he is using it.  There are also some cats that don't like to share a litterbox.

[Cassandrajane]

We have 3 litter boxes around our house... in different places, but NO she still will not use them if they have been used, even if she was the only one who has used it...
But we are unable to get her spayed yet... Because we now need to save money back up as we just paid off our £200 vet bill from the kittens having Cat flu ( I always go to put swine flu haha)...
Try spaying her it worked for my other female cat, and we also used Shake and Vac.. the stuff you put down after or before hoovering. I can never remember, because she doesnt like the smell she wont do it... But its not working for our other cat (The one who will only go in the litter box once) haha
Good Luck, i suggest try everything and if they dont work then spay her (Just incase you want a litter)...BUT she has only started pooing and weeing in a certain spot since we moved house.

xx

[opus88]

there are situations when simply a cat doesn't like the location of the litter box!!
If its not private enough for them...to busy an area for example?
Or a new kind or used litter? also as cassandra has pointed out an unaltered cat can develop some strange behaviors.
hope some of these suggestions can help out. please continue to post and perhaps we can get others experiences with the same problem.

[Cassandrajane]

My cat who has just become a mum Only uses the litter tray if it hasnt been used before!! which is so annoying, But we cant put anything down because of the new kittens running around :( but she does it by the front door and it drives my mum SO mad... We tell her off but thats all we can do at the moment! whereas with my stepmums cat she put shake and vac down and she seemed to have stopped.... but she also got spayed and stopped as well...
haha

xx

[LindaTX]

Welcome, buttercup to the Cat Forum :)  I can't believe I have a story so similar.  My 2 kittens turned a yr old May 6th and when they were about 6-7 mo old we put them in the garage with their mommycat for overnight. We had had a bad incident with one of their littermates at 4 mo. outside with a dog, so we continued to keep the 2 of them in the house until they were almost a yr old.  They never did that in the house...always used the box.  Then in the garage with the same litter (kitty litter) one of them decided to poop outside the box...only one but I didn;t know which one.  There was nothing physically wrong with either of them, when I brought them back in the house they again would use the box.  Never did figure out which one for sure had dome it but when I started letting them go outside they stopped pooping in the box in the garage at night.  Has your cat been checked for a UTI?...or have you changed to a different litter?  Chances are it's only one of the kittens that is doing it unless you've actually watched both of them do it.  We live in the country so it has been possible to let ours go outside.