Cat using pot plant as litter-tray..
By coffeeshot
@coffeeshot (3783)
Australia
October 19, 2008 2:45am CST
My cat is house trained but for some reason thinks that he can go to the toilet in the pot plants in my bedroom.
As a result all of my indoor plants are now outside in the shade, so that Alfred can't make a mess in them.
Has anyone else experienced this? Mind you, this is the cat that for months and months used to roll in his own poop..and I couldnot figure out why. As soon as I moved back into my parents house he stopped this, but has started going to the toilet in my plants. I need a cat psychologist!
4 people like this
13 responses
@slickcut (8141)
• United States
19 Oct 08
My daughters cat does the same thing.i would suggest that you sprinkle ground red pepper around your house plant,it will not hurt the plant & the cat will not like it.I do this outside in my flower beds and it does work wonders...As soon as they get a whiff of red pepper they will not like it..it also will not hurt your cat,he might sneeze but thats about it...
2 people like this
@crazydaisy (3896)
• Canada
19 Oct 08
Do not feel bad about that I bought a big spider plant and put it on the dinning
room table I kept water it and it was getting smaller so I ask my friend did you
know any difference in it he laugh and told me that the cat was eating my plant
that is why it is so small.He waits till I water it and go to town on it I watch
him he is so smart he thought I did not see him he hides, as far as him using
it as toilet no way the cat likes the bath tub some times...Keep the litter tray
clean so they will always use it...
cd
2 people like this
@coffeeshot (3783)
• Australia
20 Oct 08
Ha that's funny.
He had a litter tray in the room, wasn't interested, would rather the pot plant! Then proceeded to fling dirt everywhere all over my floor...
@Loverbear (4918)
• United States
20 Oct 08
What kind of litter are you using? I had the same problem with my cat. I would get up in the morning and was greeted with "YOUR CAT POOPED IN MY POTTED PLANTS!!!!" I went through this for about three months when I finally figured that the cat didn't like the litter. I changed the kind of litter I used and haven't had a problem since. I was using alfalfa pellets because the deer would come and eat them. As soon as I changed to scoopable litter the problem quit.
Is your litter scented? Sometimes the scent offends the cat and they won't use the litter. Is it a chunky clay litter? Maybe you need to switch to scoopable which is more refined and softer on the bottom of their feet. That might be the answer as the potted plant soil is softer and gentler on their feet.
I also have to clean the litter box twice a day as I have one cat that will poop on the floor if the litter box isn't clean enough.
If there were a cat whisperer, they would be a bit on the crazy side as cats are soooo different and harder to figure out.
1 person likes this
@coffeeshot (3783)
• Australia
20 Oct 08
He doesn't use litter anymore however I did have a litter tray in my room for incase he needed to go during the night. It only had paper in it, which he was happy to use..he only used it occasionally. I also have my two dogs sleep in my room so perhaps he was marking his territory..or his potplant.
@Loverbear (4918)
• United States
21 Oct 08
Some cats just don't want to use a litter box, so it's called give up and supply them with their own "pot" to pee in, Just hope that they don't demand a window to throw it out of!!! 
I did see a type litter that is made out of old newsprint. Also you could run news papers through a shreder to see if that would satisfy the cat. I've never heard of a cat that didn't want to use a litter box... Except for Murphy, the cat who used my Mom's potted plants until I changed the type litter I used. Maybe it could be the resin from the potted plants that attracts the cat.
I will say it could be worse. I had a cat that loved to drink from the toilet. Instead of standing on the seat to lean down and get the drink he would crawl inside the toilet. I lived in Montana at the time and when I would come in from the cold I would really need to pee. I would rush in the bathroom, drop my pants, sit down on the seat, feel something soft and furry and loose it and pee on the cat. He had more showers during his life both from getting peed on and from getting the pee washed off. He never did learn...
I did see a type litter that is made out of old newsprint. Also you could run news papers through a shreder to see if that would satisfy the cat. I've never heard of a cat that didn't want to use a litter box... Except for Murphy, the cat who used my Mom's potted plants until I changed the type litter I used. Maybe it could be the resin from the potted plants that attracts the cat.
I will say it could be worse. I had a cat that loved to drink from the toilet. Instead of standing on the seat to lean down and get the drink he would crawl inside the toilet. I lived in Montana at the time and when I would come in from the cold I would really need to pee. I would rush in the bathroom, drop my pants, sit down on the seat, feel something soft and furry and loose it and pee on the cat. He had more showers during his life both from getting peed on and from getting the pee washed off. He never did learn...
@tamarafireheart (15384)
•
19 Oct 08
Hi coffee,
Your cat may have been strees when he was away from your pareents house but now he is back, he is still stress from the move, you may have to talk to your vet, save that you should try and put cat pepper in your pot plants. Hugs.
Tamara
2 people like this
@onlydia (2808)
• United States
19 Oct 08
There is a spay you can but to put on the soil of your plants. It is supose to work. My cat was a cat from heck. We had to move as the torn down my old house. In new house she descided to only use cat box for poop and only once for pee. was peeing on clothes and son's work clothes. I think it was because we had to move. As kept cat box clean. So there are spray's to keep them out of your plants. have a nice day.
2 people like this
@Debs_place (10520)
• United States
20 Oct 08
Did you really mean pot plant or potted plant. They must see the mud as a natural litter box. That would be the only thing I could think of. In nature a cat would use the ground for a litter box -- the same thing your cat is doing.
@annjilena (5618)
• United States
20 Oct 08
well that is interesting my sister had a cat she bragged how clean this cat was but on entering her house it always had a oder but the house appeared to be clean.however when she got ready to move. we moved her bed and underneath her bed was nothing but fecal matter as far as you could see piles of it and she had a litter box out for the cat.from that moment on iam inclined to believe cats are not as clean as people say they are just look under your furniture you will see if they are using that litter box or not.
1 person likes this
@scarlet_woman (23465)
• United States
20 Oct 08
he could be stressing about the move and doing anything to get attention,good or bad.
or he may just prefer natural litter.you might want to switch to the cleaned "natural" litter they sell in some pet stores.some cats just hate the feel of the clay-based litters.
@drannhh (15219)
• United States
19 Oct 08
Do they have a cat whisperer, you know like the dog whisperer or the horse whisperer? Well, the only plants we have are growing in liquid nutrient solution, so if we had a kitty s/he might try to drink the "water" and get sick, but certainly none of that other stuff! Good luck getting this resolved.
1 person likes this
@coffeeshot (3783)
• Australia
20 Oct 08
Yeah, I think it would be very difficult being a cat whisperer because cats are so bloody complex!
@littleowl (7157)
•
19 Oct 08
Hi coffee' tht is funny...unfortunatley I couldn't tell you the reason for that! He obviously seems happier going poop that way though 
animals can do crazy things..but not even my dogs can beat that one! littleowl
tht is funny...unfortunatley I couldn't tell you the reason for that! He obviously seems happier going poop that way though animals can do crazy things..but not even my dogs can beat that one! littleowl1 person likes this
@coffeeshot (3783)
• Australia
20 Oct 08
Sometimes I do think that my cat is high.
1 person likes this
@chelsea_logan (13)
• United States
19 Oct 08
Our cat did that for a while too. It turned out that sometimes the bathroom door (where the litter box was) got closed, so he couldn't get in and used plants instead. Also, if we didn't keep the litter box really clean he wouldn't use it and would resort to house plants. Whenever we found that he had been using a plant, before cleaning it up we would go get the cat and physically put his nose in the mess and talk to him harshly. He got the message pretty quick that using the plants was a no-no. We used the same tactic to potty train him in the first place, so maybe there was some connnection there...anyway, it worked for us!
