One of my readers (from When the Cat Is Away) asked yesterday how my human gets me to use the litter box before traveling. When I first came to live here, my human had the same question! She asked on a private therapy cat Facebook group, and one of the members told her what she did. So I am passing along the information to you.
The whole process of getting me to use the litter box started before I even went anywhere! My human kept track of when I used the litter box. Whenever she saw me there, she would tell me, “Go potty.” (She actually thinks it is a silly thing to say, but that’s the phrase the other therapy cat human used and she couldn’t think of anything better. You are welcome to use whatever you want. I hope you come up with something just as brief but maybe more eloquent.) Then after I went she would pet me and praise me and say, “Good go potty!” She did this every time she saw me in the litter box… in fact, she still does it.
This has basically become one of our many routines, and that is part of the secret. Cats thrive on routine. When you make something into a routine, it becomes a part of our life and we find comfort in the repetition. So keep in mind that everything that follows has also become routine with us. We follow the exact same steps, with slight modifications depending on where we are going, and for how long.
Eventually, my human would try to predetermine when I might want to use the litter box, and now and again she would place me in the litter box and ask me to “Go potty.” (After so much observation, she often guessed right.) If I did, she would praise me when I was done. This was how the two of us practiced before I ever traveled.
Then, when my human started taking me out places, the final thing she did before we left was place me in the litter box and tell me, “Go potty!” Since we’d been practicing this for a while, I knew exactly what she wanted me to do. I also knew that I’d get praise when I finished. So I went.
At first, my human wasn’t consistent about putting on my harness before our litter box routine, but now she always puts it on me first. That way I know she’s putting me in the litter box because we are going somewhere. It’s a signal that I’d better use the litter box now because I won’t get to again for a while.
Do I use the litter box every single time? No, because I don’t always need to go. And sometimes I dawdle because I don’t really need to go that badly. My human always saves an extra ten minutes of travel prep time for me to use the litter box in case I don’t go immediately. She says it’s the equivalent of kids not wanting to use the bathroom before they go on a trip. Putting me back in the litter box a few times is like a parent saying, “You’d better go or you’ll be sorry!” (I bet some of you humans out there heard that one when you were kids… maybe you even used it on your own kids!)
The funny thing is that I know how long I’m going to be away from home, and I behave accordingly. If my human is messing around with my therapy cat bag, or she has not been packing a suitcase, I know I won’t be gone for all that long. So I don’t always use the litter box if I don’t really feel a need. If she is packing up stuff, then I know I have a travel day ahead of me, and I almost always go those times. When I was coming back from St. Louis on Monday, I used the litter box right before we left, even though I had already used it just a couple of hours earlier. I knew we were leaving.
So that’s the routine. Here is an extra-added trick that my human uses to discourage me from peeing in the carrier. She slips me in and then gives me one of my favorite treats in the carrier. Instead of letting me take it from her hand like normal, she puts it on the bottom of the carrier. She knows that we cats don’t like to relieve ourselves where we eat, so this shows me that the carrier is not meant as a litter box. She still lines it with a pad, though, just in case!
I hope you found this helpful, or at least interesting, since I know some of you were wondering about this.
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Good idea
That sounds pretty easy but takes a while.
Great advice!
That’s interesting. I never heard of that kind of training before.
Good advice. Need to try it with Django since he is the traveling cat.
Bodacious
Pawsome!
That was very useful advice Summer. I am going to keep an eye on my mom to see if she’s going to try this method on us. I’m sure your human is glad that all that training worked.
Mummy always encourages me to,to go potty be for we go out but if its a long journey we make several stops so I can be let out to go toilet and have a nibble and she can use the rest rooms,it works out quite well,xx Speedy
That is really impressive, Summer. You are the smartest kitty we ever knew of! And your Human has more patience than anybody–we bet Binga and Boodie wouldn’t play this, though 😉
What a post. Much respect to you Summer – you are so cooperative and tidy. Äiti is wishing we were like that, in fact she wishes we’d all just use the litter boxes! But thank you for posting this, it was really interesting. We are also glad we do not travel though.
High five, Summerr. We think you are amazing. We cannot imagine our mom or any of us having the patience for that training. Guess that’s why we don’t go anywhere! XOCK, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, angel Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth, Calista Jo and Cooper Murphy
This is really amazing. The two of you have worked so hard to get you to being an experienced Kitteh of the World.
Wow, that is a good idea. I would never have thought of doing this.
Yael from Playing In Catnip
That is useful info!
Dog-guy can do the ‘pee on command’ thing…and we do make use of this a lot, when we travel long distances; when we need to be gone from the den for a few hours and he has to be cooped up indoors…esp in the winter or in too hot weather. We even have used that to ‘get a sample’, MOL!
( Else he stays outside, with access to the enclosed back porch with a heated bed and other amenities…)
You and your mom are so smart to do potty training.
Wow, that is super interesting, Summer! It all makes perfect sense, and it sounds like you and your human have that routine down pat!
this is great info, Summer! our mom used the “go potty” cue for Wriggley. she never thought to teach us! this might be good for us to learn so we don’t have accidents in our ptu’s when we go to the v-e-t. we may need to figure a way around the fact that any hint of going somewhere tends to make us run and hide…
pip, smidgen, minnie, hollie, sharpie, ditto
good advise
Mommy used to say ‘go potty’ to our sisfur Sadie and she knew what she was supposed to do too. The trick for me is I go every time Daddy cleans our box. Sometimes while he’s still in there cleaning the other box! Hee hee!
Purrs,
Angel
We always wondered too. Thank you for telling us how it all works and we think you are just so smart to have picked up on this so quickly.
This is so interesting! I have to be honest and say our mom would never have thought of this in a million years. Maybe she should start doing this with us because sometimes I tinkle a little in the carrier when I go to the vet. (Your human is so patient with you and does great things!)
I’d never really thought about it but it makes sense.
This is so great! I’ve often wondered how this works myself so thank you for solving the mystery!
Interestin’… You know, I bet this same technique could be used on adult peeps. Peeps who think drinkin’ a WHOLE POT OF COFFEE before drivin’ two hours to the city is a good idea. Of course, this bad habit doesn’t affect me personally. I’m never in the car with the silly peep who shall remain nameless but… BUT I HEAR ALL ABOUT IT AFTERWARDS. MOUSES!
HA! Not sure that would work with me. Mum has seen me use my litter box 2 or 3 times in the past 7 years. No training going on. She however will use the potty before she leaves the house! I have her well trained.
A post full of tips and tricks to make both cat and human more comfortable when you travel.
You are very clever. And so is your human. I doubt I could train any of my cats to go potty.
Very interesting ! It’s brilliant ! Purrs
That is such a good plan.
Thank you, that is a great insight into how to get to ‘do things’ right, as it were. I would have never have realised you had to go through so much, but then the furthest I go is about 7 miles to the vets and back again. Hardly worth a pitstop!
ERin
This is BRILLIANT! We often wonder if and how our kitties could go before that trip to the vet and now we have a plan. Thank you! We also do the treat in the carrier thing with a pad (and an extra) just in case.
With Jake, I carry a folding Sturdi litter box and a pee pad. He usually goes when he sees me packing, but not always. However, he usually signals when he needs to go, so I unfold the box and he uses it. Have we had some accidents? Sure…usually in the car when he is in his carrier and I can’t see that he needs to go. I’m going to work on this with Logan, too…but already Logan is skilled at going when he sees an opportunity: when we went out yesterday, he pooped in the weeds while we were waiting for the bus, and then he peed on the lawn while I was teaching him walking. He is really bonded to me (a bonus of getting him at 3 months instead of 4) and he has a great follow instinct. His first show is this weekend!
Your human is learning so many great cat training skills, it could turn into a whole new career down the line.
What a great post, Summer! I never thought about how you manage to travel and still be able to use a litterbox; now, you’ve opened my eyes!
Hi sweet Summer lady! You are such a good traveler and you have your human trained well! Do you sometimes sit on the seat in the car or do you always ride in your carrier? Purrs.
I’m always in my carrier. A couple of times, when we’ve been riding in a taxi or a Lyft, the driver has allowed me to come out and sit next to my human.
Hey pretty Summer: You know I was wondering about your routine, but hesitated to ask such a indelicate question. So, thank you and momma very much for sharing!
Even in a litter box, you look beautiful!
Look at that tail!!
Really interesting post, Summer!
This is a really smart system. Summer is such a good traveler.
Our mom’s been encouraging Caroline to go by taking her to the bathroom and staying with her with the door closed. We all know Caroline becomes a target for Ivan when she’s in the box, so that combined with her age inspired Mom to act. It works a lot of the time!
Bravo Summer.. you are so smart.
Mom told me when my sissy was a wee lass she used to tell her “never ever pass up and opportunity to potty ’cause you never know when you might get another chance’!
Hugs madi your bfff
That is interesting, Summer. Wally sees a vet that’s about an hour from here and the mom always tells him to use the box before he goes because she knows it will be a long time before he’ll be home again. He rarely does. Maybe he needs more training.
Wow! Thank you so much for your prompt answer!!! I was hoping to get a hint, maybe even a longer answer as this one in some weeks or so.
I’m orginally from Germany, but live in Finland. I sometimes travel with my cats to Germany when I visit my family. (My girls not so much into traveling like you are, Summer, so I only take them with me if I stay for more than a month). The flight isn’t that long (2,5 hours), but door-to-door adds easily up to 5 hours – a long time if you need to go … !
Your human’s approach makes totally sense, and I’ll try it out! Thank you so much!
That is pretty smart of your human and you (and the lady who shared the tip with your human). I don’t plan on traveling with our cats, but your post reminds me that I need to be more dedicated about doing things like playtime on a schedule to make it part of our daily routine. Thanks! 🙂
Now those are great ideas to litterbox training for traveling. Plus we cats are pretty smart and quick learners. You are one smart girl. Thanks for all the steps in achieving this. Purrs
Summer…your Human has dedication and discipline many have never experienced. That was sincere.
That’s a great routine pretty Summer and it all makes sense too!
That was most interesting.
Great tip for traveling with cats when you do that on a regular basis.
Purrs Georgia,Julie and JJ
My mom takes notes because shenever know what tomorrow may bring !
Thanks Miss Summer & your human
=^x^=
Thanks, Summer. Thank goodness we don’t travel much……