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Refining litter training and behaviour or a losing battle!?!

Jerseylotte

Warren Scout
Firstly, our little boy The General is incredibly well behaved in general, very little digging, chewing, messing behaviour.

He has the kitchen where his house is 24/7 and access to the lounge continuously when we're home.
In the kitchen he treats the whole of his indoor cage as his loo, there is a corner litter tray in there but he's always poo'd in an arc around it too (basically he'll stand outside of the tray and eat the hay triggering poo time...) No poo's in the kitchen though, only ever had one wee accident in there.

From the beginning while we didn't want him to have full access to the lounge (still training in the kitchen and didn't want him overwhelmed) we would bring him out to socialise with us on the sofa for up to an hour at a time, he'd settle down at onto of a vivarium next to the sofa, as soon as he'd accidently drop a couple of currants he'd go back to the kitchen.

I think this led to a little confusion, once he was allowed full access to the lounge he behaved very well, except that he saw the sofa as his second toilet... Not too often, but he'd jump up there to have a poo and three times succeeded in weeing aswell before being removed. He completely ignored his litter tray provided in the lounge at this point.

We then stopped him from coming on the sofa at all, at which point he started to use his litter tray in the corner.
Problem is this.
He will jump in the tray and sit there for a wee and a poo, then after doing 10 or so, he'll jump out to go elsewhere and drop 3-4 on the way off, like he forgets to finish or the association isn't neat enough and the whole zone is viewed as fair game...

I personally feel that unneutered, this is quite impressive already, the dry poos in one area even if they aren't in the tray don't really bother me. But the other half isn't too chuffed about it.

Is there a way to refine his association with the tray or do we seriously think that while he remains unneutered this is as good as it gets???

Thanks!!!

Lotte*
 
Sounds like a good bun to me - my girls will use their assigned litter tray in side...except Arrabella wee'd on a cushion the other day on purpose too!:roll:

My girls will often drop there poo's as they jump out the litter tray too....and will occasionally just poop when they want....I think its marking their territory abit....

Not sure if anyone has a bun that never poops anywhere excep in their tray...maybe....anyone?:?:)
 
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