Total Cat Mojo: The Ultimate Guide to Life with Your Cat

by Jackson Galaxy

Nothing can fray your nerves faster than dealing in the moment with an ongoing litterbox issue. No matter how bad it gets, however, it’s so important in those moments to step away from the cat! Remember, all you are doing is ramping up the anxiety, trying to punish when they have absolutely no idea why, all the while doing things in the name of “training” or “teaching a lesson.” So remember: Do not pick up your cat and carry him to the litterbox. Do not rub his nose into his pee or poop. Do not put your cat into a time-out because she peed outside the box. Do not lock her in the bathroom with a litterbox and a dish for the next three days (or God forbid, three months). Do not yell at her. Your cat will have zero idea, after about two seconds post-accident, why you are acting the way you are or doing to them what you are doing (or, through your “discipline,” what lesson you are trying to teach). Literally, all you can do during this process is collect the data, clean up the mess, and move on. Armed with just a few frames of the movie, you’re in no position to assess and in even less of a position to act upon what you see. Besides that, as we discussed in chapter 9, punishment just doesn’t work, so just don’t do it.