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In the excitement of getting a new kitty, thinking about where to put litter boxes and dealing with that part of cat parenthood probably isn’t on the top of your mind. But your cat needs a sanitary and safe toilet as much as you do! So where is the best place to put a litter box?
“We always want to hide litter boxes,” says Laura Cassiday, a certified cat behavior consultant and founder of Pawsitive Vibes Cat Behavior & Training. “You don’t have to put one in the middle of your dining room, but it shouldn’t be in a dark corner of the basement with no windows, either.”
From bedrooms to basements, laundry rooms to garages, here’s the scoop on the best and worst places for your cat’s bathroom.
The Best Spots for a Litter Box
Here are four common rooms that make for good litter box territory.
1. Walk-in closets or storage areas
Roomy walk-in closets, spare rooms, mudrooms, and other storage areas check all of the boxes for best litter box placement. They often have the additional perk of not being in your direct line of sight. And the more open the space, the less likely your cat will stink up the place! Just make sure the door is open at all times so your kitty has access. To keep the door open and the dog out, consider a Door Buddy or FlexLatch.
2. Unused hallways
Open hallways are well-suited for a litter box pit stop, especially if it’s in the middle instead of at the beginning or end. A location like this can help minimize fighting over or blocking litter boxes in a multi-cat home. They give the cat using it plenty of room to access the litter box and multiple escape routes. Plus, if it’s in an area without lots of furniture in the way or around it, you won’t need to worry about stinky odors building up.
3. Finished basements and garages
An insulated, well-ventilated, mold and mildew-free basement can be a great spot for one of your cat’s litter boxes. The same goes for garages and workshop areas. Be mindful of any loud appliances and how accessible the litter box is. Because it’s at the lowest level of the house, it’s best to have a second spot for a litter box on a middle floor.
4. Bathrooms
If you’re stumped about where to put a litter box in a small apartment, the bathroom is your best option. A bathroom litter box is easy to clean and deodorize. And because you’ll be seeing your cat’s litter box every time you use the bathroom, you’ll be more likely to stay on top of scooping and cleaning it—a win-win for both feline and human.
If you have multiple cats, Cassiday says to be aware that small bathrooms in particular might make it easy for a cat to get trapped in or out by another cat who is being a bully. So keep an eye on the litter situation and make sure everyone is sharing.
Where Not To Put a Litter Box
The worst place for litter box is noisy, cramped, hard to get to, or near your cat’s eating and sleeping areas. “The only way your cat has to tell you that they don’t like their bathroom is to pee somewhere else, and that’s a headache for everyone,” Cassiday says.
Here are four rooms that Cassiday and DeVoss advise cat parents to avoid or rethink.
1. Kitchens and dining rooms
Keeping your kitty’s toilet where you handle and cook food is a recipe for disaster. You don’t want to raise litter dust in those areas, since both Salmonella bacteria and the Toxoplasma parasite can be transmitted from cat feces.
2. Laundry rooms
If you’re fortunate enough to have an in-home laundry room, it might seem like the perfect place to set up your kitty’s litter box. The problem is that for many cats, washers and driers are unpredictable and loud appliances. They can easily startle a kitty and lead them to have accidents outside the box. In the worst case scenario, the unsettling noises could cause them to develop an aversion to that location and stop using their box altogether.
3. An unfinished basement
Unfinished basements are often drafty, musty, and damp. They’re all-around unpleasant to be in for more than a few minutes at a time. On top of that, they also might house a noisy furnace or hot water heater with clanging pipes, hissing, and other loud sounds. Cats and humans alike probably won’t enjoy their toileting experience.
4. Under your bed
If you’re in particularly cramped quarters, it might seem like pushing your cat’s litter box under your bed is the best option. But sticking the place your cat defecates and urinates directly under where you sleep every night for five to eight hours might actually put you and your cat in harm’s way.
When the enzymes and amino acids break down in your cat’s urine, ammonia is naturally produced. If you stick your cat’s litter box under your bed where there’s minimal airflow, the ammonia will become highly concentrated. Some studies suggest that breathing in ammonia-heavy air can cause immediate breathing problems and a burning throat and nose in cats and humans. Frequent exposure could lead to long-term and chronic respiratory damage.
But your cat’s pee isn’t the only problem. Regularly inhaling in the particles and dust from some types of cat litter, like clay or silica-based crystals, has also been found in some studies to cause coughing, difficulty breathing, and lung problems.
ZoranMilisavljevic83 via iStock
Rules for Litter Box Placement
It can be easy to think about litter boxes as an inconvenience, but with some creative thinking and consideration for your kitty’s needs and preferences, it doesn’t have to be the worst. Here’s what to keep in mind.
- Put yourself in your cat’s shoes. “Would you buy a house with 3 floors who only had a bathroom in the basement? Thinking about if you would be okay with your cat’s situation can help put things into perspective,” Cassiday recommends.
- Keep it quiet. Avoid high traffic areas where human and other animal family members gather or pass. Noisy areas are also a no-go for many kitties.
- Get multiple litter boxes. To avoid disputes, you’ll need one litter box per cat, plus an extra. Some cats have finicky litter box habits, preferring to pee in one box and poop in another. The extra litter box can prevent accidents and behavioral problems.
- Make it easy to get to a litter box. If you have multiple floors, plan on one litter box per floor. Spread them out around the house. And don’t enclose the litter box or make it something your cat has to do acrobatics to get to, adds Molly DeVoss, Certified Feline Training and Behavior Specialist and founder of Cat Behavior Solutions.
- Don’t skimp on size. Just because you’d like the litter box to fit in a small corner doesn’t mean your cat can work with a bathroom that’s too small for their body. Aim for a box one-and-a-half times the length of your cat from the tip of their nose to their back end.
- Keep litter boxes away from eating and sleeping areas. Because cats are such clean creatures by nature, they consider having their essential resources next to where they poop or pee unhygienic, DeVoss explains. The exception is a scratching post; that can go near a litter box because both activities include territorial scent marking.
Andrey_Kuzmin via iStock
What If You Have No Space?
If you’re living in a small apartment, litter box placement is more challenging, but not impossible. If you have just one cat, your bathroom or a closet with the door kept open are solid choices.
“Cats usually accept a box placed in a large closet,” DeVoss says. “However, you’ll want to be sure to use a dust-free litter to protect the items in there with it.”
If you have more than one cat, you may need to consider putting your second litter box out in the open with a creative screen. “Placing the litter box in a corner of the room with a chair, or piece of furniture diagonally in front of it, helps to conceal the box, but still allows cleaning access,” DeVoss adds. “You can also conceal the box with a room divider screen.”