Let’s catch up. I got a new kitten and I was training her to use the toilet instead of a litter pan. Everything was going great with only a couple bumps when I forgot that in the middle of the whole process I had scheduled little Kumo to get spayed.

By this point Kumo was fully using the toilet, she just had a little set back with figuring out she needed to place her back paws on the toilet seat rather than in the bowl.
But her surgery meant no jumping on or off the toilet. It was back to the litter pan for a few days and I figured I’d start the whole process over. I mean, she’d only been using the toilet for one day. How well could the habit have set in?

Well Kumo had to stay with the vet for a couple nights and on the third day I went to pick her up. The vet said she did great except for one thing. The vet explained that she had put a clean litter pan in Kumo’s cage along with her food and water bowl. Then, with a puzzled look on her face, she said, “I can’t explain it. I’ve never seen it before, but your cat won’t use the litter pan at all. She just keeps going in her water bowl!”
When I stopped laughing I explained that Kumo was toilet trained. The vet said, “Ahhhhh!”

I took Kumo home. She’s not allowed to play or do anything active because of her incision so I had a nice, clean litter pan waiting for her in the bathroom. A day goes by and my little cat doesn’t go. Day two goes by and still nothing.

By the morning of day three it was clearly obvious that little Kumo was holding it and was desperately uncomfortable. I tried putting her in the clean litter pan and scratching litter around. She’d paw at it for a couple seconds then hop out. Nothing I did worked and I was just about to call Vet Missy when I noticed I couldn’t find Kumo anywhere.

Now I don’t live in a very big apartment and since Kumo was on strict orders to rest, I had closed all the doors to closets and bathrooms. There weren’t too many places she could be. I checked under the bed. Nope. Behind the TV. Nada. I was really starting to panic thinking she had somehow gotten out so I raced to the kitchen to grab her leash.

There was Kumo in my sink relieving herself in my morning breakfast bowl. I had left it soaking full of water. I had three simultaneous reactions: The first was relief she was safe and sound. The second was disgust she was using my breakfast bowl as a toilet. The third, and the one that finally set me to laughing hysterically, was the sheer audacity of the situation.

Guess that single day of using the toilet was more than enough to make Kumo a believer! I managed to break her of using the sink and eventually resort back to the litter pan by covering the sink whenever I was gone.
As for the breakfast bowl? For about 60 seconds I contemplated scrubbing it with bleach then washing it two or three times in the dishwasher. But even then I knew I could never eat out of it again. So I chunked it.

Maggie Denney is a long time companion to many cats and dogs as well as exotics ranging from reptiles and rodents to parrots and horses. She has volunteered at numerous wildlife rehabilitation facilities and spent time as a veterinarian assistant.

Ms. Denney taught marine biology on tall ships for five years in conjunction with organizations like the Catalina Marine Island Institute and the New England Aquarium. She is also an experienced horse trainer and trail guide.
Ms. Denney encourages feedback from her readers. If you have a pet question you would like featured in her column or would like to leave a comment, please email her at mdenney@current-breeze.com.