Have you ever found yourself scooping your litter box and wondered why your cat so intently covers their poop and pee? Or maybe your cat is the opposite, leaving behind their poo sitting tall atop the mound of litter. In this blog we will discuss both behaviors and the reasons behind these behaviors.
Cats have long since found themselves somewhere in the middle of the predator prey food chain. They subsist in the wild by hunting small prey items such as rodents, birds, etc. all the while being prey items to many larger predators who wouldn’t hesitate to make this small feline part of its daily meal. As a result, the cat out of self preservation has adapted to covering their feces as a way of remaining undetected by both the prey items they are hunting, as well as the larger predators that may eat them. Survival instinct at its best!
Then why, you may ask does my cat not cover their poo when they use the litter box? There are several reasons that your cat may not cover their poo, and while it is linked to a natural instinct, it can also be a learned behavior passed from their mother when they are kittens. If a kitten is abandoned by its mother for any reason and has to be raised by human intervention, it may never develop the habit of covering their poo. Another reason cats may not bury their poo is because they are using it as a “mark” for their territory. In the wild a dominant cat may leave their feces exposed to let other cats, and other animals know that this is their territory.
Regardless of whether your cat buries their treasure or leaves it out for the world to marvel, the important part is that they get it in the litter box! Don’t forget to make your clean up quick and easy with KattekopLiner’s for litter boxes. They are tough enough to stand up to your cats natural instincts.