Tips for keeping cats in apartments? Potty and leash training?

Hi,I'm an apartment dweller with my 2 cats.Years back,my parents were moving to Florida,& I was in school,so I got an apartment & brought my 2 cats & Ruby,the 15 year old indoor/outdoor family cat along with me.

Ruby had a hard time at first.She sat in the windows all day-broke my heart! But at 15,living in a 2nd floor apartment-going out was a thing of the past.So,I tried giving her extra attention-lots of love,toys,treats.She finally adjusted...

I keep the litterpan in the bathroom,under the sink.One of my girls is a Maine Coon,so the pan is an extra large one.

I would definitely try training Rufus to use the toilet,but it's a lot for him-moving,staying indoors-& potty training? You may want to wait til he's comfortable in your new home before attempting it.

Asking here about harness types should get you some feedback-whichever type harness you decide on,put it on him every day for a while,then add the leash,letting him drag it around while you supervise.Then try walking with him,inside,before you take him out.

Best of luck to you & Rufus!

Have you thought about finding him a new home? It seems that he is likely to be quite stressful down-sizing. He will really miss the garden. Perhaps it would be much kinder if his new family had a garden. I tried once to get my cat to use the toilet, human toilet that is, but he would not do it. It is also quite inconvenient for you, because you have to have the cat seat on top of the toilet over the months you are training him, and you have to move it all the time when you want to use the toilet. Some cats may learn, but most won't, they are simply scared of the toilet, and they like to scratch in dirt or litter sand. Your cat has probably gone outside a lot in the past, so it could be very difficult to train him on the toilet. We keep the litter tray in the laundry area, but if I did not have a laundry, I would keep it is the bathroom. It is not easy to walk a cat on a harness and leash, you need oceans of patience, most people give up after a few tries. But if you have a very good relationship with your cat, and if the cat trusts you, maybe then it is possible. The best harness for a cat is the H one, but you need to get the largest you can find, for on most of the harnesses the band holding the the neck band and tommy band together is far too short, so when the cats bends down it is choking. The best way to go about it is to first get the cat used to wearing the harness inside without the lead. Don't use the lead untill you cat will tolerate wearing the harness, this might take a few weeks. Once your cat is comfortable with it, then use the lead too. The first walk should be very short and pleasant for the cat, and you just follow the cat and go where it wants to go. Stop when the cat stops, and never ever yank or pull the lead. If the cat does not enjoy his first walk, he is not likely to want to go again. You will never walk a cat like you do a dog. Cats want to sniff everywhere, they are easily scared of traffic noice, dogs, other cats, and people. I only take my cat walking to quiet areas, but he loves it. If you have a park area, take him there and let him go along the bushes and trees. Cats don't like open spaces, they feel scared and vulnerable there and prefer to walk along a fence, wall, or along trees, bushes and hedges, and they prefer walking in tall grass. When walking with a cat, dont ever expect to walk in a straight line from A to B. Cats are impulsive and follow their nose, if they see a bird they will rush for it without worrying about cars or anything, so keep a tight grip on the leash at all times, it only takes one second for a cat to pull the leash out of your hand, especially if it gets spooked over something. But if you have heaps of patience, and I mean HEAPS, and you are prepare for the cat to have a good time and follow behind it and let it lead you, then just maybe you will succeed. But not all cats a trainable, and even more so, not all human beings are able to train themselves walking a cat. It takes so much love and trust and bonding between cat and owner.

I live in an apartment and my cats are strictly indoors. Its safer and they are healthier. We mostly make sure we open the blinds and sometimes windows depending on weather. They like to sit up there and look out. My male cat does try to escape. He has never been an outdoor cat so he doesn't really run when he does get out.

We have 2 bathrooms. The second bathroom has something of a vanity and we place the litter box there. When we only had 1 bathroom, we set it in the 1 bathroom in front of the toilet.

Good Luck and I hope Rufus adjust to his new home.

I would try a vest harness. I have the H harnesses, but my cats have figured put how to escape it. Let the cat sniff the harness on the first day, put it best him, just let him get use to it. After a day it so, put just the harness on. He may stay close to the floor, refuse to move, etc. He will het use to it. Put it on for maybe 5-10 min, see how he reacts. Each day, increase the time he wears it a bit. When he is comfortable wearing it, put the leash on. Do this indoors first so he can get use to the feeling. Again, a few minutes at a time. When he is comfortable, try taking him outside. Let him lead,cats will not follow you and they will fight if you try to tug them with you. After a while, you can try to get him to follow your lead, personally I have never had success with days following my lead. Also, keep his claws clipped during this time since he may get anxious and you may need to carry him home.

As far as toilet training, stay away from citi-kitty, it is very flimsy. Although it is pricey, the litter kwitter is the best option. Itis easy to remove from the toilet so humans can go, you can go back of needed, and it is very sturdy. I believe they have instructions to help kitty adjust either on their site or in the manual.

i have a little German Shepard puppy too, she's 9 months now but ,she's been completely potty trained for a long time. Next time she has an accident in the house, wipe it up with something like a pad or a towel, and then put it where you DO want to her to go pee, she'll be drawn to the smell and it will help her go to the right spot to go pee. They also have this spray that is supposed to do the same thing, but it didn't really work so well with us. Just expect accidents cause the will happen, but be really supportive of your dog when she does the right thing, give her lots of praise. Good luck.

Does your little one look interested in the potty-chair or toilet, or in wearing underwear?

Potty Training is a massive phase for kids and parents alike and the secret to success is this https://tr.im/yYTuJ .

The system commence Potty Training covers a assortment of subjects. She talks about distinctions between training boys and girls. She has specific sections in the plan for specific needs children (autism, down syndrome etc) and also a section especially for twins/multiples, and older young children who could be more hard to train.

The very best element of the plan is the “bumps in the street” segment, which every single potty training mother or father will face for the duration of potty Trainingso this system is the greatest program for your child.

The breed matters because some dogs have to be trained differently due to certain natural instincts.

Learn here https://tr.im/rn8fI

This is how I trained my dogs, hope it helps:

Throw the toy, give the command "fetch" or whatever you use and have the dog bring the toy back. Don't let her know you have the treat. (If she knows, just hold it behind your back.)

Grab the toy still in her mouth and say "thank you". She should release, if not hold the treat in front of her nose. When she lets go, quickly praise her and give her the treat. Pet her alot too. Do this over and over. Then after a week or two, give her a treat one time, but not the next, giving her praise both times. If she does not bring you the toy, ignore her. When she does bring it to you, do as above.

When she plays tug of war, do the same, tell her "thank you" and put a treat under her nose and when she lets go, praise her and give treat. Give the toy back, sometimes they don't want to bring you the toy because they think you wont give it back (hence the "throwing it" part of fetch).

If she runs away with it, let her go. To her it's a game, "watch me make them chase me" is what she's thinking. If you don't show interest in it when she runs, she'll stop, but this will take time too.

Enrolling in training classes can help too. Just be consistant.

I play tug of war with my two Great Danes and there is never a problem. When I want them to let go I say "thank you" and they drop it immediately. Sometimes they win, sometimes I win when I say thank you. Its all about training and dominance. They know I am Alpha in the house, there is no question about it and I am consistant with training.

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It's important to understand exactly what needs to be done and in what order to have your child fully potty trained. Check out this method http://pottytraining.toptips.org/