How much do you protect your CH cat?

[Medusa]

The advice I would give when she decides to do stairs is not to try to help her, not to move forward towards her or make her hesitate at all in her movements. The one time I started forward with horror when I saw my Miss Z. climbing the stairs in a lurch, rear back to almost falling, throw herself forward and grab method, she froze and then almost fell completely backwards. I was too far away to help her and I almost caused her to break her neck. I can't put anything soft at the bottom of the stairs because she would pee on it.

Those of you with litter box trained CH cats are lucky. No matter what method I've tried from advice from various sources, Miss Z. has never used even the lowest litter boxes even those with strong side supports. She mostly pees on newspaper in the bathrooms, or at least on the linoleum floor (I have to put the lights on full if I have to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, a horrible thing to do to my eyes but better than stepping in pee or poop.) She's always used whatever soft stuff she can find on the floor. I had to rip out all my carpets, can't have rugs, and can't even leave a cloth on the floor when I've had plates of wet food down. Most annoying of all, in spite of having two bathrooms, one litter room downstairs, and a corner of the living room cordoned off just for her with a square of linoleum and newspaper, if she finds her preferred place is at all dirty, she won't find another, she will simply poop or pee on the hall or bedroom floor. I've always sworn that if I gave her a forty acre field as her litter area, she would poop just inside the field and then refuse to use it again if the poop was still there when she returned. It is, of course, based on her desire not to soil herself since she almost always falls over when she pees and poops.

I also leave Miss Z's claws alone, she's always wearing them down anyway with her climbing.

After reading other responses on this thread, I'm inclined to think my Miss Z's fear factor is higher than usual. It really is extreme.

It can be amazing watching these cats get where they want to go. Like other CH cats, Miss Z. does claw and scramble her way onto sofas and beds, etc. There are times recently, however, when she almost seems to levitate herself onto the sofa. I see her jump upwards, don't see her move forwards, and all of a sudden she is on the couch on all fours.

When Creamsicle first came to me, her CH was so bad that she couldn't stand. She just simply fell over and flopped like a fish out of water. When she could finally stand, believe it or not, she became litter trained in the birdseed that fell from the feeder. From there to the litterbox was a natural progression. Perhaps give that a try?

[lvpets2002]

I will say with my four of watching them from kitten to full grown is they learn on their own of their abilities & or not.. They learn how to handle climbing & potting in the litter box & just getting around in general.. Now I know with my Taccoa & Zolene their litter box has taller sides than the others.. Due to both babies use the sides to lean on for support..

[emily_the_spoiled]

So far the primary litter box issue we have is that sometimes she doesn't make it in time because she is asleep and doesn't wake up in time Needless to say I have been washing my sheets/blankets much more frequently...

[lvpets2002]

Oh for sure on that.. I also with Zolene have learned the true meaning of having Baby Wipes.. Zolene has long hair & sometimes she falls or just sits in the poop.. So instead of a total bath issue (which she Hates) I just use lots of baby wipes..

So far the primary litter box issue we have is that sometimes she doesn't make it in time because she is asleep and doesn't wake up in time Needless to say I have been washing my sheets/blankets much more frequently...

[Laura's Babies]

I will say with my four of watching them from kitten to full grown is they learn on their own of their abilities & or not.. They learn how to handle climbing & potting in the litter box & just getting around in general.. Now I know with my Taccoa & Zolene their litter box has taller sides than the others.. Due to both babies use the sides to lean on for support..

I use those storage containers for Amy's litter box and half of the time she will walk into the box completely(facing the back), and let 'er fly and there are times she completely misses the box. That's why I use those disposabel pads outside all the boxes. (If she trys to squat, she falls so she does everything standing.)