How to Get a Litter Trained Cat to "Go" Outside

Co-authored by Pippa Elliott, MRCVS

Last Updated: June 10, 2024 Approved

Your cat suns in the yard but comes indoors to use the litter box. Not only is this frustrating, but it can be unhygienic, especially if you have young children crawling around the house. If you simply remove the litter box, you’re more likely to end up with indoor accidents than outdoor toileting. You can retrain a cat to toilet outside, but you must make the cat want to toilet outside instead of indoors first.

Part 1

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How to Prepare the Right Environment

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1
Install a cat door. Though cats can hold for several hours, litter-trained cats are accustomed to going as they please in a litter box. By installing a small cat door, you can make outside a consistently available option to help your cat make the transition when you eventually remove the litter box.^{[1]
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Research source
Why Does My Cat..? Sarah Heath. Souvenir Press}
- If installing a cat door simply isn’t an option, then be prepared to let your cat out early and often. You’ll need to take the cat out as soon as you wake up, after each feeding, and before you go to sleep to give your cat ample opportunities to go outside.
2
Designate a spot outdoors where you want the cat to go. Though your cat will ultimately toilet in the spot outside that he or she chooses, you can take steps to make a particular spot seem more inviting and like the most logical choice for your cat. Try to pick a spot with the following qualities:
- Looser soil where your cat can dig and bury any waste (ensure you have a lid for any children’s sandboxes for this reason as well).
- Shelter on one or more sides, such as a wall or fence. Cats don’t like to feel exposed while toileting, so natural shelter on the sides will make it a more comfortable site for your cat.
- Overhead protection, such as a bush or tree. Your cat will also feel more comfortable if the spot has some overhead protection as well. It can be a natural spot like a bush or a small canopy you put up. This will also keep the area more comfortable for your cat during inclement weather.
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If the cat will have to share the area with a dog, play children, etc., then you should also choose an enough far enough out of the way for the cat to be comfortable. Your cat won’t take to the spot if he or she has to worry about being startling while doing the business.
Litter-trained cats can be very particular about where they go—even taking to one specific type of litter more than others. Take some of your cat’s preferred litter and spread it over the spot you’ve designated. This will go a long way toward helping the cat understand that the spot is meant to be his or her new litter box.^{[2]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders}

Part 2

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How to Adjust Your Cat to Going Outside

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The following steps are likely to take weeks and several repetitions as you allow your cat to get more comfortable with the new toileting spot. Start by simply taking the cat to the newly designated spot to sniff around. Your cat will understand that it is his or her kitty litter spread over the location, but it will still take time for your cat to understand that it’s okay to go here.
To help your cat learn that it’s okay to use the new spot, try scooping fresh waste from the indoor litter box and placing it on the kitty litter spread across the designated outdoor spot.^{[3]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders} Take your cat to the spot again to let him or her sniff around. This will go even further to show your cat that it’s an acceptable place to toilet.
3
Take your cat to the spot after eating. Food in your cat’s stomach stimulates the bowels, so your cat will likely want to go within twenty minutes of eating. Take your cat outside directly after eating and close the door to keep the cat outside around the designated spot. You increase the chance of making your cat decide to use the new, designated spot this way.^{[4]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders}
- Don’t hover over your cat or keep moving the cat back to the spot, and don’t offer praise if your cat starts using the spot. Cats don’t react to positive reinforcement like dogs, and you’re more likely to distract the cat from the toileting process.
- If more than twenty minutes pass, your cat might still be holding to use the indoor box. Let your cat back inside if this is the case since you want the cat to begin choosing to use the new spot.
- Try taking your cat out after eating several times over the course of a week to see if he or she finally gets the idea.
4
Try adding some earth from the spot to the litter box. As previously noted, cats can be extremely picky about where they go. Your cat might not be comfortable with the mix of litter and earth at the spot you’ve designated. To help your cat adjust to this mixture, add some earth from the spot to the indoor litter box—around one-quarter earth to three-quarters litter.^{[5]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders} Your cat will still use the litter box and will begin to understand that the new mix is still an acceptable place to go.
- Keep taking your cat out several times a week after mealtime during this step as well.
5
Move your cat’s litter box. If your cat still hasn’t caught on, then you can start slowly relocating the litter box to help the process along. First, keep the box inside but move it next to the cat door leading out to the yard. If you don’t have a cat door, then simply next to the door you use to take the cat outside. Ensure that you show the cat that you’ve moved the box so that it’s not suddenly absent when he or she goes to use it in the previous location.^{[6]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders}
- You may also want to put a piece or furniture or some other barrier up in the litter box’s previous location. You cat may otherwise try to go on the floor where the litter box was previously located.
- Leave the box in the new spot for several days and continue taking your cat outside to the designated spot after meals. The combined shakeup of the earth inside the litter box and its new location might be enough to make your cat begin using the outdoor spot.
6
Place the tray from the litter box outside. If your cat still hasn’t made the switch after all of the other steps, then you can simply take the tray from the litter box and place it outside. Put it next to the cat door (or the door you use to take the cat out) so that you cat doesn’t have to venture very far outside to use it.^{[7]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders}
- Again, ensure that you show the cat the new location of the litter tray to stop him or her from using the floor inside instead.
7
Move the litter tray toward the designated area. Once your cat has finally made the transition to going outside, you can still keep moving the tray farther from the cat door until you’ve essentially placed it on the designated spot.^{[8]
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Research source
Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders} If you do this over the course of a week, your cat will adjust to moving a little farther outside each day to use the tray.
- Once you get the tray to the designated spot, take another ten days to adjust the mix of kitty litter to earth in the tray. When the mix is primarily earth and your cat still uses it, then try taking away the tray altogether and placing some of the waste on the designated spot.^{[9]
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  Research source
  Feline Behavior. Bonnie Beaver. Publisher: Saunders} This should finally do the trick.

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Warnings

Never punish your cat for making a mistake. It's wrong and doesn't work with cats. The only thing that works with cats is to redirect them. Show them their mistakes, and then immediately bring them to the designated area. Cats are highly intelligent creatures. Give them credit for knowing what to do. Outdoor toileting should come fairly naturally for them.

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Know that when the weather is undesirable even the best-trained cat will not want to use the outdoors. Try to resist giving in, but expect a kitty surprise in the indoor area. If you notice your cat not leaving when you open the door on these days you may consider setting a trash bag where the litter box once was to save on cleaning.

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Remember that outdoor cats face many dangers, including theft, cars, dogs, sadistic humans, animal predators, harsh weather, and disease. Think before deciding to expose your cat to these risks.

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