Daft cat!

Perhaps start putting the litter tray outside, under cover, if possible, and gradually get it further away from the door.

Put the tray outside while she is playing there? Mix a little earth into it so that she gets used to the smell and feel of earth?

But your neighbours will be delighted that she does not want to use their gardens as a loo. Most cats who "go" outside prefer to do their business at the edge of their territory (well, wouldn't you?) which generally means next door. I have heard cat-owners say "Oh my cat never does anything in the border" when their neighbours complain about seedlings dug up and fertilised.

greenmossgiel as someone who has to clear up after the neighbour's cats before I can allow my GS into my garden I'd say you have a very CLEVER cat - not daft at all.

greenmoss, that is so funny! And sweet!

I agree with grannyactivist and I have two cats who only "go" inside!

Hurray! Daisy has wee'd in the garden! She did it with much glee on her face, right next to me as I was hanging out the washing!

Oh Greenmoss! Perhaps she likes company - could be a job for life

I have two cats. One like Grenmossgiel's - always comes in to use the tray. The other will go outside when she's out, but insists on using one of my pots on the decking!! They are too old and set in their ways to try and change them

My cat is 19 and getting very confused. I'd be glad if the litter tray was used consistently...

Our cat was seventeen and we had to have her put down today, so no more litter tray - she has been ill for some time and her medication was not working. Awful without her though and such a wrench to let her go. Even got the silliest feeling she was still in the house and we could hear her mewing.... that is daft by anyone's standards - isn't it?

Oh artygran I do feel for you, and not daft at all. Our pets are part of our lives, and losing them is always hard.

artygran, I'm so sorry to hear about your cat. I do know what you're going through, believe me. What a lovely life she must have had with you for such a long time. And it's not daft to think you can hear her mewing. For ages, I felt as if my old cat was still here, as well. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him slinking through the room past me....and then, I saw him on the shed roof, staring at me through the window. Not him, of course, but a newcomer to the neighbourhood who was the image of him! That'll fade for you, but the lovely memories will stay.

Sorry to learn you have lost your dear cat artygran. Whenever I have thought about the pets we have lost over the years, I have always wished there really was such a thing as our cats and dogs coming back to us - how welcome they would be, floating through the house and sitting in their favourite spots, watching us

Thank you all, for your kind words. DH will be at a loss when we go shopping this week as he was Officer in Charge of Cat Food, and took his duties very seriously, spending an inordinate length of time deciding what best to tempt Madam with, and entering into deep discussions with similarly disposed male cat owners in the supermarket. They all seemed to have a range of theories about the best way to get their fussy cats to eat, and were eager to share the info!

artygran I'm sorry to hear that you have had to say goodbye to Madam. We went through the same process with our senior cat last November and I still sometimes think I catch a glimpse of him or hear him "talking" to me.

Pet was never mourned as you,
Purrer of the spotless hue,
Plumy tail, and wistful gaze
While you humoured our queer ways,
Or outshrilled your morning call
Up the stairs and through the hall--
Foot suspended in its fall--
While, expectant, you would stand
Arched, to meet the stroking hand;
Till your way you chose to wend
Yonder, to your tragic end.

Never another pet for me!
Let your place all vacant be;
Better blankness day by day
Than companion torn away.
Better bid his memory fade,
Better blot each mark he made,
Selfishly escape distress
By contrived forgetfulness,
Than preserve his prints to make
Every morn and eve an ache

Can't seem to get it all on; will continue on another post!

From the chair whereon he sat
Sweep his fur, nor wince thereat;
Rake his little pathways out
Mid the bushes roundabout;
Smooth away his talons' mark
From the claw-worn pine-tree bark,
Where he climbed as dusk embrowned,
Waiting us who loitered round.

Strange it is this speechless thing,
Subject to our mastering,
Subject for his life and food
To our gift, and time, and mood;
Timid pensioner of us Powers,
His existence ruled by ours,
Should - by crossing at a breath
Into safe and shielded death,
By the merely taking hence
Of his insignificance--
Loom as largened to the sense,
Shape as part, above man's will,
Of the Imperturbable.

As a prisoner, flight debarred,
Exercising in a yard,
Still retain I, troubled, shaken,
Mean estate, by him forsaken;
And this home, which scarcely took
Impress from his little look,
By his faring to the Dim
Grows all eloquent of him.

Housemate, I can think you still
Bounding to the window-sill,
Over which I vaguely see
Your small mound beneath the tree,
Showing in the autumn shade
That you moulder where you played.

Every time I lost a cat, this made me cry. Don't like the last line, though - Hardy at his worst!

Anyway -for all my cat GNs. xxxxx

Ariadne - that does say it all .

That is really sad Ariadne

We have had a horrid time over the past few weeks with our cats.

Eighteen years ago, one of our cats had a litter of four kittens, one of whom we kept. That kitten had a litter a year later and we also kept one - this time a male. The original cat couldn't cope with the extended family and moved in next door where she could bully their cat! They also got another cat so she moved next door but one!

We had the two remaining cats until earlier this year when they both faded, within 2 months of each other, but both having lived to a ripe old age.

We had a third cat, who had a litter of four - one went to my niece, two to my daughter and one we kept. This left us with 2 cats but now the mother has been missing for 3 weeks so we seem to be down to the kitten, who is the size of a small dog and keeps bringing presents home - 3 mice in one day is the record so far!

And the dog is 13 this year and has a heart murmur!

I do wonder if the stress and distress of losing them makes having pets a daft idea.

Ariadne for the super poem. Rory, the feral cat, went on walkabout in our absence, in spite of having a neighbour call by with food. On our return, his apartment was in a mess...fleece in a heap and food untouched. Spent ages calling for him. He ignored us; a laid-back cat-thing! When, at last, he lumbered along the path, we were delighted. We made a huge fuss of him and he seemed pleased to see us. The following day, he was very fussy [winding between our legs] - but, as I went down on my knee to straighten his blanket [in the outside apartment] he pounced on my wrist and caught a vein which bled profusely. Now I have a vast purple bruise. There is no point scolding him. After all, he isn't tame. We need to respect his wildness and be more aware in future. I had a tetanus jab when he attacked my leg - some time ago.

kittylester, I do know what you mean. It's absolutely awful when something happens to our pets, but it's the time we have with them that makes it all so worthwhile, isn't it. I vowed 'never again' when our old cat had to be put to sleep. We grieved so much for him. But then within a month or so, I just had a sneaky peek at the local Cat Shelter website, and that was enough for me! I knew that we could offer a good and loving home to another wee cat....hence Daisy...or perhaps we should have called her Crazy Daisy !

green Daisy has brought into your life. Priceless!

supernana - she's so funny! She climbs to the very top of the oak tree and looks out across the field! She races around the house and the garden chasing anything she can, and tries to creep under rugs, peeking out with her mouth open as if she's laughing out loud! She's the most mischievous cat imaginable - she's a pure white longhair and goodness knows how many litters she may have had before the Cat Shelter took her in and neutered her. She's lying flat on her back now, in front of the fire. She does have a habit of going for my ankles, so 'discouraging' and sharp words are used then - and also a pair of bootee slippers help! A ray of indeed!

green she sounds utterly adorable