Sitting in the litter tray too long?

So I started freaking out last night. Bandit sat in the litter tray for near on 30 minutes. He wasn't moaning, or stressing, he was just sitting there. He was sitting in (sorry to be graphic) "poop position" but he refused to move! I even tried to tempt him out with Cat Nip, but alas he would not move! When he finally emerged, he seemed totally fine and was acting normal.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it something I should be worried about?

 

Did he actually poop? If there was poop then he may have been constipated and you'll need to adjust his food. If he sat there and nothing came out and he strained for 30 minutes it might be something more serious. Sassy was straining to pee a few years ago and turns out something in her cat food didn't agree with her kidneys so both of our cats are on the special food.
Definitely look into it if he didn't leave anything, and keep monitoring him.

 

I have the same question as Cinnamon. Did he finally get something out? Or did he just leave the box? Even if he wasn't stressing or moaning, he may still have been struggling.

 

He didnt look like he was pushing or stressing. I have seen him stress to poop before because of his condition, so I would say what I was was not the same as when he stressed. As for if there was poop there or not, I think there was but I cannot be sure as he shares the litter tray with Pussington and I just came home from work, so there were likely a few buried treasures from the day already in there.

I think I will have to keep an eye on him when he is in the litter tray to make sure he isn't straining or having digestive issues again. (I really hope not!!!)

 

Maybe he was just cat napping.

He went in to do his business, got distracted by something on the wall, and zoned out. I know guys who do that.

 

Maybe it was just me bugging him and him being stubborn, I started shaking cat nip in his face to try and tempt him out. I imagine it would be annoying if you are doing your business and someone wont leave you alone, and keeps on shaking things in your face!

 

Both of my cats have laid in the litterbox for no reason other than to lay in the litterbox. Sibyl's even tried to sleep in it a few times! I'm not sure why, there's no medical issue or anything, they're just a fan of their litterbox..

 

Mine has done that, too.

When she has to stay at a kennel, she always sleeps in the kitty litter box. I think it's a point of comfort for her while away. It's familiar.

She's done it while at home, too, and I think it was because it's cooler. If you ever feel kitty litter in the summer, it's often a cooler temp and can just be comfy (so long as it's clean).

 

does he drink pretty good? any chance it's just constipation? i have one of those electric fountains 'cause a vet once told me it entices cats to drink. his reasoning was that cats hate the litter box (do your thing, bury it, and never go back there) and will actually NOT drink because they know they're gonna have to go use the box. if u'r not hydrated, your....errr...deposits....are gonna be dry and hard to pass.

 

I don't think he is constipated, he has fresh clean water available at all times (he has a water dispenser so its not just sitting) and I also mix water in with his wet food to make sure he gets enough water. He has had issues with blockages / inflamed bowels so he eats an easy to digest and passable diet.

 

I hadn't given that thought before, but I had recently cleaned Sibyl's litterbox when she decided to do that. There's nothing wrong with clean, soft litter!

 

I have heard that feral cats like to do this when they are stressed because they liked the comfort of their own scent. If this becomes a regular problem then you can try removing your litter box a few hours of the day so that he can find a new hiding place. They probably just want to go out and play in the dirt too.

 

Its so weird! He just seems to like to sit in there! He did it again last night, and just cat there for a while, not doing anything, just chilling!