There is a shocking (to me) story in The Times today about parents who refuse to toilet train their children. Apparently, half of parents in UK believe that they should not have full responsibility for toilet training a child. It’s according to a survey conducted by the early years charity Kindred.
Some parents don’t toilet train children
They found that only 16% of parents think that it is their job to teach children how to read. Too many children are not school ready and it’s getting worse. They questioned 1,000 primary school staff and 1,000 parents of perception-age children. They found that 50% of parents believed that the responsibility for ensuring that their child did not have toilet accidents partly lay elsewhere, other than on their shoulders.
So, in the UK, a lot of parents don’t think that it is their job to toilet train their kids. Ironically, domestic cats barely need toilet training. They automatically go to the cat litter if the cat caregiver has the presence of mind to provide one and in the right place. It is instinctive for indoor cats because the cat litter tray contains the only material which the cat deems satisfactory on which they should defecate and urinate. If there are problems, I touch on some thoughts below.
Shocking
The Times editorial author is equally shocked about the parental failure mentioned. Their headline is: “Horrifying numbers of children now start school without being toilet trained”. They concluded by saying that “being aware of where to urinate or defecate is not an advanced concept. Most dogs can manage it by six months.”
What happens if kids are not toilet trained?
Dogs receive more concern that kids it seems as dog owners invariably pick up feces when their companion animal goes to the toilet in the park. What happens if a teacher does not intervene and assist a school child who has not been toilet trained? The Times editorial says this: “Barring exceptional circumstances, these are children who have learnt that the default place to go to toilet is wherever they are…” Does that mean that the schoolchild will go to the toilet in the classroom in front of other schoolchildren?
RELATED: Toilet training for cats
Attitudes
Perhaps a more important point made by this article is that if parents of children abdicate their responsibilities to care for their children properly by toilet training and preparing them properly for school, how can we expect them to properly care for domestic cats? Or dogs?
It seems to me that there is a failure by many adult people in the UK to be properly committed and engaged in caring for those that are dependent upon them: children and companion animals.
Some teachers say that they are babysitting these children rather than teaching them. The teachers are instructing the children on basic life skills rather than algebra or arithmetic. It’s complete madness as far as I am concerned. And I am sure I’m not the only person who thinks it.
But the worrying point is the general attitude of these parents, which must impact on other areas of the lives of parents and cat and dog owners. It’s about standards. It’s about ensuring that dependents are properly educated and cared for. It appears not to be happening in sufficient numbers.
Teachers say that 2.5 hours each day are lost in helping children with basic skills. And, sometimes, The Times reports that “Nine in ten [teachers] had a child in the classroom who was not toilet trained”.
RELATED: 6 tips on cat inappropriate elimination (infographic)
If your cat needs litter box training
I’ve mentioned above that cats will instinctively use the litter tray provided is well sited and the cat is healthy. What I mean by “healthy” is that they are not suffering from cystitis which is not an uncommon urinary tract illness. It causes inappropriate elimination.
Here are some tips on litter box training.
The litter box itself: it should be large enough and I have a page on that but about one half times the length of the cat should be adequate. Open litter trays are preferable Jackson Galaxy advises because he thinks cats don’t like going into enclosed spaces when they are in a vulnerable position which they are when they go to the toilet. I personally use a covered litter tray to help protect the surrounding environment and to reduce odours.
In multi-cat homes there should be one litter tray per cat and one extra according to Jackson.
The litter substrate: I have an Infographic on that which you can read by clicking the following link: Cat litter substrate compared (infographic).
Location: this is important and it should be a quiet, easily accessible low traffic area in your home. Avoid placing the box near noisy appliances or their food and water bowls.
Training
Introduce the litter box: this might not be needed but if it is after they have eaten you can gently place them in it. They will know where it is and go back to it the next time.
Cleanliness: it should be kept clean but not so clean that the natural odours of the cat are removed.
Positive reinforcement: I don’t think this is needed but if your cat is reluctant to use it then praise them after using it in the form of a small treat as a reward which would be an example of positive reinforcement.
Inappropriate elimination: this is when, as you know, cats refuse to use the litter tray. From the cat’s perspective it is not “inappropriate” but appropriate because there will be a genuine reason for it and it might be that the litter tray is badly positioned or they are suffering from a health problem as mentioned. Often it can be stress related because the litter tray is being shared and one cat is protecting resources because they are bullying a more submissive cat. This might occur in a multi-cat home.
