My cat is sleeping in the litter box. Is this a health concern?

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Eddie. Yes, you are correct this can be a sign of illness. As long as he is eating and drinking, and using the litter box, I would monitor him for now. If he stops eating, stays very lethargic over the next 24 hours, stops drinking water, stops using the litter box, or develops other symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhea, I would take him into a vet right away. Best of luck.

Be sure that Dizzy is urinating normally. If he seems to be straining at all, trying to urinate frequently or there is a decreased amount of urine in the litter box then it could be a life threatening urinary blockage. If he is crying, acting at all sick or not urinating he should see a veterinarian asap.

This can be a sign of illness in cats. If he is there vocalizing and trying to urinate with no production it is an emergency. If he is not and just laying there and not wanting to get up then he may have a fever or have pain and not feel like moving. Try to get pick him up and take him to another spot for food and water and see how he acts. If he is painful and not eating then I would take him to the vet to see what is going on.

This is a non-specific sign of illness that is often seen in cats - it sounds like Kali isn't feeling well, or may be in pain for some reason. There are many things that could cause this in an 11-year-old cat, including liver or kidney disease, diabetes, arthritis, or even some type of cancer. I would recommend taking Kali to the vet for an exam as soon as you are able to - he/she can do blood work or other testing if needed to help determine what's wrong.

Poor Jesse! What a frustrating problem to have - it sounds like you're doing the best thing you can by putting him in a cage when you're not home, but it's unfortunate that he finds this stressful and lays in his litter box :( The good news is, laying in the litter box like this is not likely to cause any medical problems at all - cats often do this in the veterinary clinic when they are boarding and hospitalized, unfortunately, and it does not result in any health issues at all. It can definitely make them smell a bit, however! I would suggest doing some trial and error with different objects in his cage to see if you can find something that he prefers to lay in, rather than the litter box. He might like a cardboard box, upside down with a hole cut in the side so that he can go in and hide. A shoe box or some other type of box with high sides might also give him a good alternative to the litter box to lay in.

Sounds like your cat has a bit of a sense of humor. :) If he's sleeping in the litter box you may want to try moving it to a different area to see if he'll use it. If he's had accidents, then placing the box where he has gone before may encourage him to use it. It may be that he just prefers to use the other litter box solely which is fine as long as the UTI is cleared up and he's otherwise healthy. Adding in a comfy bed where he now enjoys sleeping may also help!

Laying in the litter box is not uncommon for a cat that just moved to a new home, many cats tend to do that, they tend to feel "safer" in the box. if he does not seem to have any problem urinating, if he is eating and drinking normally, just give him some time to open up, he will grow out of it.