Why is my kitten eating litter? Is it safe and what can I do?

I guess he just feels like it. This isn't a common problem among cats. In small amounts it is perfectly safe, but in larger amounts it could cause irritation to the GI tract or even an impaction. You might need to try another substrate for the litter box, such as shredded paper, packing peanuts, sand, a product called yesterday's news, etc.

There is no specific product I know of designed for the purpose you have suggested. In general, we don't want to do something that might discourage the cats from wanting to use the litter box as you intended it to be. If you have a cat that is eating the litter, stop using it right away and switch to a different product, or a different medium (newspaper clippings, plastic litter, etc). Hope this makes sense.

I would recommend that you have Gucci seen by your veterinarian. Eating non-food items such as litter can indicate an underlying medical problem such as parasites or nutritional deficiencies. Your veterinarian may recommend checking a stool sample or blood work to get a better idea what's going on. After it is determined that Gucci is healthy it is likely worth trying different types of litter such as cedar shavings or corn-based litter. It is very important that Gucci does not eat litter as this can cause an intestinal blockage.

Silica litters are non toxic if ingested however If too much of the silica litter is eaten it could cause an intestinal obstruction. Silica litter can also cause respiratory irritation in cats with allergic airway disease like asthma. Since your kitten seems to like to eat the silica litter I recommend finding a different litter type that she is not interested in eating. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

I think this should be safe for your young kittens to use. They may be inquisitive at first about the new litter but they probably won’t ingest enough to cause an issue. Usually the biggest concern with ingesting litter is that it can cause a blockage if too much is eaten. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Hello, it is not toxic, but if Garu ingests enough it could cause a gastrointestinal obstruction. So, based on what you said, I would not worry about it. He likely did not eat enough for it to be a problem. You may want to try using some Feliway products to see if they help with the pica. ( https://www.feliway.com/br ) ( https://www.feliway.com/br/FELIWAY/Feliway-Classic-Difusor ) The other thing that often helps to decrease pica symptoms is environmental enrichment. Enrichment usually means hiding toys for him, food filled toys, cat nip mice, and bits of food. Offer safe chew items (ie: dog bones), lots of scratching posts of the material and orientation that he likes. And if he likes tv, video then provide that as well. Play with him regularly if he will engage with you. Some cats symptoms will get better with a higher fiber diet. Pica is not a condition that you will "cure" but you many be able to lessen his symptoms with some of the above changes. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. This sounds behavioral and will likely go away over time. However, in the meantime while the behavior is occurring, I would recommend switching the type of litter or even consider spraying bitter apple onto the litter itself. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.