Why is my kitten playing with and eating poop? What can I do?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is not uncommon as they are learning to use the litter box. This usually improves with time alone. I would recommend you discourage this behavior as much as possible but other than that it should improve. Good luck and have a great day! I hope you find this information helpful!

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.

What naughty kittens! I think you can do a few things. First, I would work on environmental enrichment. Kittens have a lot of energy and "should" hunt multiple times a day for their food, so we need to find ways to help them entertain themselves (without resorting to playing with poo). This website has a number of good ideas for environmental enrichment. https://indoorpet.osu.edu/cats One of my favorite things for cats is a no bowl feeding system like Doc & Phoebe ( https://docandphoebe.com/ ) that requires them to "hunt" for their food. You could also try a feeding ball. I also recommend using laser pointers and interactive cat toys like a Cat Dancer ( http://www.catdancer.com/ ) to help get their energy out constructively. Finally, you could consider adding anther automatic litter box, so they don't have the opportunity to fish anything out of the litter box. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and gives you some ideas. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hello, and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Kittens are full of playful energy, and it can be an exhausting (but very entertaining) phase. What you're describing is completely normal kitten behavior, which means it's just a phase that you need to get through. There is no way to ask Jinx to be calmer - but you can help her use some of that energy before bed by playing with her, encouraging her to chase a laser pointer, etc - and hopefully that helps tire her out so you can sleep! If you need to confine her to get some sleep, you might set her up in a different room with plenty of things to play with, or get her a large indoor kennel (big enough to fit food, water, litterbox, and toys). Her playing in the litterbox is also part of the mischievous kitten stage, but it might help to get her a larger litterbox that offers a bit more space, make the layer of litter deeper, or play around with the type of litter and see if there's one that better covers her stools. If all else fails, have patience and try to find the humor in her antics - she will calm down eventually when she grows out of her baby stage! Hope this helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! That is not normal. She just may need a bath. You could do that just make sure to warm her up very well afterwards. That is likely going to help. Good luck and have a great day!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is often solved by trying a different cat litter and adding another litter box in the household. I think trying this would likely help you very much. He is also absolutely adorable! Good luck!

It may take your new kitten time to get used to her new surroundings. Try keeping her in a smaller area, like a bathroom, with her littler box and food/water. Being in closer proximity to them may encourage her to eat and use the box. You may also want to try offering her canned kitten food, as opposed to kibble. This may encourage her to eat more. When she does eventually defecate, if it is outside of the box, place the stool inside the box to help her learn where to go. If these tips are not working and your kitten is still refusing to eat or drink, you may want to consider taking her in to the vet to be checked out. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.