Total Cat Mojo

by Jackson Galaxy

  Thou Shalt Keep the Litterbox Clean

  When was the last time you scooped the box? Yeah, I get that you don’t like facing a minefield of nasty clumps, but neither does your cat. A recent study demonstrated that when given a choice, cats unquestionably preferred a clean box to one that contained clumps of pee or poo logs. Yes, sometimes we do need science to tell us what we already know: scoop that litterbox every day.

  Thou Shalt Allow Your Cat to Covet Another Box

  The best way to find out what your cat likes in a litterbox is to give her choices (of size, style, location, types of litter), track what she uses, and adjust accordingly. It’s really as simple as that.

  Cat Daddy Rant: The Politics of Poop

  When you walk your dog, you know what is coming out of him. You pick up your dog’s steaming poop with nothing but a doggie bag separating your hand from the poop. This “firsthand” familiarity keeps you intimate with your companion’s output and alerts you to any potential problems.

  When it comes to cats, however, we seem to have taken more of a “see no evil, smell no evil” approach, in which we are constantly attempting to disinfect and sanitize away what are normal bodily functions. We will do anything to not have to deal with cat waste. Many have even resorted to having a “robot” handle this job in the form of an automatic litterbox. But if you let a robot do your job, you don’t know what’s going on with your cat; the robot makes the poop and pee go away, but as a consequence, you aren’t as involved in the “inner workings” of your cat’s life. (Besides, why pay a fortune for these automated litterboxes, which get all gummy and gross? They can also malfunction, and go off when your cat is in there, causing him to get scared and try to go somewhere else.)

  It is part of your guardianship to know how well your cat feels based on the look of their pee and poop, and cleaning the box is an opportunity to get information about your cat’s health. You should know what normal poop looks and smells like; how many times a day your cat urinates or defecates; how many clumps are normally in the litterbox; and whether there is ever any blood in there. And if your entire house is toxic after your cat poops, you might need to go to the vet.

  Digging Deep—What Is Your Cat Doing in the Box?

  A lot of people ask me about their cat’s scratching and digging behavior in the box. First, they want to know why their cat scratches at the litter, scratches some more, and keeps on scratching. What is so interesting about this behavior is that cats can be so different. Some cats are “one and done,” giving a quick, tidy toss of sand over their poop, while other cats will “dig to China,” even scratching at the walls or floor near the litterbox.

  On the other hand, many people have the opposite concern, and ask me if they can train their cats to cover their poop. You can’t really “train” cats in this respect—they either do it or they don’t. Sometimes cats don’t cover because they don’t like something about the litter. In that case, a cleaner box may help: no cat wants to scratch if it means getting her paws dirty or uncovering another cat’s waste. For other cats, it could be a behavioral glitch related to early life experiences while learning to pee and poop on their own. What I’m saying is that if a cleaner box and softer litter don’t do the trick, you can’t necessarily change this habit (or lack thereof), and you might have to live with it.

  “Covering” is often attributed to cats hiding their scent from predators. To your cat, this ancient ritual is so ingrained that it doesn’t matter if there are no predators in your home. But the truth is that this behavior is probably way more complicated than just protection from predation. Outdoor cats will cover more when they are in the core of their territory—the areas where they rest and eat—than when they are peeing or pooping along the outer edge of their territory. Also, pee and poop are used to send messages between cats. This all just demonstrates how complex this poop-covering behavior really is, and the folly involved in trying to alter it. Chalk it all up to another Mojo mystery.

  Trouble in (Cat Poop) Paradise

  Part of your litterbox detective work involves making sure you know what your cat does while he is in there. Believe it or not, this can tell you a little bit about how he is feeling. For example, do you know what it looks like when your cat doesn’t like the litter?

  Some telltale signs that cats don’t love the litter or something else about the box:

  They don’t put their feet in the box.

  They don’t scratch at the litter before or after.

  They zoom out of the box as if someone is chasing them.

  If you notice any of these behaviors, first run to the vet to rule out anything potentially serious. If all checks out, go through the commandments and see if there are some variations you can try with the litter or the box.

  CLEANING THE BOX

  This may not be the most popular stance, but I feel strongly that the more you sanitize the litterbox, the more you’re doing a disservice to your cat. If you’re scooping two or three times a day, scrubbing every week, disinfecting the box, then let’s face it, you’re doing that for you, not for your cat.

  Think about it. Almost every source of cat behavior advice tells you that in order to prevent cats from returning to an area they have soiled, you must completely remove the urine odor. This is true. So why are we completely trying to obliterate the cat’s smell in their litterbox?

  Cats want and need to smell themselves. Pee and poop are heavy-duty territorial signifiers, ways of going around saying “I own this.” Their pee and poop are symbols of territorial security, no different from cheek or body marking, or scratching on a post.

  Ownership of the territory is of paramount importance to cats. If they can’t smell themselves anywhere in the house, they will find ways to smell themselves. It might encourage them to pee in different places.

  All you have to do is scoop the clumps every day—you don’t have to go crazy. You can completely empty the box out once a month or so, and rinse it with hot water. This should suffice for most cats (and for you as well).

  A WORD ON TOILET TRAINING

  I was watching videos of cats who had been trained to use the toilet. Most people I knew who had seen these videos thought it was cute or at least very interesting that cats could be trained to do such things. Some began drifting into a fantasy about how convenient that would be, to not have to worry about litterboxes and the chores that go with them. At the time, I couldn’t put my finger on what disturbed me about watching these clips. Over time, I realized it was because I could identify physical—and yes, emotional—stress in the cats. There was a look in their eyes that seemed to say “This is not natural to me, I don’t like this, I feel vulnerable and uncomfortable.”

  Yes, there is the occasional cat who will actually use the toilet spontaneously. Opportunistic humans then took that and ran with it: if that cat can do it, why can’t mine? Now there are multiple “training products” available to force your cat to use a toilet instead of a box. I’ve even seen cats trained to flush when they’re done. If your cat wanted to use the toilet to pee and poop, he would have demonstrated that desire already. You might be able to train him to use a toilet, but it is a Mojo fail. Cats are meant to urinate all over the place to mark their turf, so the Raw Cat would never consider using a toilet; rather, it is something we instill purely for our gain.

  WE’VE EXPLORED EVERY corner of the cat/human connection, from commandments and tools to gut-level empathetic observation. Now we can truly stake our claim on that piece of relational real estate where a Mojo-fied life is built, fostered, and maintained for a lifetime. This promised land is within our reach as long as we embrace our role as cat guardians, and its mantra: it’s not what you own, but whom you parent.

  9

  The Art of Cat Parenting

  IN CHAPTER 6, “Welcome to the Toolbox,” we began to set the tone for this section by encouraging you to see yourself in more of
a parental role with your cat, rather than as an “owner,” or even a “trainer.” Now it’s time to take that relational springboard and do a double-gainer swan dive into the approaches you can take to encourage your cat’s Mojo, while promoting harmony in your shared home.

  While the case could be made that dogs find comfort and security in the guardian-companion training dynamic, cats do not. Not by a country mile. Think about it: did you ever wonder why we call people who work with dogs “trainers,” and people who do similar work with cats “behaviorists?”

  With dogs, training stabilizes their world and, when done well, provides the cement of our relationship. But with cats, we want to maximize our level of influence on their behavior, but then be willing to bring a spirit of compromise when it comes to the end result.

  A “sit” on command from a dog or a cat looks the same on the outside. But while a “cat sit” approximates the shell of the human/dog relationship, we need to understand that there’s still a cat inside that shell. Meaning that, on a relational level, while the dog is grounded by the “sit,” the end result for the cat is a completed action and anticipation of a reward. That, however, is far from a hollow victory; we got our cat to look to us, follow our lead, and focus on completing a task that we asked of him. That’s a win because it is a relationship builder, even though it doesn’t complete the relationship like it might with a dog.

  You could even argue that, compared to cats, many dogs need training for their well-being. It’s not only in their DNA from our long-term relationship with them, but training also gives dogs coping skills in light of the expectations we place on them, in the many environments and situations we put them in.

  Compromise is about us meeting cats in the middle, at the communicative and relational fence; the “training” process I’ve been talking about maximizes our ability to get the cat to willingly come to that fence—something that doesn’t come naturally. Don’t expect to change cats in the way that training would change a dog. “Maximize and compromise” is the mantra that reminds us of what a “cat win” looks like. Which is to say that both parties will have an equal say in the outcome. It’s a cat thing.

  While the principles of positive reinforcement are universal, it would be naïve to assume that the effects of these principles are the same in every species. Cats’ and dogs’ brains are different; they have different motivations and solve problems differently. So our expectations need to be a little different.

  Once again, I’d ask you to consider the parent-child dynamic as an analogy. We talk about “good parenting,” as opposed to “good training,” when it comes to teaching kids to be considerate of others in the home or to do their homework. But before you dismiss all of this as mere semantics, think about how your actual approach might differ in your quest to “parent” rather than “train.” This subtle difference makes all the difference in what kind of luck you’ll have persuading more desirable behaviors from your cat.

  TO PUNISH OR TO PRAISE—THAT IS THE QUESTION

  The principles of behavior modification via operant conditioning apply to all animals—birds, chickens, gophers, dolphins, killer whales, and, yes, even cats and humans. Psychologist B. F. Skinner developed reinforcement theory to describe what motivates behavior. This theory is based on the principle that certain outcomes that coincide with a behavior increase the probability of that behavior happening again in the future. These reinforcers are usually things the animal likes. Punishers, on the other hand, are defined as things that decrease the future probability of a behavior.

  Today, scientists and animal trainers recognize that positive reinforcement is the most effective way to change behavior. Although punishment might work temporarily, it doesn’t change your cat’s motivation, and it doesn’t tell your cat what to do instead. Punishment also comes with a healthy dose of side effects like fear and aggression (not to mention a complete erosion of the trusting foundation of your relationship).

  Still, in the wake of this reality, a common question that comes up is “Without using some form of punishment, how do I discipline my cat?” To which I respond: there is no such thing as disciplining your cat. They have no idea what you are doing when you scold them, shoo them away, or squirt them with a water bottle. Besides, for punishment to yield its desired result, it has to happen every single time the behavior occurs, and very shortly after it happens. There’s no way you can police your cat 24/7—and would you even want to?

  Our goal is to increase Mojo, to raise a cat’s confidence. There is nothing in humiliation or punishment that will raise confidence. Even worse is a practice I’ve seen where humiliation is disguised as an attempt to “prove oneself alpha” over a cat. I’ll say it again: any type of punishment, however clever the “concept” we cloak it in, is anti-Mojo. Anything that serves the purpose of enforcing your dominance over your cat is anti-Mojo.

  It comes back to relationships. There is no successful relationship that comes down to establishing dominance. This book is about positioning yourself as a Mojo enabler, not a Mojo disabler. Invisible fencing, scat mats, shock collars, declawing, and, yes, even the ubiquitous spray bottle should all be thrown into the “things we used to do” pile.

  Time-Out vs. Kitty Jail

  When cats get aggressively overstimulated, remember that they are not making choices; the Raw Cat is in fight-or-flight mode. A time-out, as opposed to what it sounds like, is not punishment; it’s a chance for the purely physical state I’m describing to subside. And then there’s what we call Kitty Jail.

  Kitty Jail is often mistakenly referred to as a time-out. But let’s be clear; Kitty Jail is not a time-out. Time-out is a kind gesture at its core, a way to let your cat settle back into themselves after a Raw Cat explosion. Kitty Jail is punishment, and therefore lighting the fuse of a cat bomb.

  Kitty Jail happens when guardians are at the height of their frustration and impatience with a problem—whether it’s cats fighting, peeing in places other than the litterbox, or “nighttime annoyance” behavior. You just can’t deal with it anymore, and now you’re locking your cat in the bathroom and out of all the socially significant spots in the house. You’re punishing him.

  As we should know by now, punishment serves no function for cats. It may make you feel better in the short term, but it will definitely not solve the problem. Cats will not make that long chain association that, because they did something ten minutes ago, they’re locked in the bathroom for an hour and a half. There is no such thing as “go learn your lesson.” That falls under the category of taking your cat’s head and rubbing his nose into his pee. They don’t get it.

  If you need to lock your cat out of the bedroom, let’s say, because your bed is getting hit time after time with pee, I get that. It’s a Band-Aid, but I get it. But Kitty Jail is not a Band-Aid. Kitty Jail is a bad news boomerang. It’s going to come right back at you, and it’s going to knock your teeth out.

  When your cat goes into fight or flight, has redirected aggression episodes, or has freaked out on somebody or something, you can lead him to a small, confined environment, with lights down low, no sounds, no stimulation, no nothing. This decompression zone allows that cat to reenter his own body’s orbit, to go from being absolutely glued to the ceiling energetically, to bringing it back in: to fuse the etheric body and the physical body and bring them back together in harmony. That’s what purpose a time-out can serve. And a time-out can last five or ten minutes. It’s just to get your cat out of DEFCON 1 . . . out of fight or flight, and back into the real world. NOTE: If your cat is too wound up to be led into a time-out location, DO NOT attempt to pick him up and carry him there. In this case, bring the mountain to Muhammed, so to speak, by turning the room he’s in into a quiet zone. Turn off the lights and leave the room. This should safely help accomplish the same time-out goal.

  Remember, a time-out is there for your cat’s benefit, not for yours. That’s the distinction between a ti
me-out and Kitty Jail. One is for your cat, to help him regain his equilibrium. And one is for you, so that you don’t kill your cat.

  GIVING UP THE BOTTLE

  The spray bottle—it seems like everybody has one these days, and in some clients’ homes, I’ve seen them in every room of the house. Somewhere along the line, this punishing tool has become as prevalent and acceptable as just saying a loud “No!” (which also isn’t particularly useful).

  You might be thinking “But, it works. I squirt, and the cat jumps off the counter. Now when I just show him the bottle, he runs away.” But what is your cat actually learning? Is he learning that the counter is a bad place to be? No. He is learning that the counter is a bad place to be if you are present and holding the spray bottle. What’s worse is that he is learning to be afraid of you. He only reacts when he sees you holding the spray bottle, which makes you the originator of the unpleasant feeling.

  Remember our mantra “maximize and compromise”? Well, the spray bottle takes a blowtorch to that mantra. In other words, spray-bottle diplomacy is not diplomacy, not in any shape or form. Conversely, it is emblematic of our species’ long-standing belief that we can bend our animals to our will. When your cat is cringing, it is because she expects you to do bad things, and that doesn’t mean she’s going to learn a lesson or understand what to you is a moral right or wrong.