Most parents or breeders will let a mother cat and her kittens share a litter box, subconsciously believing that there is no harm in sharing the litter box. In fact, litter boxes for big cats and kittens should be used separately.

Reason:

Some germs or parasites can be spread through feces. However, the immune system of a healthy adult cat (cat mother) can protect the cat’s own health and can directly resist parasites or small-scale germs. Infection, but kittens are different. Their immune systems are weak. Even if the mother cat’s feces looks normal, this does not guarantee that there is no source of infection in the kittens. In order to ensure the health of the kittens, it is recommended that the mother cat Use separate litter boxes with the kittens.

The following are examples of parasites transmitted through feces:

Coccidia

Taeworm

Roundworm

Hookworm

Toxoplasma gondii

Giardia

Tritrichomoniasis fetus

How to prevent kittens from using their mother’s litter box?

From the time kittens are born until they start walking, mother cats will lick their genitals to stimulate urination/defecation. When the kitten starts to stand and walk, it will start to try to eat food other than breast milk. At this time, we can prepare a small litter box with low sides for the kitten. The kitten will instinctively start to eat it for excretion. The large litter box used by mother cats has high sides, so they may not be able to climb in, but precautions must be taken because the kittens will start to practice climbing. During this process, even if the kittens practice climbing, they will still be unable to crawl in. It can't jump very well, so you can put the mother cat's litter box in a higher position to ensure that the kittens cannot get in and only the mother cat can get in. You can also choose a high-sided plastic storage box, remove the lid and put in cat litter. The mother cat can easily jump in, but the kittens will not go. The high-sided cat litter box can also reduce the use of big cats. Cat litter brought out later.

If you live in a cage, you can place the mother cat's litter box on a shelf to prevent it from falling.

The simplest way to prevent the mother cat from using the kitten's litter box is to place a medium-sized cardboard box upside down on the kitten's litter box, and open a window on the side that the kitten can pass through. This space is sufficient. It is used by kittens, but it cannot accommodate the size of a female cat. In order to ensure breathability and brightness, you can open some small holes at the top, but not too big so that the female cat cannot get in.