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I've just bought a female kitten (8.5 weeks old) and although she is litter trained (apart from a couple of accidents), whenever she is using her litter tray she chews on the litter. I presume she swallows some, although I think it is small amounts. I have tried to discourage this by carefully removing the litter from her mouth, as I can imagine she doesn't find this very comfortable, but this doesn't seem to work and I'm becoming more worried.

I'll be taking her to the vet within a week or so for a check up, and will bring this up then, but until that point if anyone else has had this with a kitten before any advice would be appreciated as I don't want to discourage her from the litter box for obvious reasons.

I have looked this up online and it says that she is just curious and should stop soon but in the 6 days I've had her she has done this everyday and doesn't seem to be showing any signs of stopping .

The litter tray is kept clean with a scoop and is changed every 5 days, and the litter I'm using is non-toxic catsan with a chalky white gravel texture.

Zaralynda
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samuel
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    non-clumping litter is recommended for kittens because this is not unusual. Clumping litter in her digestive system can be dangerous, so if you have clumping litter please switch immediately! – Zaralynda Jun 30 '14 at 04:01
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    after i have looked this up online it would seem the litter im using is none clumping, but i shall be triple checking this as soon as i'm home thankyou for the advice – samuel Jun 30 '14 at 04:12
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    My kitten also ate litter pieces every day before he go toilet too and so annoying. And I don’t know how to make him stop. – Josie Kennedy Dec 08 '17 at 02:32

3 Answers3

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It could be one of several things:

1) a kooky kitten phase

2) a sign of some lack of nutrients (trying to get them from clay)

I'd discuss it with your vet as different things could be going on. You can try changing the litter to something slightly better to eat (wheat, note wheat isn't actually "good" for cats but it is definitely better than clay)

I suspect it is the first condition. Young animals often eat weird stuff (this even happens with humans, supposedly when I was an infant I ate moss and dirt...)

Dan S
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Kittens are like small human children and will put everything in their mouths to learn more about the world. Unfortunately (much to our distaste), this includes litter. Your house should be kitten-proofed for her safety, to ensure that she does not eat anything harmful, especially string items (hair ribbons, electrical wires, window blind pulls), harmful chemicals (cleaners, fertilizers). In addition, any litter used during this phase should be non-clumping so it will pass through her digestive system.

Kittens can also eat litter because of anemia or other vitamin/mineral deficiencies. A kitten who is exhibiting this behavior should be examined by your vet to ensure that it is healthy.

Zaralynda
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Go to vet as soon as possible. I just lost my kitten after he ate litter. It clumps up, blocks the digestive tract. He stopped eating, had diarrhea and died. You can't do anything to save them, if not treated right away.

CGCampbell
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Lynne Altman Hardman
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