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I have three cats that usually make their business on a regular indoor litter box and also outside everywhere over the garden. They often spend the night outside, or even some days if I travel.

Is there a way to make them poo in ceratin area of the yard/garden? I would like to set an area and not have to clean it at all. I don't know if it is possible on earth ground. Maybe with some sand, hay, pellets or other materials that help degradation and could be regularly added.

Would they feel attracted by this king of "litter box"? Would it be naturally clean enought for their taste?

Rober
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You need to start by associating an certain area of your yard with the litter box. Whether you use some of the cat litter(disclaimer: I have no idea about what environmental effects this would have), or if you use sand or loose dirt like Oldcat suggested.

If you don't want to keep a section of litter or sand in your yard/garden, you can slowly start to take it away as your cats become accustomed to going in that spot. Just be sure that you keep the dirt in that section loose,,or slowly switch the sand out with soil. I can't imagine your cat's will want to go in packed dirt.

It will take some watching, but you can train them the same way you would a cat that's refusing to use the litter box inside. Every time you catch them going outside of the "litter box" section, pick them up, and place them in it. Associate the area with doing their business. If you want, you could even plant some of their old business in the area, so they know that's what it's for.

As nice as it might sound, there are some drawbacks to having your cats going in a certain area of the yard. You will still have to clean it occasionally, unless you designate a fairly large area for them to use, it's not going to decompose fast enough to be feasible without occasional cleaning. There's also the risk of the feral cats in the area using it, adding to the mess, and even possibly deterring your cats from using it.

Spidercat
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Put a pile of sand there and they will almost certainly get the idea themselves.

Oldcat
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My cats are indoor/outdoor- we keep a litter box inside but our cats prefer to do their business outside. They do generally stick to two main areas and never venture elsewhere to use the bathroom. I think a key thing that we have done is enclosed a safe patch within a little brick ring. We have a lemon tree sapling in the center of a dirt patch and this is where they freely dig and go as they want.

Elizabeth
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