Okay, here is the deal.  I am at a loss on what to do and need more
suggestions.  Gypsy, approx 1 1/2 years old, has been a 99% accurate litter
box user ever since I have had him.  We have switched litter brands on him
spontaneously, and it has never phases him.  The only time he would "miss",
purposely that is, is when it was too full for his liking.  We bring in
Shandy, who never had a litter box before.  She had to go in the floor of
the cage in which her previous owners supplied for her.  She picked up on it
first try, and became a 99% accurate box user too.  Gypsy did not mind, and
still continued doing his business where he ought.  We buy this huge 40 lb
bag of ground corn cobs...at first they try to eat it, but after placing a
ferret landmine in the corner, they get the idea and continue business as
normal.  Finally, we buy a new cage, very huge, with a box on top floor and
on the bottom floor.  All of a sudden Gypsy has taken to using everywhere
but the box.  No, I take that back, I found him once using the box.  But the
rest of the time no deal.  I tried moving the boxes to where he had been
going, and he just traded off for the boxless corners.  So I moved the food
bowls to the corners he had been going to.  Now he has taken to backing up
to the corner of the box, but not in, and going there.  So I placed toys
there, (which he is too lazy to move) and now he is going right on the back
wall, not even in a corner.  Definetlly non gypsy like behavior.  I dont
know what his deal is.  At first I thought it was the litter, but he used it
fine in the other cage.  Then I thought it could be form of stress and he is
protesting the addition of the new ferret (Hugo).  Then I got to thinking
and realized in the other cage, he never acutally got in the box.  It was a
3 story cage with shelves.  On the left side of the bottom was the box, and
on the right side of the cage was the second story shelve, he would hang his
butt off the shelve, over the box and go that way.  Maybe he doesn't like
the feel of litter on his feet?  Oh well, it is not a major deal.  I have
been forced to subscribe to our daily paper, just to have enough to keep
lining the bottom trays, because the weekly freebie papers are now not
enough. :-)  I will love him no matter where he goes, and he will always be
my baby, but I sure would like to know what is going on inside his fuzzy
head.  Any ideas?
 
Chell
[Posted in FML issue 2233]