As a cat owner, you have witnessed your feline friend playing with their litter box! Though strange to humans, this act is not in the feline society.

It can be as simple as wiggling in place for a few seconds, sometimes purring or showing other signs of happiness. However, it can leave pet parents puzzled and concerned.

It is important to know why cats exhibit this behaviour for various reasons. It helps to understand your cat’s physical and emotional health.

Some unique behaviours that felines exhibit are as varied as cats, from fun to health complications. By identifying these causes, you can get to know your feline friends better and address their issues.

Why Cats Roll in Their Litter Boxes?

Cats engage in many normal behaviours while using the litter boxes, attributed to instinct and inherent behaviour.

Most of these actions are quite bewildering to the owners, but they are significant to your cats. Let’s explore some common reasons why cats might roll in their litter boxes:

1. Scent marking

Cats are solitary animals and have a unique ability to communicate with each other using their sense of smell. When your cat rolls in the litter box, it is probably scenting the area for marking.

Cats have glands spread everywhere: on cheeks, paws, and flanks. When cats roll in the litter, they intend to spread their scent everywhere to claim it as their own.

This behaviour is most frequently seen in multiple-cat households or households that have recently experienced changes to their habitat.

The litter box is one of the most important areas in the house that the cat feels belongs to them. This might be why your cat starts marking the litter box with their urine.

They say, “This is my comfort zone, and I feel safe here.”

2. Comfort and enjoyment

In most cases, cats enjoy rolling in the litter box, similar to how people like rolling around on the floor. The texture of the litter can be enjoyable for some cats, such as rolling on a soft carpet or grass.

Moreover, the litter’s smooth texture can appeal to the animals, especially because it has a cool, granular surface that could have felt nice against their fur.

This can be a self-comforting behaviour or a way your cat finds relaxation. Do not rush to conclusions if your cat looks happy and purred while rolling in clean litter.

As if it were just the cat enjoying herself. It is a feline’s way of having a spa treatment where the litter acts as the massage pad.

3. Dust bathing

Cats are known to go for a roll in the dust in the environment as a way of grooming themselves. It is instinctual and assists in ridding themselves of the oils they naturally produce, which can enhance facial skin health.

Your cat has a similar grooming process in their litter box when they cannot access outdoor space.

Dust bathing is beneficial for cats for various reasons. It can make them spread natural oils all over their coat, shed fur and skin, and even reduce the presence of parasites.

It can appear illogical that rolling in litter could be a cleaning action. Yet, cats are Programmed to groom themselves this way.

4. Curiosity and play

Young cats, especially kittens, are playful creatures, and the litter box is one of the things they can play with and explore. Litter texture and moving ability can appeal to young cats, driving them to paw, dig, and roll in.

This behaviour is usually harmless and is known to decrease as the cat grows into adulthood. It is a learning process where they understand their surroundings and hone their motor skills.

To kittens, the litter box can be one of the most stimulating and physically engaging items in a highly constricted environment that requires exploration and play.

Medical Reasons

Although it is perfectly natural for cats to roll in the litter box. Knowing that it can be a sign of other health problems is essential.

Knowing when this behaviour can indicate a medical issue can assist in early diagnosis for your cat. Let’s explore some potential medical reasons for this behaviour:

1. Skin irritations or allergies

Cats that experience skin rashes or allergies can display unwanted behaviour, such as rolling in the litter box to help soothe themselves.

The texture of the litter is coarse, and as we all know, scratching is something cats frequently need, so the litter can help with that as well.

This behaviour might be even more evident in cases where your cat has developed an allergy to something in the surroundings or food.

It is also important to look for other symptoms like overdressing, skin rash, or formation of small pimples on the skin.

If all these symptoms are accompanied by constant rolling in the litter box, it is wise to seek your vet’s advice.

They can determine the cause of the itch and offer medical management to treat your cat’s skin condition.

2. Urinary tract issues

Occasionally, changes in their behaviour towards the litter box can indicate certain conditions affecting the urinary tract.

The cats that experience urinary tract infections, bladder stones, or feline interstitial cystitis tend to perform some weird stunts.

This includes rolling in the litter box. These actions relieve some form of discomfort or signal a problem in urination.

Look for other signs like frequent visits to the litter box, attempts to drag the hind legs, or vocalization while using the box.

If these signs are present, along with rolling behaviour, you should take your pet to the veterinarian immediately.

These urinary problems can escalate quickly in cats and should be addressed with the help of a veterinarian.

3. Parasites (fleas, mites)

Fleas or mites are external parasites that can cause quite a lot of itching in cats; this forces the cats to roll in the litter.

The physical nature of the litter can cause scratching in itchy areas, such as fleas from the fur. This behaviour can be more evident if the infestation is mainly at the back or base of the tail.

Examine your cat for fleas by looking for flea droppings that have small black specs in the fur. Mites can cause your pet to lose hair in specific areas or have scaly skin.

If you feel that your cat has parasites. You should seek help from the vet and get the right treatment to eliminate the parasites and remove the discomfort from your cat.

4. Neurological issues

In rare situations, rolling or odd litter box activity indicates a neurological issue in the cat’s brain or spinal cord.

Some diseases or injuries affecting the nervous system can lead to such behaviours in a cat, for example, odd movements or positions while defecating. This can be in rolling around or other bizarre activities your cat has never been observed doing.

Check for any neurological signs like disorientation, head-turning, or change in the size of the pupils.

However, if you observe the following signs in combination with abnormal litter box habits, it is crucial to consult your veterinarian.

Neurological disorders are more complex, and a proper diagnosis is needed to ensure your cat receives the right treatment to improve its condition.

Behavioural Reasons for Rolling in the Litter Box

Before concluding that a medical condition is responsible for a change in a cat’s litter box behaviour, psychological and social factors must also be considered.

Let’s explore some common behavioural reasons for rolling in the litter box:

1. Stress or anxiety

Cats are highly stimuli-sensitive animals, and any alteration in their environment or daily activity can cause stress.

When stressed, some cats look for comfort in objects such as their litter box as they feel overwhelmed.

Getting into the litter is comforting as they try to calm down in a place familiar with their scent and associated with routines.

Check for other indicators of stress and anxiety, like a loss or increased interest in food, restless grooming, or attempts to disappear. Your cat might roll in the litter box if you’ve recently changed its location. Even if you have bought a new small animal or even a new roommate.

2. Territory marking in multi-cat households

The rolling in the litter box could indicate the cat’s dominance among multiple cats living in a household.

This behaviour is more apparent if some cats compete for food/shelter or a new cat has arrived. To prove ownership, when a cat rolls around in the litter, it says, “This is my space, and I’m marking it as such.”

Pay attention to the change in the relationship between all your cats. If tension or one of the two cats tends to stake a claim on the litter box. This could be the reason why the cat rolls.

You should have the appropriate number of litter boxes (one per cat plus one) within the home. This will help cut down on territorial behaviours and aggression.

3. Seeking attention

Some cats simply discover that doing particular things that seem strange to people will draw attention to the pet. If your cat has been rewarded in any way, shape, or form for rolling in the litter box.

Then, the cat will continue the action to get more of that reward. This could be especially true if you’ve scolded, joked, or responded negatively to this behaviour.

Think about how you responded when you witnessed this conduct. They have learned through positive reinforcement that rolling in the litter results in receiving more tasty treats, pats, or playtime from you.

To solve this, devise a daily, routine time to attend to and play with them. Do not give them extra attention when they roll in the litter box.

When to Be Concerned?

Finding a litter box to roll in once in a while is normal. There are conditions where rolling can be related to some health issues.

One factor to consider is the frequency of the behaviour in question. When your cat spends more time in the litter box than normal, this can be a sign that something is wrong.

An increase in this behaviour to high levels might indicate certain discomfort, stress, or a medical issue.

Observe how often your cat performs this behaviour or if it is disrupting the cat’s usual litter box habits.

If the rolling becomes compulsive or interferes with your cat’s ability to use the litter box as designed. Then, it is important to contact your veterinarian to rule out any medical issues.

How to Address the BehavioUr?

To effectively stop your cat’s litter box rolling behaviour, below are some steps that you can take to help. The first step should be to provide for good cleanliness of litter boxes.

Every cat is different, so you must feed and clean the box daily, deep clean the box often, and provide litter your cat likes.

Hygiene is important because it can help prevent excessive rolling and encourage proper litter box use.

Remove the scratching post and offer your cat toys or something else that will make him/her busy. This can serve their need for tactile experiences and cut down on their litter box playfulness.

It is always good to seek the help of a professional to know whether the behaviour is normal or should attract the vet’s attention for your cat’s health.

Conclusion

Analyzing the possible reasons behind this behaviour and paying attention to several aspects is necessary.

Even though such behaviour can be expected due to innate reactions or just for fun, it can also be a sign of a problem.

This way, by understanding the context, frequency, and signs accompanying this behaviour, one will be better positioned to decide when intervention is appropriate.

Remember, every cat is different, and what is normal for one cat is not for another. Nevertheless, the best thing to do concerning your feline companion is to seek advice from a veterinarian.

Drop me a comment if you want help in case your cat is still rolling in the Litter Box.

Until next time Meow-Meow!