The Charles Mingus CAT-alog (1972)
There are even special litter boxes sold that are intended to go on the toilet seat for this type of training. But as cool as this is, I believe it can be dangerous, especially for owners of male cats.<p>Cats&#x27; urinary habits are important to keep an eye on. A change in urination volume or frequency can be the sign of a critical issue that requires veterinary attention. You just can&#x27;t easily track urine volume if the cat is going to the toilet, even if they don&#x27;t flush.<p>With a litterbox, you can get an idea of what their normal clump size is and notice if that changes. Regarding frequency, maybe you can hear your cat jump on the toilet, but I&#x27;m not sure it&#x27;s as reliable as hearing them repeatedly scratching the litterbox. If you are out during the day and come home, with a litterbox you still notice the pee clumps to get an idea of how much they&#x27;ve peed - unlike with a toilet.<p>One aspect where the toilet may actually be better is that you _might_ be able to spot blood easier in the water.<p>I also wanted to train my first cat to use the toilet, until he suffered from a urinary blockage as a kitten. If he&#x27;d been using the toilet, I likely wouldn&#x27;t have noticed that anything was wrong until it was far too late. Blockage is more likely in male cats, and it is _not_ an uncommon problem. It is already far too easy to not notice if a cat is blocked if you&#x27;re not careful, and it doesn&#x27;t take long at all to become life threatening. I believe a toilet would only exacerbate this risk.<p>If I see blood in the litter, no clumps, or clumps that are smaller than usual (or heck, even much bigger than usual), I know to pay extra attention to my cat and either book a vet appointment or go to the emergency room. It&#x27;s allowed me to catch bouts of infection, crystals, and idiopathic cystitis early (all of which he is now more prone to after his initial urinary problems). A cat&#x27;s kidneys and urinary system can also be impacted by stress levels, with unexplained straining and bladder inflammation thought to be in some cases caused by stress. Having them pee in a toilet in my opinion decreases visibility of a very important and sensitive health factor.