Cleaning out a smelly litter box is not exactly the most appealing activity one can imagine. And the messy litter that sticks everywhere on the carpet, the room smelling like ... But have you ever thought of training your cat to use the toilet? Wouldn't it be a lot easier if you could just flush it down?

There are some questions which you should take into consideration before you decide to toilet train your cat. Cats are not able to flush the toilet simply because they are not heavy enough to manipulate the flushing mechanism. So, you will have to do it yourself. This means that the eliminations may sit in your toilet for a while. However, the smell of cat's poop is much less evident when submerged in water. If you have two separate bathrooms in your house, you could assign less frequently used toilet to your cat so you don't feel embarrassed when you get visitors.

You can find many books and articles on cat toilet training but what works and what doesn't depends on your cat's personality and individual preferences. Young kittens cannot balance very well so you will need to wait until they are 5 to 6 months old at which age their musculoskeletal system and locomotion are more developed. On the other hand, a cat is never too old to be toilet-trained unless it suffers with a condition preventing it from jumping and balancing, such as arthritis.

Before you start training your cat to use the toilet, it should be trained to use the litter box and the family members should get used to keeping the bathroom open and toilet lid up!

Measure the widest diameter of your toilet and buy a metal bowl which will sit in it securely. You may need to make some adjustments. Do not buy anything from plastic; it is just not strong enough to support cat's weight and could bend and break. You will also need to buy some flushable litter at this stage so your cat has time to get accustomed to it.

Gradually move the litter box closer to the bathroom. Allow a few days for cat to get used to each new position. Once the box sits next to the toilet and your cat is used to it, you can start to raise it higher until it is leveled with the toilet. Make sure the box is stable and cannot flip over. At this point, you should place the metal bowl in the toilet. Wait a few days until the cat is comfortable using the litter box at this level.

Now is the time to make the transition from litter box to the bowl. Fill the bowl with the (flushable) litter the cat is used to and take the litter box away. Wait a week or two to give the cat time to feel comfortable with using the bowl.

Then gradually reduce the amount of litter in the bowl until there is no litter at all. Wait again until the cat is used to eliminate in the empty bowl. If the cat's feet are still resting in the bowl at this stage, you can fill it with water as cats don't like to get their feet wet. This should help the cat to learn balance on the seat. Wait again. Then cut off the bottom of the bowl so that all eliminations fall straight into the toilet water. Wait a few days and then take the bowl away. Voila, your cat is toilet trained.

Most cats can be successfully toilet trained. Some of them learn fast and can be trained in as little as 2 - 3 weeks, others may take 2 months or longer, but it is worth to be patient if your reward is saying good buy to smelly litter box forever.

Sarah is a vet with special interest in cats. She owns http://www.catbehaviortraining.com where people can find practical tips & advice on solving cat behavior problems and cat training.