This is a specific conversation about Cat litter boxes — size, type, and placement — ask about yours and get one honest answer for your exact situation.
inparticular.ai
Box-guarding in an older cat is a real problem — your vet is right to flag it, and adding a second tray is one of the most effective fixes. Quick note while we're here: most litter boxes are too small (cats need at least 1.5 times their body length), and covered boxes often make guarding worse because the cat inside feels cornered. So placement and size matter just as much as having a second tray. Tell me a bit more — how big is your Tonkinese, is there a second cat doing the guarding or is she guarding the box herself, and what size and type of tray are you using now?
She's the one being guarded against — we have two cats. She's medium-sized, maybe 4kg. The other cat is a 5kg male. We have one large covered box at the moment, which our vet said to replace or supplement. She's started going outside the box.
inparticular.ai
That makes complete sense. When one cat controls access to the only box, the other has no choice but to go elsewhere — it's not a behaviour problem, it's a resource problem. The covered box is also likely making it worse: the male can sit at the entrance and completely block her. You need a second tray that's open, large enough for her, and placed somewhere he can't easily patrol. Where is the current box, and do you have another room or floor she could access independently?
The current box is in the utility room off the kitchen. She could use the upstairs bathroom — he doesn't really go up there as much.
inparticular.ai
Upstairs bathroom is ideal. She needs her own open tray up there — no lid, no flap, clear sightlines so she can see if anyone's approaching. For a 4kg Tonkinese you want something around 50–55cm long at minimum. My recommendation is the Savic Nestor open litter tray. It's 56cm long, low-sided at the front for easy entry, and has a higher back and sides to contain scatter — so it's practical without being enclosed. No hood, no flap. Straightforward, easy to clean, and genuinely the right size for a medium cat. It's well-made and widely available on Amazon UK. Put it somewhere she can approach from more than one direction if possible — corner placement reduces her escape options.
That sounds good. Should I use the same litter in both trays, or would it help to try something different in the new one?
inparticular.ai
Start with the same litter — you want her to recognise it immediately as a toilet and not have to figure out something unfamiliar while she's already stressed. Once she's using the new tray reliably, you can experiment if you want to, but there's no benefit to changing litter at the same time as introducing a new box. The goal right now is just to get her using it quickly and confidently. Give it a week or two and you should see the outside-box incidents stop.
Great, that's really helpful. I'll order it today.
inparticular.ai
Good — it should make a real difference quickly. One last thing: keep both trays clean daily if you can. When resources are contested, cats are more likely to avoid a tray that smells of the other cat. Separate, clean, open, and in her territory upstairs — that's the formula. Hope she settles back into good habits fast.
