How to Switch Between a Covered and Open Litter Box

Put the new box next to the old one for about a week rather than swapping them outright — cats generally accept a new box style faster when they can compare the two side by side instead of losing the familiar option all at once.

Decide the direction first

This article covers the mechanics of switching once you've already chosen a direction. If you're still weighing covered against open — airflow, odor containment, privacy, and size tradeoffs — see what size litter box: covered or open first.

Introduce side by side

1. Place the new box a short distance from the current one, in the same general area.
2. Keep the old box fully functional and clean during this period — don't let it go uncleaned to encourage a switch, since a cat avoiding a dirty box isn't the same as a cat genuinely preferring the new style.
3. Use the same litter in both boxes at first, so style is the only variable changing.
4. Watch which box gets used over the week. A gradual shift toward the new one is the sign to continue; continued strong preference for the old one is a sign to slow down or reconsider.

Covered to open: what to expect

Cats moving from a covered to an open box sometimes take to it quickly, since open boxes offer better visibility and an easier exit if they feel cornered. Watch for:

• More visible litter tracking, since the walls of a covered box no longer contain scatter. See how to stop litter tracking if this becomes noticeable.
• More noticeable odor in the room, since a covered box's containment effect is gone. A tighter cleaning schedule during and after the switch helps — see how to deep clean a litter box.

Open to covered: what to expect

This direction has a higher rate of full rejection, since some cats genuinely dislike the enclosed feel or the trapped odor of a covered box. Watch for:

• Hesitation or refusal to enter, more common in larger cats or multi-cat households where a covered box can feel like a trap if another cat is nearby.
• A need for a bigger covered box than you'd expect, since the covered shell eats into usable interior space compared to an open pan of the same footprint.

Signs the switch isn't working

• Continued or increasing use of the old box after two full weeks side by side
• Any accidents outside either box, which is a stronger signal than a simple preference and worth stopping the switch to address
• Visible hesitation, sniffing and backing away, or refusal to fully enter the new box

If you see genuine avoidance rather than just a slower adjustment, that's useful information about this specific cat's preference — not every cat needs to end up on the same box style, and forcing it tends to create a bigger problem than the one you were solving.

Multi-cat households

Introduce one new box at a time rather than switching every box in the house simultaneously, and don't reduce your total box count during the transition. See how many litter boxes do I need to confirm you have enough boxes to run old and new side by side without creating a shortage.

Give the side-by-side period real time before judging the switch — a week minimum, two if your cat tends to be cautious about change. Full box options are at cat litter.

Rule out a medical cause before troubleshooting a switch

If refusal shows up alongside straining, frequent unproductive trips to either box, or accidents outside both boxes, don't keep working through switching techniques — see a vet first. A cat straining without producing urine is a life-threatening emergency; see cat straining in litter box and call a vet immediately. A cat that's genuinely unwell can look like one that's simply rejecting the new box style, and the two need very different responses.

A diagnostic order for a stalled switch

Once a medical cause is ruled out, work through these roughly in this order:

1. Confirm both boxes are equally clean. A dirtier box, even accidentally, will bias the comparison regardless of style.
2. Confirm litter is identical in both. If you introduced a new litter at the same time as the new box, you can't tell which change the cat is reacting to — separate the two changes and retest.
3. Confirm size, not just style, is comparable. A covered box with a small interior footprint can be rejected for being cramped, not for being covered — that reads as a style preference when it's actually a size problem.
4. Only then treat it as a genuine style preference. If the above are all controlled for and the cat still won't touch the new box after two full weeks, that's real information about this cat, not something to keep pushing against.

What to do when the first attempt fails

Extend the side-by-side period rather than abandoning the switch after a few days. Some cats take a full two to three weeks to warm up to a new covered box, especially larger cats or cats that startle easily — enclosed spaces raise the stakes of feeling trapped, so trust builds more slowly than it does for an open-to-open change. If there's still no progress after three weeks, that's the point to conclude the switch isn't working for this cat rather than continuing indefinitely.

Multi-cat households and this switch specifically

Covered boxes concentrate risk in multi-cat homes more than open boxes do, because a single entrance makes it easier for one cat to block or ambush another without either cat needing to fight about it. If you're switching one box to covered in a multi-cat household, watch usage patterns across all boxes, not just the one you changed — a drop in use elsewhere can mean a cat has been pushed off the new covered box and is now competing for a different one. Confirm your total count still meets the one-per-cat-plus-one rule throughout the switch; see how many litter boxes do I need.

Cleaning during the transition

Whichever box style you're moving to or from, any accident during the switch should be cleaned with an enzymatic cleaner, not an ammonia-based one — ammonia smells like urine to a cat and can draw them back to the exact spot you're trying to discourage. This matters more than usual during a box-style switch, since a cat that's already hesitant about the new box is more likely to test an alternative spot nearby.