Some cats may be unwilling to use a box that is difficult or inconvenient to access, or if the box is located in an area that the cat finds unappealing or unpleasant. For example, a box that is in the far recesses of the basement or near a furnace or washing machine may be undesirable. Older cats can find stairs an obstacle and be unwilling to go into the basement to use the litter box. When there are multiple cats in the home, multiple pans in multiple locations may be needed. It is speculated that cats may not share the space they have equally, and be unwilling to go to some locations to use the litter box.
Most cats prefer privacy when they eliminate.
If the litter box is located in a high traffic or noisy area in the home, the cat may avoid it. Moving the pan to another quieter location may encourage the cat to return to litter box use. A cat may not use the litter box if it prefers another location. This can often be determined by a careful history into where the elimination is found. For treatment, if it is happening in only one or two places, the cat should be prevented from being in that location without supervision.