Hi Kitcaboodle,

I've seen this behaviour in young cats.   Reading your description of
events, it seems implicit that you have only one litter tray between two
cats.  It is most important that each cat has their own litter tray.   He
seems to allow you to observe this behaviour; so use this to your advantage
and talk gently to him.  Tell him he doesn't need to use his nose so much
(he's sniffing for scent and a clean toileting area); tell him that if he
can't smell anything, there can't be anything there .. get on with it!
After he's done his duty, let him cover it, but if he seems too frantic
and/or unable to stop, just tell him "That's enough now.  Leave it alone.
You're a good boy".  (I sometimes even say "I'll make it clean now" and then
use a deodorant spray, which makes the tray smell cleaner).   This should
make him less anxious about your expectations of him.  I think this is the
root of his problem.  You're so right not to be cross with him.  Just
continue to be patient, and I'm sure that with your help he'll grow out of
it.  NB: while he's actually pooping, look away.  Even tell him you won't
watch him as you turn away.  Cats (just like us) are very private about
their toileting.

Your second problem is simple.  It isn't even a problem .. it's a piece of
ancient cat behaviour.  Have you ever watched (on TV) big cat documentaries.
If you have, you may remember seeing a tiger or leopard cover the remainder
of a kill with local detritus .. scraping it from the immediate area until
the kill is disguised.  This is exactly what your cat is trying to do.  He's
saying "I can't eat all this now .. I expect it to be there when I get
back".  My ex-Tiggypuss did this a lot at first but, in order to save my
kitchen flooring, I would say "Nobodies going to take your dinner, Tiggy ..
and if they did, I'd just give you some more".  He quickly learned to
understand this and only rarely scraped around his dish.   I'm sure you
could talk to your young puss and reassure him in this way.

Both problems show signs of anxiety in your cat, which is to be expected in
a newcomer.   Naturally, the toilet problem seems the most difficult because
you both want the process to be clean.  It's often a good idea to reduce all
distraction whenever you see kitty approach the litter tray.  A female cat
of mine used to make a rare mess and muddle of covering up after her #2s.
It was usually because she was being nosey about something going on nearby.
I used to say "Stop being so nosey and concentrate on what you're doing ..
you'll make a better job of it".  Amazingly, she seemed to understand and
dealt with the #2 much more swiftly and cleanly!  Your cat's problem
behaviour stems purely from wanting to please you.  Make it easy from him -
tell him what you want from him.

Hope this helps.
Spider

kitcaboodle84@gmail.com wrote in news:db9e7f1d-d26c-42e3-ba9e-
f68ce99d3c22@s19g2000prg.googlegroups.com:

It seems like insecurity. It might pass on it's own. my male cat would
often emerge from the box looking like he'd just snorted cocaine!  He did
it a lot at first, only occasionally now.  I'd recommend trying one with
a hood so he feels a little less vulnerable.

I also had to do something a little odd because of one of his habits.  I
have a plastic water dish, which he'd constantly scratch at and flip
over. So I mixed up a small amount of concrete and filled the underside
of the bowl!  It now weighs about 8 pounds, but he can't flip it!  (He's
very strong, even a ceramic bowl didn't work.)  He still manages to drag
it across the kitchen floor, one scratch at a time. He was a stray who
was almost starved when I got him.  He weighed 6.5 pounds, as opposed to
the 15 he weighs now. I think that explains his anxiety behavior.