cats don't need a room! the whole dang house will be the cats space and if you are thinking otherwise please don't get a cat.

put the litter box somewhere as out of the way as possible (best hint someone ever told me was the first thing you do when bringing a cat into a home or after moving is put the cat IN the litter box and walk away. cat will find it's way out of box and to the family and then know where the box is).

cats LIVE with the family and won't go to a room to "play".

Best place to put a litter box is in a low-use bathroom. We use pine litter which has several advantages. But the most important one is that doesn't stick to the poos, so you can flush them away without clogging up your plumbing.

Cats do not want to hang out near their litter box. They don't want to eat, sleep or play there. If you try to crate your cat (horrors!), the last place you should do it is next to their litter box. That's a pure recipe for a feline mental illness.

I agree that a low use bathroom is a good place for litter box - if you can do it. I have had cats and really adore cats - but don’t know if I’m an expert on the subject. However, I do think it is probably true in many cases that cats would prefer not hanging out around their litter boxes.

But I think it would be a fun project to create a space for the kitty. I think I’d start with a sofa... or maybe even better a chaise lounge. :)

https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/la-z-boy-blue-solana-chaise-pet-sofa-40-l-x-20-w-3115495?cm_mmc=PSH--GGL--SPP--PME--PET--AQU--0--PM_GGL_FY20_SBU04_SH10_Home%26Away_DogBeds_PLA-SMRT--0-_-0&gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=CjwKCAjwnK36BRBVEiwAsMT8WBma7F2iSp9M66cLrxnCfPMuuiwG13tIn27kH-s6c-0jZE1m1FuWkBoClE4QAvD_BwE

This is an interesting article: https://petcentral.chewy.com/9-creative-cat-rooms/

If you come and go that way, through the mud room, I wouldn’t think you would wish to be greeted with a litter box every time you come home. Also, cats often track litter outside of their box and you would be tracking it into the house. I agree with the previous poster to use an unused bathroom, basement, or other out-of-the-way place.

Bad idea IMO first cats do not usually do anything you want them to.Do you like eating where you poop ? Animals don’t like it either. My advice get a great cat scratching play type piece and put it where the cat likes to be and that will be decided by the cat . As for the litter box I found the laundry room was a good spot I really never like the box in any bathroom. There are great self cleaning litter boxes invest in one and enjoy kitty just remember thay like what they like wether you like it or not.

Wayfair has some nice ideals for a cat litter enclosures... I really like this one.

https://www.wayfair.com/pet/pdp/tucker-murphy-pet-grinnell-eco-litter-box-enclosure-w001788439.html

I just got 2, 6 week old kittens that are sisters. Melissa R is correct, they will play everywhere in your house. although, I do have several toys in an open space in my kitchen since I am in that room a lot. They seem to love it. Their favorite toy is similar to this... https://www.walmart.com/ip/Trixie-Pet-Vitoria-Kitten-Tree/20420180?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222222014785627&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=e&wl1=o&wl2=c&wl3=10362468710&wl4=pla-4578916178979224&wl12=20420180_0amp;wl14=Small%20Cat%20Scratching%20Post&veh=sem&msclkid=a5ebf4eccc131bbb114baba77537f959

I would not give up a perfectly functional space for something that is probably not going to get used. There is no great place for a litter tray, but of your suggestions (litter, eating, play) that is probably the only one I would consider there. We've had one with a lid, that looks a bit like a small kennel and that reduces (not eliminates) the spread of litter around the place. Hopefully your cat will be quickly trained to take care of its business outside, but you should still keep the indoor option available to him/her, particularly if the cat does not have free access to come and go.

As for playing and sleeping, your cat will decide on the design for those areas. And feeding, I have always done in or near the kitchen, simply because that is where we keep the food and wash the bowls.

I‘ve had four cats and each one was different but all loved being up high at a window. They spend a lot of time looking out and it’s stimulating for them, which is important. My two right now are staring out sliding doors, listening to the birds - lol

Disadvantage of litter in mud room is if you use that entrance, inside door will always have to kept open. I‘ve placed in laundry room, basement, bathroom and large walk in closet. See what works best and because you have to clean really often, it should be convenient.

Eating In mud room - again door will have to be open as they like to nibble throughout the day. All they need is a small corner in kitchen and I use a running water device under a sink in a bathroom.

Is your garage on the other side of that wall? Many years ago my dad made a hole in the wall between the garage and the laundry room, finished it, and put the cat box in the garage. I always thought that was genius, no messy or smelly litter box in your house. I would look into that for an option. Gosh I hate litter boxes in the house, especially the bathroom yuck, probably why I didn’t get another cat after mine passed away.

BTW IMO cats belong in the house in urbann settings too many cars and there is nothing makes me madder than someones cat pooping in my garden. I like that idea of a cat door into the garage for litter . We had a cat door into our laundry for the cats.

I agree that I wouldn’t turn a mudroom into a cat room. It looks like your family uses that space. You won‘t want to walk through litter or smell cat poop every time you walk into the house.

I have three cats. Two cats use a litter box in a less used bathroom. I really don’t like it, but at the time it was the best spot we had. The other cat belonged to my dad and came home with me when my dad passed away in June. We are still trying to get all the cats used to each other, so the new cat currently lives and uses a litter box in the garage (don’t worry, we spend a ton of time with him every day and work every day with all three cats and the dog to get them to get along. They’ve all improved a lot!).

Once all the animals are getting along, I want both litter boxes in the garage. It’s out of the way but easy to get to, I’ll have my bathroom back, and the smell will be out of the house. We already have a cat door in the door leading to the garage because our other two cats already loved going out there during the day.

So my suggestions? A bathroom, a corner of the laundry room, or a garage. As for feeding, all our animals (other than the new cat, obviously) eat in the kitchen. Their food is kept in our pantry and it’s just the easiest place.

The cat’s play ”area” will likely end up being all over your house. =) Our cats go anywhere they want and we have multiple things for them to play on or crawl into throughout the house and garage.

I bought this litter cabinet from Amazon for our cat. We kept it in the laundry room. Worked really well.

Set food and water on the bench. Put litter box in a bathroom. Done.

Cat may or may not approve. There are no guarantees with cats.

If you decide to go the garage route, make sure to check your local building codes. I really wanted a cat-door from the basement to the garage for the litter boxes (3 cats). Code forbade it due to fire and carbon monoxide concerns.