Shae is 7 yrs old and has started peeing on the floor. Obviously, we’ve been trying to get her to stop. Yes, she’s perfectly healthy.
We’ve tried putting her in the bathroom where the litter boxes are (yes, we have three boxes for two cats). She has liked having her individual boxes to pee and poop in. Duffy is very happy with his box.
In recent days, we’ve added rubbing her nose in the pee. However, the worst day came Saturday. Rico walked into the bedroom and came back in the den to get me and Shae. She had not only peed on our bathroom floor, she had pooped on the bedroom floor too. :eek: Following this discovery, I rubbed her nose in both.
What in the world do I do??? I’ve run out of ideas. I have no idea why she’s started doing this.
The only time our cats peed on the floor, plants, dog’s water dish, etc., was when they had a urinary tract infection. You don’t always see blood in the urine, as with a kidney infection. The cure has always been a change of diet, to a urinary tract health variety (which they hate, but will eat when hungry enough).
As far as the pooping, that’s probably just to get even with you for rubbing her nose in her pee :).
Have you taken the cat to the vet yet? Often they will have solutions for you. There are several techniques that are supposed to help “cure” a cat of peeing or pooping in inappropriate places.
Every vet I’ve ever spoken to advises against rubbing a pet’s nose in it’s wee or poo. Animals will return to a place where they’ve previously voided, so be careful about which cleaners you use when cleaning up the mess (avoid anything with ammonia in it). If it was my kitty, I’d definitely be taking her to the vet.
Are the other kitties new to the house? Are the other kitties desexed?
I’d be loathe to make a previously indoor cat (especially one of that age) into an outdoor cat - she’s likely to encounter some potentially dangerous situations unless you leash her.
I just want it for the record that I would never turn an indoor cat into an outdoor cat. I may threaten, I may scream, I may turn red with anger, but I would never throw one of my cats out of the house.
It’s simply our standard joke…“Shae peed on the floor again??? She’s bucking to be an outdoor cat REAL quick, huh?”
Duffy is 17 months old and we’ve had him since he was 2 months old. and Yes, he’s been “tutorred”.
Rico is kidding about the outdoor part… at least I’m pretty sure he is. Even if he wasn’t kidding, he would be divorced before on of my kids was sent outdoor.
Yes, kidding about the divorced part too. Seriously we are both very protective of our kids…
fyi, we are very careful what kinds of cleaning products we use. In fact, our bug spray is even made out of cloves. Smells terrible but safe if one of the kids were to sniff it.
Here I thought my outdoor-cat training expertise would be called on! No? Anyway, the traditional reason for Shae’s um, emissions, is unhappiness with environmental change, especially indoor cats who can’t unpleasant situations. Anyone new staying with you? Did you change cat food recently? Using a different type of incense? (CA residents only )
Failing anything there ringing a bell, I’d second the veternary option.
Rico, me, and Duffy. No, no one new. No one has even visited recently.
Food… Friskies for as long as I can remember with the occasional cat treat or, I hate to admit it, table treat. Not a new habit
Incense… no, none. Yes, I know. I’m due to be run out of the state any time.
Cleaning products… no, unless you count new laundry soap.
I see a pattern here. Looks like a visit to the vet is in order. Next question…
Anyone know a good vet in the San Fernando Valley, CA? I’m not impressed with the one we took Duffy to. He came home with a totally different personality after he was neutered. I am convinced they didn’t knock him out. :eek:
My wife’s calico cat Zoey decided she wanted to be an outdoor cat this past summer. One day last August she disappeared and hasn’t been seen since. We have 3 other cats that go outside and nothing has happened to any of them.
I agree, if the cat or dog will not or cannot be made to follow sanitary practices. If cats and dogs are continually peeing and crapping all over the house for unknown reasons, and the problem cannot be solved, I’m amazed with the people that live with it as if it is some part of the landscape. I have known some personal situations where people accepted regular cat piss and cat shit “accidents” as the cost of having an indoor cat and their homes smelled like litter boxes. At what point is living in a feline or canine septic tank enough? It boggles the mind.
I suppose though, that if the point of existing as a cat is as a modified urban or suburban comfort device for humans, where they have have taken advantage of your little walnut sized brain and removed your reproductive organs, cut off your claws and behavior modified you to be placidly contained within a large wooden box with windows… well I suppose they at least owe you the consideration of putting up with some “accidents” for the indignity of turning you into a tribble.
Rubbish. My cats and dogs are part of my family, and as such they live inside.
I would definitely recommend a vet visit. Cats don’t just wake up one day and decide to do their business on the floor. There has to be a reason why. Health problems is a big one. They can’t vocalize when something is wrong with them, so it often comes out as messing in the house.
Our four cats made the transition a few years ago.
A little over 2.5 as a matter of fact. They didn’t adapt well to Baby Kate’s arrival on the scene.
We gradually got them used to being outside part time (their choice), then they spent the day outside while we were at work, now they spend most of their time outside. They only come inside when it’s truly cold or harsh outside.
Mind you, the few times we’ve allowed them inside again (with free reign) they resumed their piddling ways. Cats hold a grudge, I’d guess.
When we have only one cat and she misses the litterbox, it can be hard to fix. When we have more than one cat in the house, it can be even harder. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help stop litterbox problems in a multi-cat home.
Act Fast. A litterbox problem that continues for a long time can become harder and harder to solve. Litterbox mistakes can lead to territorial responses, and disturb the routines and hierarchies of your entire household. Will Muffin still want to take her daily afternoon snooze on the couch if Tiger urinated there? She may find some other area, displacing more and more of your cats, and creating fighting and other dominance displays. If you put off solving the problem, hoping it will go away on its own, you may find it multiplying in your home.
Find the Culprit. Before you even try to determine the “why,” figure out the “who.” If you catch it early enough, you can hopefully nail it down to one cat. Many people like to isolate each cat to determine which cat is causing the problem, but displacing one cat, even overnight, can sometimes lead to dominance displays in the others, as they claim undefended territory. If you have new cats, or kittens reaching adulthood, you may want to visit the vet for help. Your veterinarian can prescribe fluorescein for your cats, helping you to determine which urine stain(s) glow under an ultraviolet light.
Rule out a Veterinary Problem. Veterinary causes underlie many litterbox problems, particularly in household with older cats or those with access to the outdoors. Urinary tract infections are one of many common causes, where the cat develops an aversion to the box as a painful place to be. Other health problems can also cause litterbox mistakes. Worse, without visiting the veterinarian, your other cats may be at risk, which could cause the problem to multiply. No behavior techniques in the world will help a cat with a veterinary problem, so don’t skip the trip to the vet.
Observe the Behavior. If the vet rules out a health problem, I next recommend a brief observation period. It’s always very frustrating to the owner to let the cat continue his litterbox mistakes, but it gives you the knowledge to attack the specific problem. During the observation period, try to concentrate on the things in the environment that may be important to your cat, like litterboxes, food bowls, favorite places, the routines of the other cats and people in the home, etc. Start a journal where you record as much information as you can about every litterbox mistake, then look for links. Does the cat always use the same room? Is it always on carpeting? Does it happen after meals, or at some other time of day? Are the other cats nearby? Did you have guests over? When you isolate the specific stimuli involved, it allows you greater control without making major changes in the environment that may upset the rest of the cats.
Break the Habit. Elimination sites are matters of preference, and when the cat gets into the routine of going to a certain location, you’ll need to prevent the behavior from recurring. Since the smell of declining urine is a signal for the cat to “reapply,” clean the accident site with a pet odor remover - perhaps multiple times to get past the cat’s sensitive nose. Block off the area while the product does its work. Remote deterrents, that work whether you are around or not, will keep the cat from returning to the area whenever you aren’t standing guard. Double-sided tape or an upside-down plastic carpet runner, pointy feet up, can keep your cat from standing in the same area. Cats also hate to be startled, so anything that can safely surprise the cat when he visits that area can help make the area less “cat-friendly.”
Make the Current Litterbox More Appealing. While you are preventing bad habits, make good habits more appealing. The litterbox should be clean, have privacy, and in multi-cat homes, escapability is also important. This simply means that the cat can see off a distance, so he won’t be ambushed in the box, or on his way there. Most cats prefer clumping, non-perfumed litter, but work with your individual cat to determine whether a box of a different size, shape, or litter would help.
Retrain? If it doesn’t seem to help to address the individual factors in your journal, or your cat has never regularly used the litterbox, you may want to retrain the cat by himself. Use this as a last resort, since removing the cat from the hierarchy may upset the routines of all the cats in the home. Keep the cat in a small, uncarpeted room, with a clean litterbox, food bowl, and toys in opposite corners. Pick up all rugs from the floor, so the only soft place to choose to eliminate will be the litterbox. Visit the cat often, and clean the box regularly. I also recommend recording the times that the cat uses the box. Many cats stick to a regular routine, so once you’ve determined when the cat is likely to use the box, you can let the cat out during low-risk times to maintain the hierarchy, and put him back in the room with the litterbox during high risk periods. Repetition of successful use will increase the cat’s preference to the box.
General Stress Reduction. In some situations, it’s difficult to determine specific environmental triggers for a problem behavior. However, sometimes general stress reduction techniques will prove helpful, particularly in multi-cat homes. For litterbox problems that have arisen from territorial disputes, additional resources may reduce competition for resources. Extra litterboxes and food bowls are always helpful, but remember that YOU are also an important resource, so give each cat as much attention as they could possibly want. Exercise can also help redirect cats energies. It can also help desensitize cats to each other, while they are praised for attacking a toy while the other cat watches. Routines are also very important in multi-cat homes, particularly when older cats are involved. Scheduled feeding, petting and exercise periods at the same time and location every day can further reduce stress that may be contributing to the litterbox problem.
Rico and I are both in our 40s and neither one of us had children. These are our kids. They will NEVER be outdoor cats.
A few weeks before we got married last year, one of my daughters passed away. I still cry. She was only 10.
Yes, astro, it is the cost of having an indoor cat. Cat lovers make all sorts of concessions in order to have the companionship of a sometimes loving, mostly independant ball of fur to love (and worship).
I can echo the responses of “take your cat to the vet”. I have two cats, and kept finding accidents. It took me a while to figure out which cat was doing this and to get her to the vet (my fault - I was broke and busy and kept finding reasons not to go). When I did take her, it turned out that she had a kidney infection and was close to kidney failure. She was hospitalized for a wekk, on anti-biotics for another 2 weeks and is still on two meds. She needs to go back this week to have the blood and urine tests rerun. My laziness ended up costing over $400.
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