My cat has a thing for pooping behind the couch. I’ve tried everything I can think of to discourage this habit, but I’ve run out of ideas.
I’ve sprayed the carpet with all sorts of cleaners, Febreeze, pet odor products, everything. It doesn’t stop her.
I thought maybe she didn’t like sharing a litter box with my gramma’s cat. Since there’s about 5 feet between the couch and the wall, I put a new litter box back there. She pooped to the left of it, to the right of it, and in front of it.
I’m spending this week shampooing the carpet in the entire house, and just a few hours ago, I finished the whole area behind the couch. I’m using a pretty powerful cleaning solution in the shampooer, and super hot water. A few minutes ago, I caught her scratching at the floor back there.
I have no idea just how deep the scent goes into the floor, beyond the carpet I’m sure, but ripping it up really isn’t an option. Is there anything I could douse the whole area with that might work deeper than the steam cleaner?
Possible solution - we had a cat that did that. Turns out he was more neurotic then we though. On a wild idea, we bought a second litter box. Worked like a charm, he peed in one and pooped in the other. So strange.
As long as the area behind the couch is to her liking, she keeps it back there, but if she finds an unpleasant smell back there (she hates Febreeze), she poops behind another piece of furniture. I have a bad feeling that if I pepper the entire perimeter of the living room, she’ll move her habits to one of the bedrooms. My thoughts are that if she MUST poop in the floor, better for it to be in one area than in a different room each time. At least I know where to find it.
The other cat has no problem at all with keeping her business in the box. So much for leading by example.
I’ll give that a shot. Knowing this cat though, she’d poop between them.
Try putting a thick piece of plastic over the area she’s been using. Changing the brand of litter might help, too. What are you using now? You mentioned she hates the smell of Febreeze - maybe the litter you are using is too strongly scented for her? My cats hate scented litter. I use pine pellet stable bedding - very cheap (if bought in 30lb stable bedding bags, not 10lb “Feline Pine” bags) and great for odor control.
After doing the above mentioned you may also want to take her bowl of dry food and place it directly on the spot she keeps shitting on. This is her new eating spot for a few days. Cats do not like to eat where they shit.
In addition to changing the litter you may also want to try another type of litterbox. For example, if you are using a covered box, you may want to try an uncovered box*, or try a rounded covered box or a larger box. She may be picky about wanting more wiggle room when she poops.
*uncovered boxes can lead to other problems though, like stuff falling outside the box.
If none of that works she may have a behavior problem and you might have to look into things that are upsetting her and causing the inappropriate elimination. Is grandma’s cat in the house a new thing and did the pooping start after that?
My cat began pooping in the bathtub (bizarre, but convenient for cleanup). Long story short, she was ill and it hurt her to go, so she sought out somewhere that felt safer or something. A visit to the vet for gland de-blocking and a change in diet ended the bathtub visits. In other words, see your vet, there may be a medical reason.
New litter coming next time I get to the store. Right now I’ve got Special Kitty Crystals Blend Scoop For Multiple Cats. Stuck my nose in the bag, and it’s very highly perfumed. I never paid much attention to the scent before, I just dumped it in the box. Maybe it irritates her sinuses? It did mine.
I’m already using an uncovered box, we had a covered one years ago and neither cat would go in it. It’s a pretty big one too, enough room for both cats to go at the same time if they so chose.
Gramma’s cat is 10 years old, and was here first. My little pooper (3 years old) was born and raised around her.
