Cat pee.

[Pumpkin_Pie]

My cat is about 12 years old and is partially paralyzed. He woke up about a year ago nearly unable to walk with back legs that would just buckle under him. I brought him in, they did an x-ray and found that he has calcium deposits growing into his spine. The vet said there wasn't much that they could do other than give him anti-inflammatory meds to decrease the swelling, which freed up his spinal cord. The meds worked and he has been able to walk pretty much normally for a year now. His tail drags on the floor, but he doesn't seem to notice, and he occasionally stumbles when going down stairs. The vet said to expect him to live maybe another six months or so last year, and he is twice that length of time at this point.

Over the past month or two, I have noticed a very strong cat urine odor coming from my basement and have discovered many things that he has peed on down there. His litterboxes (2 of them) are down there, and he definitely uses them and they are kept as clean as I can keep them while working and being a single mama.

Over the past couple of days I have noticed the smell in the living room and I now think he is peeing on the couch. I am terrified that he will pee on my bed, or DS's bed, or who knows where else. I don't really want to keep him confined to the bathroom, as there are no windows in there. I don't feel like he is ready to be put down, as he still has a pretty good quality of life, and can still walk, run, play, snuggle on my lap, etc. He eats well, has gained a bit of weight lately (he was getting a bit thin, but I have been buying him the yummiest, canned foods I can find) and really seems to be a normal cat other than the fact that his tail drags.

Please tell me there is something else I can do for this poor kitty. My house stinks!

[womenswisdom]

The most common reason for urinating outside of the box is a UTI, so it would probably be a good idea to take him to the vet and have them do a physical and check a urine sample. Other possibly physical causes might include kidney disease or diabetes. Otherwise, if it's not a physical problem, behavioral inappropriate elimination is usually a result of stress. Have there been any changes in his environment lately? I would also ask the vet whether his known condition could be causing him to feel pain that might cause him stress. Nature's Miracle works pretty well to eliminate the urine odor. You can use a black light bulb to identify all the places he's urinated and make sure to completely saturate the area. Good luck - this is a hard one.

[Pumpkin_Pie]

Originally Posted by womenswisdom

The most common reason for urinating outside of the box is a UTI, so it would probably be a good idea to take him to the vet and have them do a physical and check a urine sample. Other possibly physical causes might include kidney disease or diabetes. Otherwise, if it's not a physical problem, behavioral inappropriate elimination is usually a result of stress. Have there been any changes in his environment lately? I would also ask the vet whether his known condition could be causing him to feel pain that might cause him stress. Nature's Miracle works pretty well to eliminate the urine odor. You can use a black light bulb to identify all the places he's urinated and make sure to completely saturate the area. Good luck - this is a hard one.

How long can an undiagnosed UTI go on for? I literally have no money to spend on the vet until around October 1st. I am planning to sell a bunch of things on Craigslist starting this weekend, but my bills are all behind from being unemployed for over a month. I will be caught up on 10/1 when I get my second paycheck from my new employer and can take him in then, but not before, unfortunately. If he needed an critical emergency appointment, I wouldn't even be able to do that right now. I will see about getting a black light bulb and some Nature's Miracle as soon as I can too. Thanks for the tip!

[stardogs]

UTIs can be pretty sneaky - the sooner he can get to the vet the better as the longer he urinates appropriately, the more likely it is to become a substrate preference issue in the future. If I were you, I'd be confining him until he sees a vet to reduce the damage to your house and habit forming.

Some shelters have low cost clinics that can help people in your situation, it might be worth calling around. CareCredit is also an option as they usually have no interest for 30 days on any balance.

For cleaning - good luck. We finally threw out the papasan our cat peed on because we just couldn't get the odor out. Natures Miracle or Simple Solution are going to be your best bet for odor and stain fighting. Make sure you saturate the stain to get all odor particles possible.