[HarperRose]

Help. We have 2 cats, 8 mos and 7 mos. One or both pee on furniture, clothing, in the kids toy bins if they're not covered, my shower curtain that had been on the floor for a few hours while I went to buy a new rod, a stack of papers (dh should have picked up), even dd's BED!!!

WHY?? I have 2 boxes. This has been going on since we got them back in June. (We got them a day apart.)

What the heck are we not doing? How do I fix this?

So far I've managed to keep closet doors closed, put lids on toy bins, and I really work hard on making sure there's nothing on the floor for them to pee on. But they somehow managed to pee on the back part of my chair (???) and I've found one corner of the kids' bathmat rumpled in front of the cat box. (It's got the rubbery bottom so the cat didn't succeed in rumpling the entire thing.) I've also found our old bath mats (hotel- style, just a small version of a bath towel) rumpled up many times in front of the boxes.

They have access to 2 boxes. I know recommendation is a 3rd box, but we live in a 900 sq ft apt. and there is NO extra space for a 3rd box. I only have 2 bathrooms and I will NOT put a box in a bedroom. We try to keep the kids bedroom closed off (since they peed on dd's bed) and one of the bathrooms is through our room, so no point in having a box there. The kitchen barely fits a person in it, let alone an additional box. (Apt living is a pain in the butt! There is no extra-ish space anywhere!)

Any ideas? I'd like to figure out which cat is doing it, but they're both so sneaky and ... cat-like...

 

[thekimballs]

They need to be confined, SEPARATELY, each with his/her own box in a very small space (a large dog crate is excellent, but something the size of a bathroom or laundry room is OK too). Take everything absorbent off the floor and the cats should have food, water, and a box only. They can't be allowed to leave those rooms until they have been absolutely perfect about the litter box for at LEAST a week, probably two. Then they can be moved into a small room, but you can't give them the run of the apartment until they have proven that they never, ever go anywhere but in their boxes.

They're both fixed, right? If not, get that done right away.

At the stage where you move them back into proximity with each other, I would seriously consider putting a Feliway diffuser in the room with them. With two cats, peeing can be a competitive sport (literally), and Feliway helps to calm them down.

 

[HarperRose]

Not fixed yet, no! We need to get on that and that is our plan before the end of the year. (We just got a rec. from a friend of ours for a very good vet. They've used this office for 20 yrs for their pets.)

I will do the bathroom confinement. I didn't realize it could be competitive. How weird. Is Feliway available at Petco or something?

 

[woobysma]

our (male) cat did this for a while after we got him. I think he was targeting me... marking his territory, maybe, but um... GROSS! He'd pee on my side of the bed and on any dirty laundry I left on the floor.
It stopped after we got him fixed. He totally ignores me now

 

[thekimballs]

The fact that they're not fixed could be a HUGE part of this. Cats with intact hormones have a much greater drive to establish territory and hierarchy.

Feliway may be at your PetCo. If not, order it from petedge.com.

But seriously, I'd try to move up the spay/neuter date as soon as you can. I don't know whether they're males or females, but you're right on the edge of truly unpleasant hormonal behavior (in other words, if you think this is bad, just wait until a female goes into heat or a male starts spraying three feet up on the wall).

 

[HarperRose]

Quote:

Originally Posted by woobysma our (male) cat did this for a while after we got him. I think he was targeting me... marking his territory, maybe, but um... GROSS! He'd pee on my side of the bed and on any dirty laundry I left on the floor. It stopped after we got him fixed. He totally ignores me now

Hmm. I've wondered if having them neutered would help. I suspect it's the younger of the 2, Paz. (Hey, we don't call him Paz the Spaz for nothing!

)

I'm going to have to get on the vet situation. I'm due w/ baby #3 in 10 days! I gotta get on the ball.

 

[texaspeach]

honestly, save the $40 the feliway will cost you and get them fixed. I'm willing to wager that the peeing is territorial marking and will disappear once they're neutered

 

[phatchristy]

Neutering, generally quick and easy! You could also have the kitties checked for FUS as well, urinary crystals can cause inappropriate elimination. And, once you have those bases covered I would still go back and "retrain them".

While you're retraining any carpet/upholsetery areas should be cleaned with an enzymatic cleaner like nature's miracle. That will eliminate any trace of odor and the cats won't be likely to go there again out of habit.

 

[Arduinna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justthatgirl Not fixed yet, no!

There is your likely cause. I'd get on that immediately, cat pee is the most disgusting smell.

 

[phatchristy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arduinna There is your likely cause. I'd get on that immediately, cat pee is the most disgusting smell.

Incidentally, my new cat Chance....just 8 weeks ago was in intact male. Spraying and even "rolling in it"

: . He was neutered, and within 3 weeks after that stopped spraying completely. Now he's been here with us for two weeks and no sign of any of those behaviors either.

 

[lucyem]

Our cat has issues with UTI's. When she starts peeing on things we get her checked. She is also terribly picky about her litter so if it is the wrong kind or even a little dirty she will not use it. The vet also recommended having one more litter box then you have cats. If you have 2 cats then you need 3 litter boxes.

 

[frog]

Nature's Miracle will get the smell out.

 

[Liea]

Yes yes yes to the neutering! If it continues after that then use the Feliway... I've had great success with it. You can also put Bach's Rescue Remedy in their water to make them chill a bit. (couple drops) I also love the dog crate idea... used it a lot with a roomies cat when it was a kitten. It provides a good "time-out" space for them when they're really getting wild or when you're out of the house and cannot supervise them.

Since they are already 6-8 months old, it's possible that they might never reconcile and you may have to find a new home for one of the kittys. I just placed my male kitty in a new home due to stress induced uninary "issues". But NEUTER NEUTER NEUTER and see what happens!

If you can't do it before your babe comes, then at least crate them for the time being... that will buy you a bit of time. And while it may seem "cruel" to keep them crated for awhile... it's WAY gross to deal with cat pee and a new baby. They will be fine and they can come out for supervised play.

Good luck girl!

 

[HarperRose]

Thanks, you guys! I'll call up my friend's vet tomorrow and make an appointment. For some reason I had it in my head that it was gonna cost $60. for EACH and my friend said no! They're boys, it's cheaper.

(Her 2 males are getting fixed this week, also.)

The 2 cats get along very well. Peter is really laid back and gentle, Paz is more spastic and obnoxious, but he's a good cat, too.

We recently re-homed our dog (to friends who ADORE her!!) so I'm hoping Paz will relax a little. He and the dog always wrestled a bit but I got the impression that he did it out of what he may have felt was obligation.