What the h*ll is wrong with my cat!?!

600 Views 10 Replies 8 Participants Last post by Jane, Apr 7, 2009

boopie2001

Discussion Starter · Apr 7, 2009

I have a 14 years old female cat who has been peeing all over the place lately. She pees on almost everything. She loves to go into the babies room and pee all over the carpet, the curtains and any clothing that has found it way to the floor. She has even peed in their cribs before.

: She has also peed all over the carpet in the living room/dinning room and the whole house stinks. She has even peed on my husband's pants when he came home from being gone a few days. She has not peed on any of my clothes. I have tried Nature's Miracle (did not work) and I am now going to try Odorxit and see if that works. I think I might have to find a new home for her. I took the cat to the vet and spent $200 for them to tell me she is in excellent health.

. I have spent over $100 on Nature's Miracle and my house reeks of cat urine. I have tried other remedies, but it still stinks.

The last straw happened last night when I went to get an item I was going to sell on Ebay and found it wet with cat urine

. Then I went wash my kids' clothes and they reeked of cat urine.

Now I know that cats can get all tied into a knot if their box is not pristine. I try to keep it clean, but if I miss a day, there wet pee all over the house. I rent this townehome and I know it is going to cost us a fortune when we move out. Right now she is outside in our yard enjoying the sun

.

What can I do?

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oneKnight

· #2 · Apr 7, 2009

I would say UTI. Did your vet specifically test for that?

Quote:

Now I know that cats can get all tied into a knot if their box is not pristine. I try to keep it clean, but if I miss a day, there wet pee all over the house.

It sounds like you KNOW the answer to the problem. Put the litter box in your bathroom and scoop it everytime there's anything in it - easy to do since you go in there to pee through out the day. Problem might be solved that simple.

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trauerweidchen

· #3 · Apr 7, 2009

Checking for a UTI should have been one of the first things on the vet's list, so if he/she didn't test for that, make sure they did. Unfortunately, if it isn't medical, it's probably a behavioral response.

The next thing I would try is to increase the number of litterboxes in the house. (I know this isn't always ideal, but it honestly can help a lot, especially in an older cat--maybe she's really finicky, or maybe she can't get to the box in time.) The experts recommend "as many boxes as you have cats, plus one"--so for one cat, you'd ideally have 2 or more litterboxes in different spots. You might try a couple of different kinds of litter to see if she likes those better, too.

Did anything change recently in your household or in her habits, such as new kitty litter? How new are your babies (and did she pee on the carpets before that)? It sounds as though she might be acting out because of such dramatic changes in her life. If she's stressed out, you could try a product called Feliway. It contains cat pheremones that can help calm a nervous feline down. (I've used it before and it does seem to help.) It's available as both a spray and a diffuser that you plug into the wall, much like an air freshener.

I hope some of these suggestions help. I worked at an animal shelter for a year, and I know how frustrating housesoiling can be. I've seen this happen before with cats when there's a new baby in the house. (I've dealt with it with one of my own cats, too, so I'm nervous about our own baby's arrival in a month and a half.) This is a pretty busy week for me and I might not get around to checking this thread again, so if you have any specific follow-up questions feel free to pm me.

Good for you for trying to fix the problem first rather than just getting rid of her, and good luck!

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l_olive

· #4 · Apr 7, 2009

Have her blood sugar checked. This sounds exactly like my cat before I found out he was diabetic and needed daily insulin injections.

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Minky

· #5 · Apr 7, 2009

Quote:

Originally Posted by l_olive

Have her blood sugar checked. This sounds exactly like my cat before I found out he was diabetic and needed daily insulin injections.

Ditto to that

I've also given cats with no obvious medical problems the spare room treatment--if you have a spare room, lock her in with a litterbox on one side, food on the other, and see if that gets her using the box again. Gradually re-introduce her into the house after a few days.

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jeliphish

· #6 · Apr 7, 2009

this will get the smell out: equal parts of water, distilled vinegar (5 cups each). 2 cups of hydrogen peroxide, 1/2 cup baking soda. 1 tblsp of dawn. I have never really kept to the measurements so it's really not too specific. It'll work regardless. We got this "formula" from the vet when our dogs got sprayed by a skunk. Our cat peed on baby stuff before we had DD and this worked like a charm to get the smell out. It'll work best if you use some sort of scrub brush with it.

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Jane

· #7 · Apr 7, 2009

How about an automatic litter box? I can see a couple of possibilities: the cat has a health problem that makes peeing hurt, the cat is mad b/c the litterbox is dirty/unaccessible, the cat doesn't like the kids (hence it's peeing on their stuff a lot).

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boopie2001

Discussion Starter · #8 · Apr 7, 2009

I guess it is a couple of things. We used to have the Littermaid but that broke. I think she got a little spoiled by it. She has on occasion pooped and peed outside of that box before. But Not like this! Now that we've changed the box she is mad if her box is not pristine. An extra litterbox is not an option because I have 2 toddlers and we are in small place. I also think she is a little mad about the kids. Before I had the kids 2 years ago she was my baby and she got all the attention from my husband and me.

She has peed in some spots so much that the vinegar/hygiene recipe does not work. I think it has gone done in the floor board.

I did get her tested for diabetes and uti and she tested beautifully on those test. The only problem on her test was her specific density(?) and the problem was only very slightly increased (this because of her age). Although she is 14 years, she is very very healthy.

I hate to give her away but I've gone through a lot with her. I have kept her even though I have a pretty bad cat allergy. Right now I am having issues with eczema (both on my body and face). I am highly allergic to cat dander. I've been told not to keep her by my doctors but I did. Now, I feel so frustrated with her. I would like to find a good home for her so she can get the attention she really needs, but she is an older cat. Do you have any ideas of where I could find a home for her. Although she is having this problem she is a good cat.

P.S. Has anyone used Bac-out or Odorxit to get rid a cat urine smells?

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hillymum

· #9 · Apr 7, 2009

I second reconditioning her behaviour by closing her in a (very small ) room with her litter box and food/water. I would do it for at least 10 days to 2 weeks if possible to ake sure she has the idea. Let her out into the yad during the day then when she comes in lock her up! It sounds mean but it is far better then passing her to someone who doesn't love her enough to try dealing with her issues. I know how hard it is! I was crying to the vet when one of my cats pee'd on my pillow! She had been elim inating out of the box for almost a onth after her UTI had been cured. The urine soaked pillow almost had her tossed out!

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boopie2001

Discussion Starter · #10 · Apr 7, 2009

Right now I have her in the bathroom with her food and water. Tomorrow she goes outside in the backyard. The back yard is fenced in so I don't have to worry about her getting out. I hate to do this but this behavior is getting too much for me. There is peep everywhere and I am losing the battle. I am also going to talk to my husband about getting another littermaid box. Has anyone tried anything other than Nature's Miracle or vinegar hydrogen peroxide combo and it worked?

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Jane

· #11 · Apr 7, 2009

Man, I feel for ya. I have used natures miracle to good end. But ya got to soak it, like 1 1/2 cups on each pee. And thats after I use the little green clean machine or the shop fax to extract, soak with water, extract, soak, extract, etc until the water smells clean to me. It will still have an odor until the natures miracle dries - about a week in the damp northwest. Until then, I'd put laundry baskets over the spot.
Can you treat her like a kitten, where you only offer food on a schedule, and 3-5 minutes after she eats+drinks, put her physically in the box?
I'd post a wanted o craigslist. She might do well on a used litterbox. She could take out her anger by peeing on the other cats scent.

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