Cat Peeing Outside of the Litter Box? A Vet Explains Why
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- Опубліковано 28 тра 2024
- In this week's video, Dr. Sarah Wooten, DVM, CVJ explains inappropriate elimination in cats, detailing the reasons why cats pee and poop outside of the litter box and what you can do to resolve the underlying causes of this behavior.
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0:00 Introduction
1:26 What is Inappropriate Elimination?
3:13 Causes of Inappropriate Elimination in Cats
3:16 Medical Problems
4:18 Inappropriate Elimination vs. Spraying
5:56 Stress
6:43 Litter Box Aversion
10:26 Inter-Cat Problems
11:02 Tips to Stop Inappropriate Elimination
15:28 Conclusion
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My cat, who came in from the street, taught himself to urinate in the toilet, shortly after moving into the house. No idea how he made this connection. Did he smell urine in the toilet and "put two and two together"? He still used his dirt box for pooping, though. No matter, I appreciated his doing this, as that gets rid of stench. And before you ask, no, he didn't flush.
Thats rude
The great jazz bassist, band leader, and composer Charles Mingus wrote a set of instructions on how to train your cat to use the human toilet.
It doesn't seem healthy for the cat, because a cat needs to mark their territory so whenever you flush that smell disappears so you might find your cat frequently going there :/
@@Imtoobusyslayingrn111 If it worked for cat & owner, especially if cat chose this method, why criticize. I say you have a bad-ass cat!! Be blessed! 💜
same he has passed and was the man. really miss tiger, are new cat spooky is not new but is the bully and pisses all the time
I love my little cat SO much it breaks my heart but she's made my life a living hell for 4 years now. Ruined 3 couches already and there's pee in all corners of my condo. Many veterinarian visits yet theres no sign of any issues with her (uti, stones disease etc...) Fresh litter boxes in 2 different places, no stress environment etc...IM GOING CRAZY as I've tried everything. I'm in tears. 😢
I’m there girl
Oh my😢😢 did you talk with a behaviourist? ❤
I know someone’s cat that got prescribed anti anxiety medication and it worked, maybe it’s an anxiety issue
I definitely know how you feel. My cat ruined my baseboards, where she peed over and over again. I started putting a bucket of water where she peed. So far she hasn't peed there. We'll see how long it lasts.
Have you tried feliway plugins? Helped my cat years ago
Several years ago, we had a cat named Shania. When Shania reached old age, her litterbox habits changed. She would poop in the litterbox, and pee on the carpet. We started putting down layers of plastic wrap, paper towels, and aluminum foil in the spot on the carpet where she would pee. She would keep going back to that same spot and pee everytime. We tried a different litter, but to no avail. We took her to the vet to find out what was going on. The vet didn't find anything wrong with Shania"s health. It turns out that it was age-related. This was back in 2008. Shania was 14 years old at the time.
One day when we were shopping at Wal-Mart, I went to the pet care department and found several brands of puppy pads. I wondered if Shania would use these, and bought a package. When we got home, I spread out a couple of puppy pads on Shania's pee spot on the carpet and she went right over to the pad and peed on it. Problem solved! Shania continued to use the litterbox for pooping, and the puppy pads for peeing.
Shania passed away in 2009 at the age of 15, due to fluid buildup around her lungs. This health issue began in 2009, a year after Shania changed her litterbox habit. It was not related to her litterbox habit. We miss her everyday.
Great story of being adaptable and accomodating your cat. Thanks for sharing!
I live in a small apartment, and - I have dedicated a whole, small closet to their litter boxes! Since almost everything is carpeted, even in the closet (😡), I have placed that heavy paper ( I buy it at Lowe's) called Ramboard on the whole area in the closet, over the carpet. Then, I placed a piece of plastic over the heavy paper; the plastic is also sold on a big roll at Lowe's, and you can buy any length you want from that large, plastic roll. So, I placed heavy paper over the carpet, then, placed that plastic sheet over the heavy paper. Then I place the litter box over those two layers. It is a hassle, but, it has kept the carpet very clean, thank goodness!
I did this even before my cats had begun to pee outside their litter boxes - which they have begun to do, for some reason. I'm going to try larger boxes, and another type of litter ( I had been using World's Best, and I think that's not the problem - but, I'm trying things by process of elimination!)
Pee pads are a good option to place under, or near the boxes...
I'm so sorry for your Great Loss. Bless you.
I started putting washable pads where my older cat started going. Clean up is a breeze, and she uses them very nicely. Bless her.
I bet it was related to the illness. Our senior dog did the same thing, had pyrometria.
I've tried everything and the only thing that has always worked for me is placing food wherever they tend to pee. Cats don't pee where they eat. Of course it's necessary to clean the area perfectly beforehand, but once you start placing food there regularly, they'll stop peeing there.
my cat peed on their food bowl once…… it’s gross but honestly my cat might be insane
@@fairoadiaryoh lol I just saw u in the comments of another cat peeing everywhere video
No , my male cat can pee close to his food , no proplem at all
Great idea
Will they choose a new place to pee?
I am very frustrated. Neither this video nor any other videos I have seen in the past 9 months have helped. I know my blind kitty had issues w/ improper elimination at the shelter. I have had her for 9 months. For only 2 months, she properly used the litter boxes, but a few weeks ago, she not only started pooping outside of her litter box again but is now also urinating outside of them. The vet said she does not have an infection. I am very frustrated.
Lucy kitty comes & tells me every time she uses that box & keeps telling me until I go clean it right away! I fuss over what a good job she did & giver her a treat. At 21 years old, she's still training her human.
My kitten usually pees and poops inside the litre box. But everytime we put our comforter and blankets on our bed, she climbs onto the comforter or blanket and pees on it. But never on the bed or the pillows, or any other spots like rugs or toilet mats. Just pees on any soft and fluffy fabric on the bed. Please help
One of my cat has been doing this for over a year. Not every day but once or twice a week. Finally found out what it is. It’s separation anxiety. Always suspected it but wasn’t confirmed until recently after all her tests came back on a positive note regarding her health. Two methods is helping with it so far and that’s tiring her out with play and food before leaving the house and some medication from the vet to help her relax. The second method won’t be moving forward until the first method fails.
I’ve heard the urinating outside the box because of separation anxiety is because they’re trying to help me find my way back home to them is heartbreaking. I’d never return my fur baby back to the shelter for the slight inconvenience. On the upside I’ve learned how to wash the carpet very well and “waterproofed” all furnitures. So far haven’t had to clean nor wash the covers so fingers crossed.
Thank you for sharing your story. How did you waterproof your furniture? I'm figuring out how to waterproof my couch because cats have peed on it several times. Still troubleshooting what's causing it, but in the meantime, I need a better way to protect the furniture. Couch cushions take DAYS to dry. Thank you in advance!
What is wrong with you? If a cat can not respect your home by not peeing everywhere let it go. Sounds like you have separation anxiety.
@@MsVulgarisss Will still take time to dry, but a deep steam clean, let dry thoroughly (somehow!) then scotch guard fabric protector type spray may help? Once that is all settled, maybe an overlarge waterproof mattress protector (like a loose cover), then some nicer loose covers draped over it all? One can also get special furniture protection plastic, which is extra thick (for storage reasons) then some kind of large loose cover over that?
@@simoneligon323 you just can't do that today. All adoptions monitor how many times a person gives their animal up or doesn't take them to the vet etc. Eventually you won't be able to adopt anymore....
If you can't sympathize with a pet that is having issues, then you are the one who shouldn't have a pet in the first place.
So glad to found your information on the UA-cam, thanks a lot. I have 3 cats and they all turned 14 years old, they started with litter boxes problems.
Thank you Dr. Sarah. Your videos are very informative and you are so sweet .
Wow Dr. Sarah your information was really good and very helpful! 😽😻
Thank you for the informative reminders. 🙏🙏🙏
Thank you for helping me get off my butt and start cleaning my cats litter she deserves better :)
Very good... The feeling of safety and security I think is also important.
Great information thank you.
You’re an excellent teacher. Thanks.
TY. The problem is 10 yrs old and we found yr video 2 months ago. Kitty had many reasons and is now using her boxes. I have 2 kitties, she is not my 1st, but was the 1st with asthma. I had to change many things, litter was one of them. Cleaning after every use was another... the genie helped. Mostly, respecting me and my cat enuff to honor her illness and test her allergies and manage her health interventions better were all doable. I can imagine being angry at the poor cat all of those 10 years. We're getting along better, and she knows it. I am grateful for you covering this subject as thoroughly as u do. Mika and Fala and I thank u for a far superior box experience for all of us.
Awesome video. Lots of helpful information. Thank you!
Very informative. Thank you.
This was a wonderful video. We are really struggling with this issue right now. My mother-in-law recently moved in with the third cat. I had already implemented many of these suggestions and now trying to log behavior with each cat to see how we can eliminate the stress between the two who are having the territory wars. Thank you for the information.
me too.. it urinates as soon as something scares her, it's so frustrating I wanna give it away.. it's a kitten that just entered my house and made it her home lol.. I usually don't even like cats that much but I started loving it with time. But it urinates on my bed constantly! :/
The best video on this challenging issue! Thank you!
Very helpful! Thank you!👍
Thank you, great information 👍
I love how you break everything down in an easily understandable way, thank you!
Thank you so much, Sue! I try!
Great video thanks a lot!
I hate that my family doesn't take anything serious i told them that we should ask the vet about peeing outside the box for more than a year now not every day but almost 4 weeks a day or such
this information is very helpful. thank you.
I want to put something out here to help those with senior kitties. My super senior is 17 years old. All of a sudden he started having box troubles. I could see he tried to go in the box but alot went on the floor. Well after many clean and disinfecting sessions I decided to try puppy pads. Walla, pee goes in pad, no smell and no mess. I've started him on pain meds for his hips. Hope this helps someone who has an arthritic cat.
Great video! Thank you!
thank you very informative video
Excellent advice all around. I live in the countryside and have accumulated too many ferals and abandoned cats and kittens. Almost all of the out of box experiences I've had to deal with are territorial. I found that if I put a pet sheet in the spot being marked, the offending cat is happy to use it. The cost is small. I bury or burn the absorbent paper part and throw the very thin plastic lining away with the plastic garbage. Most often the cats become accustomed to each other and the marking stops after some period of time. Of course I'm dealing with the symptom, not the cause. But doing so helps make the problem less of a problem.
Crinkled up Aluminum foil placed where my cat likes to pee outside the box has been relatively effective. And with one bully cat, placing the litter box where the bullied cat has multiple directions to enter/exit and not in a corner or confined space helped her avoid the bully.
I have foil all over the place..they pee on it too!!!
My kitten just loves aluminum foil 😭
I'm going to try that. Thanks.
@@kimzorza1543 How about sticky paper??
I tried this a month ago and this helped! Thank you!
Very helpful. Thanks.
Extremely helpful, thank you Dr. Wooten
You're very welcome!
thank you so much dr!
Super helpful, thank you
Very thorough and informative video!
Edit: and I looooove that she needs almost no editing! Just a continous speech! Great communication skills!
We appreciate it, too! 😀
I get the feeling she has given this speech 20k times or so. She is a vet. She probably gives it 5x a day.
Don't you see her reading the script below her?@@titanbuck7
My senior Siamese was going on the floor right next to her boxes. This started about 2 years ago. So after taking her to the vet and medically she was good. So in frustration I put the boxes on puppy pads. She started to go on those and not in the boxes. I bought a steam cleaner scrubbed the whole area and took away the puppy pads. She was good for about 6 months. She does have problems now and then. I have 3 boxes of different sizes. She seems to use 2 more than the other. She does have a problem when the corner wall is open. This house was built in the 1800's and over the year lots of pets have lived here. I figure there is a smell that she is attracted too. I planing on looking into trying Nature's Miracle.Thank you for the tip! It's worth a try!
I am about to lose my mind. My cat is 19 years old still active, still plays alot, and has a very big appetite, but he is peeing everywhere. I was thinking about getting rid of him but I want him to live out the rest of his life with me. I just needed to vent.
Good information.
Yes, I got rid of the hooded litter box a year ago. Because her bathroom activity became more visible, I soon started obsessing over it! The hoodless litter boxes were kept cleaner than the ones I had purchased in the past with hoods.
The litter box I replaced it with was very large but did not have high sides. It was sold as a litter box for cats who may have arthritis, but because of the low sides all around, she peed quite frequently outside of the litter box. I replaced it with another hoodless litter box with high sides, but still not high enough for her to keep it all in!
One thing I also did was change the litter from World’s Best to Odor Buster (unscented). Vita has thanked me profusely for this change by rolling around in it and sitting in it as a form of comfort.
I also recently purchased a Litter Locker (litter genie) to dispose of the waste, and guess what? The litter box is the cleanest it has ever been in her life because I empty it after each time she uses it now (when possible).
Fantastic!
I will try a larger (storage, not litter) box, which is larger than the box I'm using now (they have large but low sided storage boxes at big box stores) - and I'll try your suggestion of "odor buster" instead of World's Best ( yes, I am using that, as well) to see if that works, too. (I clean the box a couple of times / day, and the peeing outside the box is getting worse!)
Probably doesn't like the smell of whatever you are using to clean.@@meredithheath5272
Thank you it was very helpfull
My cat didn't like using the litter box for a second time. I bought him a automatic cleaning litterbox. Now it is always clean for him to use and I haven't had a problem again
Thank you! This was a very interesting video.
Thank you!
Our cat was jumping on the bed to pee on my side of the bed. Clean litter boxes- 3 of them. Changed the litter, took her a few times to vet, X-rays, enemas, nothing changed in the house. Usually chill cat was obviously not happy. Turns out, she was ingesting her dense undercoat despite my brushing her regularly. Her bms hurt and made it painful to eliminate. She only has wet food too. Adding this in hope that this helps someone else! Think she was trying to tell me about this.
Thanks!
What was your solution to this? Mine might be experiencing the same issue.
Long haired cats can be deceptively hard to brush properly, took me years to figure out best way to do it for my senior cat. I start out with a slicker brush and then use a molting comb(can use a flea comb with a handle as alternative)to get to the dead for in the undercoat out.
There's a channel called love cats groomer which shows the best method to use the molting comb. I don't nearly have as much finesse as she does but as an owner you have the option of taking it slow everyday with the help of positive reinforcement (sometimes brushing is overstimulating so it pairs well with a play session after too)
I pay extra attention to lower back near the tail (which should be very gently brushed occasionally as well), her chest, and her armpit(? Not sure what the actual term it lol) area. I do shave her butt regularly as well.
You can use a bit of cat waterless shampoo on occasion to give them extra shine/prevent fur from flying around in the air
Thanks for your info! This issue is the current situation we have going on and like you mentioned, it’s very aggravating. My cat’s an 8 yr old female and has been occasionally pooping outside her box, usually in a corner or against a wall. Originally thought the problem was due to us bringing fleas in from our outdoor barn kittens because she was constantly scratching and leaving scabs even after flea treatment. We actually treated her twice with the second treatment being from our local veterinarian that worked wonderful at first but then about a week or maybe 2 weeks after she started this scratching and digging herself again and she’s lost weight as well but still eats as she always has.
Losing weight could be due to tape worms that your cat is getting from the fleas.
Flea allergy, maybe.
She may have worms. You may want to deworm her.
Hi! This is amazing, how you explained so many reasons cat behavior problems. I'm super thankful! My female cat starts peeing on my bed last four days and it's a problem.
My male is peing on the bed or the sofa during the 24h after a really stressful time for him (strangers came to our home, a really big noise terrorized him, my husband screamed because he was angry in front of a match, etc..) but I will never ever abandon him even if I have to clean after him with ammonia and baking soda. I'm usually able to prevent these accidents with the help of some zylkene but sometimes it still happens so I just clean it fast, give him some zylkene with a bit of tuna to help him feel less anxious and after that I take him on my lap or in my arms during a really long time speaking softly to him and cuddling him to reassure him because it's not his fault if something made him so anxious that he felt the need to do this. Please work on yourself and with your cat before abandoning him for something like that, they deserve to be loved even if they do their business outside of their litter box.
Not everyone has time. Not everyone is okay with coming home from a long day to urine on your things. Cats are not Gods. If a cat is anxiety peeing everywhere is still not okay. They need to learn a thing or two from dogs.
Thank u so much for sharing very helpful 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾♥️♥️♥️♥️💐💐💐💐💐😻😻😻😻😻
Very helpful.
Thank you so much !!!
My cat had kidney failure and blood cancer and lost control towards the end. You just deal with it. Also went through that when my mom was dying of cancer. My kitty crossed the Rainbow Bridge on Dec 26, 2022. Was a crappy Christmas
Thank you
So my cat urinates outside of the litter box occasionally. At first, I thought it was just that he was upset during winter months when the weather was bad and he couldn’t have free access to the outdoors. But now he’s randomly going even when he’s getting plenty of time outside. It’s not every day or even every week. Sometimes he will go a month. I’m so confused. We love him and call him the best bad cat ever.
Thanks!
Thanks for the info :) one of my cats sometimes suffer accidents when he urine, but was because the box was to small for him lol so I bought a plastic box for storage, one super big and I make a hole because have tall walls for them, that resolved my problem.
Yep I have a big cat and normal litter boxes are to small, even if they say XL or jumbo.
How did you make the hole in the box?
lol then get bigger litter box.. just because they are animal u just let them suffer?
Thank you so much!!!!!!!❤
I have a female who sprays. Less than she used to (she's calmer now, 8 years later) and she will also spray inside the cat box that has high sides. The worst FIE I've had with a cat was an 18 year old cat who stopped using the boxes and she would pee on carpet in front of doors and she would also pee on plastic I put down near the cat boxes. She did have kidney disease and I kept her as long as I could because she seemed happy and was still eating and everything. I finally had her euthanized and my vet said that she was in late stage kidney disease even though she looked as good as a cat can look with kidney failure. It turned my house into a cat box. I had a really hard time living with it even though I loved her so much. In the old days, vets would have advised to have her put down much sooner. I did the best I could for her.
I’m so sorry for your loss.
No matter what I will not put down my cat. Let her/he passed on their own..a killer I wont
My cat is 19 and only has one kidney. She has regular check ups and seems relatively okay but she has been using the house as her litter tray too, peeing right next to and in the same room as the litter tray but not in the box. I hope nothing is wrong and that this is not the problem, I couldn’t handle asking the vet for advice and them telling me to put her down
@@francescaterry I really hope u don’t have to put her down!
@@himura196566 My super healthy all her life cat got sick in 2020. Sound familiar. She was the best. Always went in the box. She started crying and not going in the box. I took her to the vet 5 times. After asking for a deworming for her she was herself for three days. Then she was sick again. The vet wouldn't deworm her again, and I didn't know about ivermectin then. We are all sick now, from our cat. Last year I paid a vet to come to our house, to put her down. I put a bench by the couch, but she was so stubborn, she wouldn't use it, and she would jump and fall. She was eating, yet only weighed a couple of pounds when she was put down in her chair with us all around her. How many people have cats, a lot. We are all sick now.
Best review so far, thank you. We can impor to the UK but waste bag might be hard to get imported all the time time. Did you try of any other types bags would work? Thank you
I'm going to guess that since porcelain is cool to the touch, they feel more comfortable if they have an infection going in the tub or sink. I understand they can't sense temperature with their paw pads, but probably the environment is still cooler. One of my cats once had a UTI. She was just kind of dripping on the bed, which was not good. She is literally amazing though. She's so chill. I just followed her to the sand box, and held the container under her butt after she got started. Thus, I got a sample on the first try.
I had one cat and then I rescued 2 kittens.The older cat started peeing and pooping outside the box until it got used to the kittens.The cat didn't want to share it's litter box.
Ok, some tips and advice will go into effect from this video...👍🏼💯✔
I have a 2-yr old cat. I went on a trip for a week. One of my friends would check on my cat, feed her, spent time with her. Halfway through the week, she began peeing on my bed. Ever since I came back, my cat has been peeing on my bed when I'm gone. I took her to the vet and she's healthy. It's been 2 weeks and I've changed and washed my comforter/sheets every day. She sleeps with me, too, on the bed. She's an indoor cat, and is still using her litter box regularly. She is spayed. I will begin changing some things with the litter box, and keep you guys updated.
Update ?
@@saturnprince.23 UPDATE: She stopped. The only thing I changed is that I removed a plastic liner I had in the litter box to prevent the plastic to absorb the smell. After countless of videos, one of them said it's okay for the litter box to smell like a bathroom. She still peed on my sheets after I left the room so I'm not sure if that helped. I ran out of food once. I gave her the tiny bit left, and quickly went to the store to buy more. She peed on my clean laundry that was on the bed.
I began giving her treats every time I left and came back. I started to clean the littler every night. For every peed area, I started to use a natural chemical breakdown for animal waste/pee. Soaked it with the spray, let it sit for a bit, then washed it in cold and air dry. Although it didn't prevent my cat from peeing, it did increase the gap in between pees.
I'm going to be honest. I don't know what I did, but she eventually stopped. I am able to leave the house and come back late, and no pee.
She does hate being alone now. She will meow like it's the end of the earth if there is not a human being in sight. Before, she used to be fine in the room alone and nap. Now, she can't stand it.
She does start to mess with things (ripping my carpet is a new behavior) when I am out for too long. Not sure what that means.
I did use the spray bottle and loud no's. I know it's not ideal, but I want to think it worked. I grabbed her from the neck like a mother cat would, take her to the area of crime, and yell no while giving her one spray.
A family member did advice that we basically have to kiss their ass more than usual as an act of apology, and the cat will decide when you're forgiven. I know that cats don't imitate human emotion, but do they?
Anyway, good luck to anyone else struggling. I'm just glad mine is over. This was a two month journey. Have patience. It will work out!
THank you!!!
My cat is not feeling well and I learned a lot thank you so much that will help my cat
The one time and the only time my cat urinated outside her litter box was when she had a bladder infection. She urinated in the kitchen sink and I saw blood in her urine. She clearly wanted to show this to me. Cats are so smart! 😻
My now 15 yo cat who was only 6 when she came into the bathroom with me, made eye contact, jumped up and peed in the sink. There was blood in her pee, so off to the vet!
Yes, my male cat jumped into the bathroom sink, squatted and peed right in front of me and blood was in his urine. Glad I saw that and took him to the vet. Nice of him to pee in the sink though.
Our girl cat did that.
No medical issue.
We worked with vet.
We changed to unscented litter and plug in feliway original or multi.
Seems to be working out very well
My older cat loves her automatic litter box. She even watches while it's scooping.
Mine, too!
My wife and I are looking to get one of these automatic litter boxes. We’ve heard a lot positive things about them from friends. We recently adopted our son’s cat due to the “pee issue”. He was good for about two weeks and then he’s pee’d twice in the same area. The French Foreign Legion won’t take him, and I refuse to take any animal to a shelter. There’s a work around, we just gotta find it.
We’ve tried using one for around 6 months, all three cats hate it and I’ve never had to clean up so much cat pee around the house in my life
I was mad at my cat who has been peeing right next to the (clean) litter box and was even thinking of locking her out until I watched this video. I burst out in tears when I realized Sweet Pea is mourning the recent loss of our 17 year old dog Panda Bear in her own way. I've put contact paper down where she already pretty much ruined the hardwood floor, as this was going on long before the dog passed. Maybe I'll put another litter box next to the one she doesn't use. I'm annoyed to have two litter boxes in my office, but something needs to change! Appreciate this info and all the comments. 😿
Be kind to kitties trying to talk to you.
I recently had a litter box problem with my 15 yr old boy. He would use the box but the urine would go outside. 15🤔 must be arthritis so I jumped on Chewy and bought a new larger box with higher sides, problem solved 🙂 he's a corner guy so now he's happy and so am I.♥️
My cat does the same even with the high sides. I have the XL Breeze box. Which box did you get? He needs higher sides. I’ll probably end up converting a large plastic storage container.
@@gladismorales5828 I ordered the Frisco high sided XL box. Hope that helps.
My cat was peeing all over the house we took him to the vets and they said he had urine crystals that could become a blockage they gave us medicine and special urinary care food he has to be on for the rest of his life to prevent it happening again
Just a small tip that may help some. We had a lot of stray cats outdoors, and our indoor female cat started to feel threatened and territorial, so she started spraying and marking her turf. I’m not sure why it just started happening, as the stray cats had always been there. But it is what it is. I found she really hates the smell of rubbing alcohol, so I put some in a dish by the places she sprayed, and it seemed to deter her. Knock on wood, it has been helpful.
I think mine started when i let her area. She keeps on getting into fights with other female cats. She started peeing on my carpet.
I set up a camera to see what she was doing and where. I blocked the area, but it was looking really untidy. The only thing that has worked to deter her is cleaning the areas with an enzyme cleaner and peppermint spray!
She will visit the area, but she doesnt like the smell, so the backs away!
I spray the area every night. It's been a couple of weeks. She hasnt peed in that area since!
Really appreciate these vidros👍🏼🐾❤️🩹
Thank you 😁
{Abridged version} We have a Siamese female who, after finding out was diabetic, started urinating on the carpet next to our fireplace. And nothing we would use to clean it up would get rid of the smell or color it left. Eventually, we decided to have some renovating done which meant eventually tearing out the carpet in the room where she had urinated and putting down a waterproof type of hardwood floor. But whenever the renovators came over to work, that added insult to injury (i.e., more stress on her). I finally started keeping an eye on her when she was using her litterbox and I was of the theory that maybe she had a UTI (urinary tract infection) and it was making it difficult for her to climb into the litter box. Sure enough, she tested positive. So the vet put her on antibiotics for about 7-10 days and it eventually cleared. No more urinating outside the litter box. But I also bought her a new litter box with higher sides and a finer cat litter which I hope is softer on her feet. I also went to Home Depot and got some scrap wood to make stairs for her to climb into the litter box. And I try to keep an eye out for any signs of a returning UTI.
Clean, Clean, Clean WATER is a must
Why do cats have whiskers in the first place? Cats' whiskers are a trademark for humans, but they actually have an important role to play. Cats use their whiskers to maintain their sense of equilibrium, and to sense objects around them by feeling the subtle flow of air. In other words, cat whiskers act like a radar. Their whiskers allow them to sense popularity. If a natural enemy is in the vicinity, they will go on alert. Cats are nocturnal animals. Cats are nocturnal animals, and their whiskers are the reason they can move in the dark. Cats also use their whiskers to express their emotions. When they are interested, their whiskers come out in front of their faces, when they are relaxed, they flow to the side, and when they are alert, their whiskers go down. It is said that cats are cooler animals than dogs, but in fact they use their whiskers to express their emotions. Many people may be surprised to learn that cats' whiskers have so many meanings.😻😻😻😻😻
My female cat has an aversion to rough surfaces, certain mats she won't walk on, and doesn't like the feel of the litter, I've changed it to softer stuff, but no luck, so now I just put down leak proof puppy training pads and she pees on them, still poops on the floor though. She has a bit of a physiological problem having been picked on by other cats where she used to live. She's so sweet, I don't have the heart to put her down, I've cleaned up after men that were messier than her lol
You know what doc, my cat is 1 years old, and a little more. He just wants to hump everything and doesn't stop urinating EVERYWHERE, multiple times a day, profusely. He is the healthiest cat I've ever had. But he complete relieves himself on the couch, bed, piano, everywhere. There is no one particular area, or even two or three. Kitchen, laundromat, closet, bed, couch, piano, every corner, coffee table, pretty much the whole house. I don't know what to do at this point honestly.
Thank you so much. I just didn't take into consideration when we switched to a lighter liter that our cat would find it offensive. The negative behaviors you explained were exactly how my cat reacted to the liter he disliked and then the positive (normal) behavior appeared immediately when I changed the liter back to what he used to have. I thought he ran out of his box because he was afraid of his own shadow!
Very thorough! Just a few more tips - grains cause urinary tract issues if your cat is standing up to pee try going grain free good quality canned food. Look up the phosphorus levels of the brand and variety at catinfo and keep under 225 per 100 kcals. High phosphorus causes kidney disease which can lead to urinary issues. Bully cat may only be keeping one cat from using the litter box and will guard it have to get even more boxes. Cats also will go where YOU pee. I'll leave it there.
One week till new 1.5 yr female cat is out outside or to humane society. Changed litterbox and litter 3 times, no infection, no changes/stress etc. Pees straight back. Does poop in box but rarely pees in bix.. Sad, but awful smell.
This literally happened today. Peeing in tub happened a few days ago. I got another litter box this morning and cleaned the ones they currently use. The new one is smaller and hooded but my big boy, who pees over our high wall litter boxes, has been using it to pee even though he just barely fits.
This video was very helpful. Kitty’s been constipated before -behaviors make sense.
Oh, what did you clean with??
What type of cleanser and cleaning brush did you use?
I used a mixture of Dawn soap, baking soda and water and soft bristle brush.
Rinse, spray mixture and let sit, brush with more mixture, rinse and dry.
If you had a shower curtain they would not though…
My cat has a staph UTI. I feel bad for her. She was given a Covinia shot when I took her in a bit over two weeks ago. I had her back at the vet this past Sunday for recheck of urine culture as I am certain she still had the issue. She will poo in the box but not pee in the box. I am awaiting the result of the culture. It's driving me a bit nuts (cleaning, not knowing where she's peeing every time etc..)
Thank you for this and all the other videos.
I was wondering if you might do a video on some common 'hooman' foods & drinks that we should never give our cats even if they're begging. (Just learned not to give my cat any Brisk Iced Tea because caffeine is toxic for them. He's always trying to drink mine. I always Google before giving him any of my food/drink.)
I faced the problem and it was solved by adding one more litter box.
Glad you were able to turn that around!
We have 5 cats, 8 boxes in the house and 3 on the screen porch and they have access to outside, our 2 Bengal males still spray 🤦🏼♀️
Will try this one. Thank you!
My previous cat sort of tolerated the Tidy Cats Breeze litter system….
I had saved and bleached that litter box
This new shelter cat I am fostering hated those pellets….she would pee on puppy pads beside the box…
I bought regular sand like unscented litter and brand new shallow boxes….I think the old remaining cat scent caused litter aversion
She is happy and using her new box normally
Thank you for this video so, helpful I will take your voice on the tips if that don’t work off to the vet he goes
I wish i had this info a couple of years ago. I made the mistake of bringing a kitten into the house and while at work the older cat bullied the younger cat. Shannon, the younger cat was a ginger and the sweetest boy and when i came home at night, all he wanted was to be cuddled Shannon peed all over my sofa, on freshly laundered clothes, area rugs, my bed, he was an unhappy boy! Got him to the vet, who wanted to put them both on anti-depressants which at time i wasn’t in favor of because it could mean their entire lifetime and i didn’t feel right about subjecting to that as they were both young cats. Unfortunately, fate stepped in, my Dad was critically ill and lost my job and i unfortunately had to give them both up! It truly brought me heart. The vet helped he get them into the local shelter. Bailey was adopted immediately & i knew he would be. Shannon had a tougher time. In doing tests we found he was diabetic. The vet wanted me to put him on a type of Insulin she had great success with but it was $5000. For a four month supply. My intent was keeping Shannon, give him the care he needed and keep him as an only cat. After losing my job, there was no way i could give him the care he needed. I failed him and heartbroken. He became very depressed in shelter and during the days he would wander the front hall or sleep in the shelter’s office. They had him on a diet and he lost enough weight, he no longer needed the Insulin and after 4-5 months he was adopted as an only cat, as Bailey was. About a year and a half later, things for me pretty much stayed the same. My PCP recommended I get a cat as emotional support! I adopted two kittens a six month Brown Tabby and a four month old female ginger. Clementine I knew had spent her young life on the streets of the South Side of Chicago and had been traumatized and i don’t know the history of my Brown Tabby Cooper. They are not siblings but they were in the cage together and they got along! They are both so fearful but when they realized i was on their side and would do anything for them, they started warming up to. It took about a year and a half. They’re 2.5 years old now and they have their issues but i adore them and i have two very affectionate, loving fur babies. They don’t like noise which is difficult as i live in an apartment and walls are incredibly thin, doors slam, loud talking and they run to hide! Breaks my heart. Clementine runs from one room to another to hide. Clementine is fearful of blankets, comforters and i think that when they captured her and her siblings and her Mom, they must have thrown blankets over her and traumatized her. The shelter didn’t socialize them either, which was difficult too. Plus, finding food they liked, that was a real struggle. When i finally found something, they’re was a food shortage.🤦♀️🤷🏻♀️ now I understand the shortage has passed and will be in full production in a few weeks. After trying everything, they decided Royal Canin Adult Instinctive thin slices in gravy was what they liked. They also like Meow Mix Beef and Chicken as they need variety! Learned that here also. Last few months, if anything can stress all of us out, was discovered i had bedbugs! Never in past have i ever dealt with bedbugs & hope never have to again. My biggest worry was were my cats being bit. Apparently bedbugs only like human blood and not animal blood. But bedbugs will attach themselves to fur and usr them as to travel from one destination to another. Glad to say just this week, we have been cleared of bedbugs. I get a new bed next week and all old linen is going. Putting bug proof encasements on the boxspring & mattress before even coming into apartment and I’m determined we will never deal with this again! Building knew someone moved in with bedbugs but not until after they moved in and didn’t do any preventative treatment until i reported i was being bit and the exterminator told me i had had them awhile as i had all stages of bedbugs🥴😫🤢 This behind us, we can move forward hopefully!
Hi doctor, can you share a little bit about cat supplements for indoor cat? Can you recommend any? Thanks.
I found keeping the cat litter box clean, and have it filled with more litter to wear the cat can scrape the bottom with her feet to be helpful, as well as having a litter box in the area the cat is peeing.
We adopted a ten year old cat from the shelter to keep our other ten year old cat we took in as a stray company. We lost a nineteen year old cat to kidney disease last year and the still living cat was exhibiting signs of being lonely for a few months. He bullies the new cat with the box. I did my investigating and found him doing it on several occasions. It is still happening and I just don't know what else I can do. I had to remove our bathmats, the kitchen rug and the rugs at the sides of our bed. We have a three story home and have four boxes for the two cats. The new cat will go in the basement often if we leave the door open. It's the only room with carpet and there are two boxes in there. One of them in the corner on a landing at the end of the stairs she was choosing to urinate often. Is there anything more I can do? They have both been to the vet (the new cat twice) and were healthy otherwise.
I love my don't want to get rid of he sprays a lot like thank you for your input I appreciate
watching this made me realise exactly what i think might’ve been bothering my cat! he got neutered recently and when he had a cone of shame on and i took the lid off the box so he could actually fit in there with his cone. Ever since the cone came off and the lid went back on, he’s been peeing on my bed and in my wardrobe. i’m hopeful that taking the lid off might resolve his problems…!
You might try putting pet sheets where he's been peeing. He may eventually go back to the box, since litter has a better "feel" than paper.
I have 4 cats. I got two brothers at 5 month old and did not have any problems. At a year old one of the brothers started pooping and peeing downstairs, far away from the litter box. Took some detective work to find out that the older female cat was bullying him and I think she would not let him use the litter box. I finally compromised with him going on a bathmat upstairs by the litter boxes. He still will not use the litter box. The bullying has stopped a few months back. I think I will try again with a litter box where I have his mat to see if he will use it.
Every cat should have it's own litter box or at least have two litter boxes if you have 4 cats.
Honestly, it should be one for every cat, plus one! So if you have 3 cats, four boxes. 5 cats, 6 boxes. You see my point
I have a 12 year old male cat. He grew up with a dog and has always been fine with him. Well our dog died and we recently got a new puppy and he is a large breed (same as before). He is VERY energetic and dog piles the cat when he is able to get to him. I keep them separated but try to introduce the cat more and more to the dog. The puppy is only 6 months old and still piles on the cat, is rough, but isn't trying to hurt him. He licks him but the cat tolerates it unless he can get away. I think the new puppy has caused the stress in my cat that is now making him have "accidents" and not always use the litter box. Not sure what to do. I do have some CBD oil I used when we made a long distance move, which worked wonderfully. I may try that on him again. It's made for cats.
My mom got sick and died 3 months later. Fluffy often sat on her lap or with me. She and dad had 3 cats. All used their boxes except Fluffy stopped. She went on the he’ll carpet until we pulled up the carpet. Then she started using potty pads. That was at least 2 years ago. She continues to use only the potty pads and the box was scooped at least once a day. I wish I knew why and she’s an only cat now. 🤷🏻♀️
My cats at my house love the electric litter box and don’t use the regular boxes anymore.
SOLUTION THAT WORKED FOR MY CAT:
So my cat stopped using the litter box and started peeing on my bed probably because her litter box wasn't cleaned soon enough. She would still poop in it but would pee on my quilt. I changed the litter but the litter I changed was slightly different than the kind she had previously (it's wood chips but different brand). So even though her litter box was the way she liked it, the litter itself wasn't perfect. It was getting rather frustrating as anyone reading this is probably imagining.
What actually worked for me was to spray down my quilt with a Catnip Spray that I got at PetSmart. The specific brand I used is Meowijuana, though I imagine any catnip spray would work. All of a sudden, it reminds her of play time rather than pee time. And I'm guessing, being high might have even relaxed her to no longer see her litter box as a stressful situation for her.
Anyway, this worked for me. Hoping it works for anyone else in this situation..
Interesting!
❤Thank you