divegirl

I am about at my wits' end.

One of my cats is having a problem peeing outside the box. I've found pee spots every couple of days in the living room (carpet, fireplace) and on the kitchen counter, nowhere else in the house. They've both been checked out for UTIs and it's not that. I really have no idea what has changed to make one of them so stressed out. I feel like I'm keeping Nature's Miracle in business at this point.

I've tried moving one of their litter boxes closer to the area where they've been peeing, and they really love the new location (so much so that they are not using the other box!). That has helped a bit by making their pee spots outside the box smaller. I've also moved their food bowls next to the carpet where they've been peeing. That doesn't help with the kitchen counter peeing as I'm not going to feed them on the counter!

I was away a lot in September and October but have been home consistently for several weeks now so I don't think it's that. I changed them from dry food to wet food but they seem to like their new food.

I guess my next step is to separate them to find the culprit. But I have no idea what to do after that. Any ideas or help at all would be really appreciated! It's driving me crazy!

Poodlehead

It's possible one of them has a UTI. Once you track down the guilty party it might be worth a trip to the vet.

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Gretchen

Just wanted to say I'm sorry you're going through this. So frustrating!

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LadyV69

Not sure what to tell you except to bring them back to the vet to get checked as cats peeing in other areas of the house usually indicates a UTI. I was once away from Hazel for 24 hours and when I came back, I found urine just outside the litter box. As it wasn't in some other area in the apartment, I didn't think it was a UTI, but a separation anxiety issue. It hasn't happened since.

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cympreni

Many cats can't stand the scent of citrus. It might work as a deterrent as you fix the problem. Of course, if you don't find the solution it's just going to move the problem areas. And some cats don't give a flip, but it's worth a shot.

divegirl

Thanks all. I don't think it's a UTI. My boy cat, Corona, had a completely clear urinalysis. My girl cat, Curie, wouldn't pee for the vet, the little stinker, so they had to do a cystocentesis to get a sample. Her urinalysis was clear except for a small amount of blood which was possibly just from the needle. She's on antibiotics just in case.

No new pee today, thank goodness.

curlylaura

Maybe there's something in the litter box that they don't like?

When Eddy was peeing on the bed he had bladder crystals and was looking for somewhere comfortable to go. My vet told me they choose cool or soft places when they have crystals.

I hope you find out what's wrong with the little kitties and they stop doing it.

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OBB

to find a solution i suggest you think outside the box

Sayoon

Try putting silver paper on their fav pee spot cats Hates the feeling of it

MichelleBFT

How well do they get along? My parents had a cat who'd been awesome for a decade, never a health problem or behavioral problem, ever, who started peeing in a corner of their living room pretty suddenly. They had adopted my brother's cat when he moved out of the country, and once that category got comfortable in the new house (which took nearly a year), he started dominating on of my parents cats to the point where he wouldn't allow her near the litter box. Basically he was beating the snot out of her. Fortunately separating them was easy, and once they were separated she went back to being totally awesome.

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divegirl

You know, that thought occurred to me. I've had Corona for over a year now. They seem to be getting along as well as ever, though. They wrestle and play, although Corona is bigger and heavier so Curie gets sick of it first. If I'm playing with Curie, Corona will barge in and Curie will slink off. I've never seen him keep her out of the litterbox though.

I do suspect it's Curie, just because Corona is a very, ummmm, simple creature. Curie has a little more of a complex personality

RedCatWaves

My cat has been peeing outside the box recently. It's because the stupid puppy has been tormenting her.

curlybran

Try getting a syringe and getting up some of the pee so the vet can do a correct urinalysis. Or it maybe they are tired of the litter? Or need to retraining them to use the litter box

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divegirl

I'm bumping this because Curie is still urinating inappropriately The vet has determined that it is behavioral and not medical (no evidence of infection and she is spraying, not just peeing), so she put her on Prozac and amitriptyline. It's been 4 weeks and I just found another pee spot this morning

Has anyone had experience with these drugs - how long do they take to kick in?

It's only in one area of the house - the living room and kitchen, which are adjacent to the backyard, where I see some neighborhood cats wandering around. So, I think that's what's causing her anxiety. I am considering letting her outside (she has always always wanted to go outside) to see if that might help. How would one go about transitioning an indoor cat to an indoor-outdoor cat?

I really don't want to medicate her twice a day for the rest of her life. She's only 3! She hates it and I hate it. And it's definitely dampened her little personality

Any help or advice would be appreciated.

MKcurly

Since this is territorial marking there isn't too much you can to do fix it. Spraying is an instinct. Putting her outside might help it or it could make it worse. I don't think that you should medicate your cat. That's going to be very expensive over the lifetime of your cat, and your affecting her personality. You try some thing like this SENTRY® Calming Spray for Cats - Cat - PetSmart

I've never used it with my cat but i've seen it in the stores before. They have collars, wall plug ins and sprays. Maybe she won't feel the need to make with it. HTH

eva223

If you've ruled out the other cat scaring her away from the box, try Cat Attract cat litter. It's like magic.

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curlylaura

Poor Curie.

Have you changed her litter recently? or her food?

Is her litter box in the room shes peeing in? If so could you move it to another room where she can't see the other cats?

((kitty hugs))

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divegirl

I haven't changed her litter or food or anything. Her litterboxes are not in the vicinity of where she's peeing. It's really frustrating. We lived in this house for 18 months before the peeing started, so it wasn't the new house, either.

I just got a Feliway diffuser, so we'll see. I don't know what other options I have at this point.

On the positive side, it's motivated me to re-do the floors in my living room (currently carpet, changing to bamboo).

amandamarie

What kind of litter are you using? I know you said you didn't change it but maybe you should? I know some cats really don't do well with traditional clay litter. When I adopted Simon, it took me three or four tries to find a litter he liked, though now he has no problem if I switch him without notice. (He's napping on my butt now. Crazy little dude.)

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divegirl

I use the Fresh Step clumping litter - it's the same brand I've been using since I adopted her at 6 months old. She does use the litterbox - just not all the time. And she definitely sprays, which I believe indicates a territorial thing and not a litterbox aversion or infection.