Cat urinating all over!

[jtobycat]

I have an 11 year old male, neutered cat. He has never urinated anywhere except in his litter box until about 5 years ago. That is when he moved in with my husband and I. Until that point, it was always my cat and I. My husband left his coat on the floor and the cat urinated on it. He did it a few more times and we figured it was because he was jealous of my husband. Then we had a baby, and the cat urinated on his snowsuit that was left on the floor. This settled down for a few years. Last year, we had an addition put on our house and the workmen would leave padded blankets on the floors to protect them while they worked. My cat peed on every blanket, numerous times! We figured it was because he was upset because of the changes in the house. Our vet agreed with us and said that cats will do this. However, now we cannot have any kind of throw rug or carpet on the floors because the cat pees on them! Even if we leave a bathmat or a paper bag on the floor, he will pee on it! Yesterday he was howling (which is his usual meow!) a lot and he peed on my shoes in the front hall. Turns out the door was closed to the room where his litter box is. That is understandable because he done that before. However, today, he was howling again. I checked and the door was open, his litter box clean, and he preceded to pee on a paper bag we had left on the floor for him to play with! I keep his litter box clean and he does use it every day. I am very upset about all this inappropriate urinating! We are having another baby next week and I am expecting it to get worse! He does not have any infection, we've taken him to the vet and she said he is stressed with all the changes. I try to give him as much attention as I can but he is a very demanding cat and jealous of anyone that takes my attention away from him. Any suggestions from anyone?

[Winston]

Sorry your having so much trouble. A couple of things come to mind that you should look at. Unless your vet has done a complete check up with urinalysis there really is no way to know for sure what is going on. I think its a must at this point especially considering what you indicated is happening now.

When a cat associates pain or something bad with the litterbox they will usually resort to innappropriate unrination outside the box. Its their way of telling you there is something going on with them. Secondly what dis you use to clean the areas he has urinated? If he can still smell it he will go back to it again and again.

Yes you have had changes but I dont agree with the vet.

Now that you have indicated he is howling I would be very worried. He could have crystals and it may be giving him pain thus the howling! I know the door was closed but the howling is definately an indication of pain.

Can you also add another litter box? I have 2 for 1 cat and she will pee in one and poop in the other. I did have 2 cats until last year and when I had the 2 of them I used 3 litter boxes.

If your litter boxes have not been changed recently then that could be another issue as well. A cats urine is very strong and it tends to seep into the plastic and leave a horrible odor.

Please consider taking him to the vet for a thorough check up including blood work and urine test because I would be willing to bet he has a UTI or something like crystals going on!

Good Luck and let us know how you make out.

Cindy

[BenMax]

Winston said it all.
The howling is the first indication that something is off.
Is your cat declawed?
Is the litter always cleaned out properly?
Did you change the kind of litter you normally use?
Is there a change is the cat's eating?
Is your litter box covered or just a tray?

Note: Some cats may urinate on anything that has a rubber smell to it. (I don't know why...)

I would definately get another litter box as this may help the situation.

[Koteburo]

Originally Posted by BenMax

I would definately get another litter box as this may help the situation.

Besides Winston's good advice I would give this a try too

[sugarcatmom]

Originally Posted by jtobycat

Turns out the door was closed to the room where his litter box is. That is understandable because he done that before.

How often is the door to his litter area closed? Can you put some kind of door stop there so that it doesn't happen again?

Originally Posted by jtobycat

He does not have any infection, we've taken him to the vet and she said he is stressed with all the changes.

I agree with the vet that this is quite likely stress-related. There's a condition called Idiopathic Interstitial Cystitis that has a strong connection to the stress in a cat's life, and big changes in territory or living conditions are number one on the anxiety-inducing scale for cats. There are a few things you can do that will help though. For starters, do get a new litter box (preferably 2) and put them in an easily accessible, quiet area (no more accidental door closures!!). What type of litter do you use? If it's scented, I suggest changing to unscented (cats are extremely sensitive to perfume smells in scented litter). There is a litter called Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract that can be extremely useful in situations like yours.

Next, you need to look at environmental enrichment. Does your cat have some tall cat condos that he can use to survey his domain? Increasing his vertical space can also increase his confidence. If you can't afford a cat condo, put in some shelves that are just for him to lounge about on.

What kind of toys does he like? My kitties are crazy for their Turbo-chaser, which is basically a blinky ball set in a track. They never get bored of it. Some cats love the Cat-Dancer attached to a doorknob, or furry catnip mice they can bat around. Rotate the toys to keep them fresh. You might also have to play with your guy more, with a fishing rod or wand-style toy. Help him expend some of that pent-up energy that most indoor cats have.

And lastly, you need to consider his diet. What does he eat now (ie: dry or wet, brand and flavour)? Cats with urination issues MUST be put on a wet-food only diet. A gradual transition is best if he isn't used to wet food, but even the pickiest cat can eventually be switched over. More info on that here: www.catinfo.org

Good luck! Give us an update when you can.