Peeing on Furniture, Help!

kevinlarz

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So we've got three cats, all female. Two cats 6 & 7 in age lived in a household together and never had issues with each other or with peeing on things. One cat 8 was in a household by themselves (with a dog at one point) also didn't have an issue peeing on things.

Now all three are in the same household. The two have their food and litter downstairs, while the one has food and litter upstairs. The one comes downstairs more frequently than the two coming up. They don't get along. It's been just over a year and it's gone from constant fighting to being able to almost tolerate each other when they're about six feet apart. They hiss and growl, but don't fight like they used to.

There has been lots of pee incidents. A fake tree in a wicker base was peed on multiple times before it was thrown out. A wicker basket was peed on before being thrown out. Curtains in two different rooms were peed on which are now draped so they don't bunch on the floor after they were washed. But mostly there's a large couch that has been peed on so many times we've lost count.

We're not 100% sure who is doing it. The owner of the home thinks it's the one from upstairs. We are considering having the couch hauled off, but would like to have a way for it to be cleaned and have some way to prevent future pee incidents. Suggestions?

The other option that was suggested was to have it hauled off and a new couch purchased ONLY IF the upstairs cat is kept from going downstairs. There is no door at the stairs separating the two floors, so it seems extremely inconvenient and virtually impossible to do so. If we tried to use a gate she would just jump over it. And having to try to have something to prevent the cat would just inconvenience the four of us living upstairs. Most likely ending it the cat tripping is up as we leave the upstairs trying to keep her separated.

Ideally we'd like a way for them to get along and stop peeing anywhere besides their boxes.

We've heard ideas of getting cat nip to smooth out their relationships. Also maybe adding another litter box in shared space to get them used to each other's smells.

Help!
 

Furballsmom

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We've heard ideas of getting cat nip to smooth out their relationships. Also maybe adding another litter box in shared space to get them used to each other's smells.
Yes, and yes - and just to mention, all three cats have had a wellness checkup recently?

Spraying: When Your Cat Uses Urine To Mark Territory – TheCatSite Articles

There might be something in these
How To Get Cat Urine Smell Out Of Carpet: Effective, Non-toxic Solutions – TheCatSite Articles
How To Remove Cat Urine – TheCatSite Articles

How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide – TheCatSite Articles

You're actually doing better than the title of this one would suggest, but just in case;
How To Fix An Unsuccessful Cat Introduction – TheCatSite Articles
 
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kevinlarz

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Thank you for all the great resources! I'll be going over them now.
 

Cat McCannon

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The most likely cause for the peeing is territorial stress. The cats weren’t introduced correctly. Go back to the beginning and do a reintroduction. It might take some time, but it’ll be worth it. Be patient.
 
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kevinlarz

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The most likely cause for the peeing is territorial stress. The cats weren’t introduced correctly. Go back to the beginning and do a reintroduction. It might take some time, but it’ll be worth it. Be patient.
Is that feasible with us both working full time jobs?
 

Cat McCannon

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Yes. Do your homework and find out how to handle reintroductions and work it around your schedule. Jackson Galaxy has a lot of good material on the subject on his YouTube channel and in his books. There are good articles linked to this forum as well.

Don’t rush or skip any of the steps.

Cats and kids are like credit cards. You can either pay now, or pay later with high interest rates.
 
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