Adult Cat Urinating In Inappropriate Places

NemosMommy

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Good evening, we have an adult female 3 legged cat whom we adopted a few years ago from a friend who could no longer care for her. She is our only fur baby and a great addition to our family but unfortunately she at times likes to pee in the kitchen, on her new toys, on my shoes or anything that is on the floor that isnt usually there. She has 2 litter boxes (she poos in one and pees in the other when shes not peeing on the floor) we came to the realization she needed 2 boxes when she started peeing next to the litter box with poo in it instead of inside of it.

A little back story of her regarding her previous owner, she was not the only female cat with her previous owner, they had 1 other female who used to "bully" her when she would try to use the litter box and I do feel as though this is why she is urinating in the house. Also would explain her peeing on her toys. I believe she has some PTSD when it comes using the litter box. Also her previous owner somewhat trained her to pee on the concrete on their balcony, which is probably a big part of her issue also as she does not know any better.

She does pee in the box most of the time but about 2 times a week she pees somewhere else, usually in the kitchen right in front of the laundry room where her litter box is. We cant have a bath mat either, no matter how many washes or new ones we got she peed on them. Like I said we have had her for a few years now we are trying to break her if this habit but knowing she has PTSD or anxiety pertaining to her litter box we need help. Also I dont want to put my cat on prozac so any suggestions will be greatly appreciated, thank you!
 

ArtNJ

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I would try larger boxes with lower sides - might be easier on a three legged cat. You can always put a pad underneath to make any mess easier to deal with.

You should also take to the vet to rule out UTI.

All of that said, none of this is *that* unusual. Stuff on the floor -- usually soft stuff like clothes, plush child toys, blankets, bathmats, can be targets for cats that are less than 100% compliant, and bad habits can develop. I've had bath mat issues too! Some habits can be starved out. For example, if properly cleaned with an enzyme cleaner, you might be able to replace the bathmat in a couple of weeks once the habit withers.

So, once you rule out box issues and a UTI, it might be just a matter of patrolling the house for things that would tempt the cat. Buy a blacklight if you dont have one already. And for all that is good and holy, don't put the cat on the bed and leave unsupervised.
 
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NemosMommy

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I would try larger boxes with lower sides - might be easier on a three legged cat. You can always put a pad underneath to make any mess easier to deal with.

You should also take to the vet to rule out UTI.

All of that said, none of this is *that* unusual. Stuff on the floor -- usually soft stuff like clothes, plush child toys, blankets, bathmats, can be targets for cats that are less than 100% compliant, and bad habits can develop. I've had bath mat issues too! Some habits can be starved out. For example, if properly cleaned with an enzyme cleaner, you might be able to replace the bathmat in a couple of weeks once the habit withers.

So, once you rule out box issues and a UTI, it might be just a matter of patrolling the house for things that would tempt the cat. Buy a blacklight if you dont have one already. And for all that is good and holy, don't put the cat on the bed and leave unsupervised.
Thank you!! Will try these asap!
 

ArtNJ

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Your very welcome!

P.S. Be careful getting a kitten! I adopted one of my two current cats from a home with a three legged cat! And wow, while I was visiting, my future kitten must have jumped on that three legged cat 20 times! It just calmly tried to hop away, but many older cats with or without health problems can get very stressed by kittens. Kittens are often *terrible* about ignoring cues that an older cat doesn't want to play or be jumped on and, calmness of the three legged cat in my story aside, this could be a bad source of stress for some.
 

Furballsmom

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Hi!
Welcome!!
In addition to ArtNJ's terrific advice, you could also try a litter called Cat Attact. It's a little pricey so some people will sprinkle some on top of the other litter rather than use it as the only litter in the box.
:vibes::goodluck: Let us know how things turn out :crossfingers:
 
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NemosMommy

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Your very welcome!

P.S. Be careful getting a kitten! I adopted one of my two current cats from a home with a three legged cat! And wow, while I was visiting, my future kitten must have jumped on that three legged cat 20 times! It just calmly tried to hop away, but many older cats with or without health problems can get very stressed by kittens. Kittens are often *terrible* about ignoring cues that an older cat doesn't want to play or be jumped on and, calmness of the three legged cat in my story aside, this could be a bad source of stress for some.
Oh gee, we were talking about adopting a kitten however I just think Nemo deserves to be the only cat around the house right meow. Good to know though thanks!
 
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NemosMommy

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Hi!
Welcome!!
In addition to ArtNJ's terrific advice, you could also try a litter called Cat Attact. It's a little pricey so some people will sprinkle some on top of the other litter rather than use it as the only litter in the box.
:vibes::goodluck: Let us know how things turn out :crossfingers:
Oooh thanks!!! I'll check that out! Have you heard or have any opinions on the royal canin feline calm dry cat food? I was looking into that also it is pricey!!
 

Furballsmom

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You could try finding as small a bag as you can and maybe rotate it to help with expenses, there was a mention by another member just the other day that they're using this one :thumbsup:
 
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daftcat75

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This sounds strange but have you had her teeth checked out? Sometimes, okay often! When an adult cat loses her bathroom training, it often has nothing to do with the litterbox. It’s often a cry for help. And enough times it is the teeth that I keep suggesting this one. I know you suspect other behavioral issues and it could very well be that too. But I would get her checked out at the vet including teeth before going too far down that road. If there is a medical reason why she’s doing this, behavioral fixes won’t work until that’s addressed.
 
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NemosMommy

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Hi!
Welcome!!
In addition to ArtNJ's terrific advice, you could also try a litter called Cat Attact. It's a little pricey so some people will sprinkle some on top of the other litter rather than use it as the only litter in the box.
:vibes::goodluck: Let us know how things turn out :crossfingers:
Just wanted to say thank you again for this advice, I got her the cat attract cat litter and she has been using it for the past 2 weeks and so far just 1 accident, YAY!
 
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