At wits end with this cat, what do I do?!

[PinkHairedCoder]

So.. I adopted this 7-year old Siamese cat from the humane society here. The story on her was that she lived with one family for 7 years, then they suddenly got rid of her after they became allergic. She came with another cat who had been adopted already. At first, she was fearful, would hide under things and not come out. I was told by the humane society that this was normal and would take a month or two to come out of. So I waited...

Slowly she came out of shell. I got bit or scratched a few times trying to coax her out, but gave up and just fed/watered her and let her come out at her own pace. We had two other cats, both males that normally get along with any cats, but don't seem to like her...

Fastforward to this year. She has utterly destroyed my room, clothes in my shelves, books, bed, and event the counter at times from poop and pee. She while using the litterbox at times won't use it all the time. She still won't get along with other cats but wants affection. I try to spend time in the bedroom with her, bring her out to the other rooms, give her affection, think she's doing fine. She rewards me by crapping on my stuff. Today I fed her, she ran back in the bedroom after eating, litterbox was clean, she runs to the bed and starts peeing. I put her in the litterlbox she jumps out, I put her back, jumps out, goes and craps on the bed...

I've tried to put up with it but all my clothes and stuff are practically ruined. I do not want to abandon her, especially that old because I don't want her put to sleep or even just to get rid of her because of behavior, that's cruel. .... But I don't know what to do. I didn't expect this. I've tried to work her out of it and it doesn't work. She has no health issues as she's been checked. So it's all behavior but...

... What do I do at this point? Last night she crapped on the bread, and peed in the stove burner...

 

[IndyJones]

Has she seen a vet since this started? Is she marking or peeing? (small amounts or a puddle) is she straining?

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Sounds like proper introductions were never done - both with her in your home, and with the other cats. It also sounds like she is displaying behavior that says she needs more attention than she is getting. And, I thought originally that she is still confined to a specific room, but if she can get to the bread and the stove burner, she is in other places of the house? If so, and she and the other two cats don't get along, much of her behavior has to do with that. She would seem insecure and uncomfortable in the current circumstances.
Can you tell us a bit more about how you tried to not only acclimate her to your house, but how you introduced her to your other cats?

 

[TGM2020]

Hi, I'm new here and still working on some issues with my cats.

You might need to do a reintroduction with all cats, that said, my issue was that one of my cats just wasn't having enough stimulation and I've since have been doing a nightly routine with both of them. Playtime now is very much essential in my house, twenty minutes at night with a Da Bird toy, usually twice a day. Having more than one litter box, I have two and they both use each, cleaned twice a day. But playtime has made such a difference in my house, both cats are happier and more relaxed and getting more secure in their territory.

 

[PinkHairedCoder]

There are two litter boxes, on in the bedroom for her, one in the kitchen for the other cats. She won't use either. ... She won't eat unless wet and microwave the food and then sit there and watch her eat it. ... She won't drink water unless it's out of the toilet, like I just tried to get her to drink and she wouldn't touch it until I let her drink out of the toilet. She just immedlately jumps out of the litterbox and runs out the bedroom door when I try.

I've tried both keeping her to the bedroom and letting her roam. If she's in the bedroom she craps on everything. If she's outside it, she finds places that are ... infuriating to crap on.

Trying to introduce her to the cats or even let her have free attention ends up with her just running off. I've tried to put her on my lap lately at the PC, she walks off it, goes to the counter and sits. She won't crap right away... When she craps it's almost like she finds it annoying to get up and go to a litterbox so she just goes where she's at wherever that is. She'll literally sit next to it or in it, like she's cared of getting up and going away to it. But she doesn't act like she's in pain.

She's seen a vet, vet said nothing is wrong with her had no other suggestions.

... How do I coax her out of this if she all she does is decide to jump up and run?

 

[jen]

First rule is 1 box per cat plus 1 extra.

Cats also never act like they are in pain unless it is so severe. You will never know until it is far advanced. This is why yearly check ups, bloodwork, etc are SO important with cats. She needs a full blood panel with urinalysis. Then she needs some Gabapentin for anxiety. Then she needs time, alone, in her own room/space to get used to the meds and assuming there is no medical issue, gets used to living there.

 

[PinkHairedCoder]

First rule is 1 box per cat plus 1 extra.

Cats also never act like they are in pain unless it is so severe. You will never know until it is far advanced. This is why yearly check ups, bloodwork, etc are SO important with cats. She needs a full blood panel with urinalysis. Then she needs some Gabapentin for anxiety. Then she needs time, alone, in her own room/space to get used to the meds and assuming there is no medical issue, gets used to living there.

1. Uh no, that's not always the rule. If the cats get along and don't mind sharing a box that's not an issue. The two males had 2 boxes. They still shared their boxes (Father and son), didn't mind it. When the third came in, she got the second box since the they didn't mind sharing. 2 boxes is enough. I live in a trailer not a mansion. 2 bedrooms, 1 kitchen/livingroom/bathroom. There is no way I'm putting 4 boxes in the house and no sane average funds person would.

2. I just said she'd been to a vet and they said nothing was wrong. Why say go to the vet again if they checked for everything they could and said they didn't know?? Seems redundant.

This is a behavior issue, I need to know how to break that behavior because everything I own is now practically ruined.

 

[Willowy]

I think she needs anti-anxiety meds at this point. If it's not a physical problem, it must be a mental problem.

If the vet has just seen her recently, they may not need to see her again. Give them a call and see if you can get meds.

 

[Sylvia Jones]

I hear you on so many levels! I have two male sibling I have had since 6 weeks They have both always used their litter box until..... A couple months ago one of them just stopped He would go at random spots in the house I also cannot have multiple litter boxes throughout the house. When I.would set him in the litter box ( while talking very gently and calm) he would immediately jump out and run) After reading many many threads here I tried the following approach I purchased a pet mates Giant little pan ( not expensive) and Dr Elseys cat attract litter When I showed him the box he was at least interested (walked around it and smelled it) it has been 4 days now and last night I woke up to hear him scratching in the box I have not found any evidence for a couple days outside the box He had also been acting more aloof since this all started and now is coming up for attention again I had been using pine pellets little and hope to slowly return to that but for now until I feel confident in his litter box habits dr Elsey cat attract it is I’m lucky that my other boy is not picky on litter and he seems to really like the bigger box Had this not happened during the Covid virus crisis we would have gone to the vet but for now this is showing promise I agree with others advice to try and get calming medication from a call to your vet to help him relax and adjust Heck I would get some from your own doctor for you It’s a very stressful situation Hood luck! Please keep us updayed

 

[nwc]

There is no way I'm putting 4 boxes in the house and no sane average funds person would.

lmao wrong forum dude. "breaking" the cat's behavior is probably the wrong way to think about it. in addition to meds, you're probably just going to have to accept that the shelter lied to you (like most cat people, they were probably more interested in keeping the senior cat live, rather than keeping humans sane), and take the advice here in making cat's life as stress-free as possible, maybe indefinitely.

 

[war&wisdom]

1. Uh no, that's not always the rule. If the cats get along and don't mind sharing a box that's not an issue. The two males had 2 boxes. They still shared their boxes (Father and son), didn't mind it. When the third came in, she got the second box since the they didn't mind sharing. 2 boxes is enough. I live in a trailer not a mansion. 2 bedrooms, 1 kitchen/livingroom/bathroom. There is no way I'm putting 4 boxes in the house and no sane average funds person would.

2. I just said she'd been to a vet and they said nothing was wrong. Why say go to the vet again if they checked for everything they could and said they didn't know?? Seems redundant.

This is a behavior issue, I need to know how to break that behavior because everything I own is now practically ruined.

No need to be rude. The veterinary consensus is one box for each cat, plus one extra. If you can't have an extra, at least have one per cat.

A few sources:
Preventing litter box problems
How Many Litter Boxes Does A Cat Need?
Why Multiple Cats Need Multiple Litter Boxes
How Many Litter Boxes Per Cat Do You Need?

 

[nwc]

No need to be rude. The veterinary consensus is one box for each cat, plus one extra. If you can't have an extra, at least have one per cat.

A few sources:
Preventing litter box problems
How Many Litter Boxes Does A Cat Need?
Why Multiple Cats Need Multiple Litter Boxes
How Many Litter Boxes Per Cat Do You Need?

Was this the consensus before Jackson Galaxy had his TV show?

 

[war&wisdom]

Was this the consensus before Jackson Galaxy had his TV show?

This has nothing to do with Jackson Galaxy. Animal behaviorists and vets agree on this point.

 

[PinkHairedCoder]

Just because one guy on Animal Planet said it was the rule and then vets and so followed him because of sponsors and connections does not make it the rule when years before people had cats fine and if they didn't then it was a fix for SOME issues. ... He is not the authority.

Anyways. As I said. She has her own. They do not. But they are not the ones fighting or having issues. Just her. Thus the issue lies with her and she has her own.

 

[war&wisdom]

Just because one guy on Animal Planet said it was the rule and then vets and so followed him because of sponsors and connections does not make it the rule when years before people had cats fine and if they didn't then it was a fix for SOME issues. ... He is not the authority.

Anyways. As I said. She has her own. They do not. But they are not the ones fighting or having issues. Just her. Thus the issue lies with her and she has her own.

Wow. That is incredibly condescending. You can be as dismissive as you like, but Jackson Galaxy did not come up with this. He's not the authority. He was communicating the veterinary and behaviorist consensus.

Not only have I done extensive reading on this myself, but my sister is an animal behaviorist by trade. She has studied this field for years.

 

[PinkHairedCoder]

... My grandmother owned cats all her life, lived in rural area had about 10 cats at one time constantly, 1 or 2 boxes she cleaned a day, no fights, no issues.

My aunt had pets all her life, cats always got along no box issues 1 or 2 boxes.

I've had cats all my life, never had behavior or box issues till now, didn't have them before this ONE particular cat.

... I'd say it's more condescending for you to tell me because I finally had the 1 in 99% chance of having a cat with box issues that I suddenly have to make the very small house stink to high-havens and cater to a cat because one dude said it and your research agrees to it.

Don't get me wrong. I love cats. They are the family, children, not just pets to me. But I am not going to turn the entire house upside down and cater to one cats every whim just because she wants to be difficult. They are family, not royalty. She is the issue and brought the issue in thus to get along the issue needs to be fixed or isolated in a way to fix it that does not involve bending over backwards and making everything perfect for one cat. That's not how things work.

Especially in a pandemic where we're not even supposed to leave the house except to stock up. Not willy-nilly go to the store and use emergency funds just to give the cat 3 extra crapping places because she's finicky. That is insane.

---
Now to the people that had suggestions of anxiety meds, that may work. But I came here to fix one particular problem with the cat itself. Not the household which was perfectly fine before the cat.

 

[war&wisdom]

... My grandmother owned cats all her life, lived in rural area had about 10 cats at one time constantly, 1 or 2 boxes she cleaned a day, no fights, no issues.

My aunt had pets all her life, cats always got along no box issues 1 or 2 boxes.

I've had cats all my life, never had behavior or box issues till now, didn't have them before this ONE particular cat.

... I'd say it's more condescending for you to tell me because I finally had the 1 in 99% chance of having a cat with box issues that I suddenly have to make the very small house stink to high-havens and cater to a cat because one dude said it and your research agrees to it.

Don't get me wrong. I love cats. They are the family, children, not just pets to me. But I am not going to turn the entire house upside down and cater to one cats every whim just because she wants to be difficult. They are family, not royalty. She is the issue and brought the issue in thus to get along the issue needs to be fixed or isolated in a way to fix it that does not involve bending over backwards and making everything perfect for one cat. That's not how things work.

Especially in a pandemic where we're not even supposed to leave the house except to stock up. Not willy-nilly go to the store and use emergency funds just to give the cat 3 extra crapping places because she's finicky. That is insane.

---
Now to the people that had suggestions of anxiety meds, that may work. But I came here to fix one particular problem with the cat itself. Not the household which was perfectly fine before the cat.

Buying a third litter box is not "bending over backwards" for a cat. I live in a small apartment, and I would absolutely find the space for a third litter box if it might ease my cat's anxiety. Furthermore, you can order litter boxes online, so you do not have to go out to any stores. Finally, there is no reason for the litter box to smell if you clean it regularly. Changing the cat's environment is often crucial to resolving behavioral issues.

There are many reasons a cat might eliminate inappropriately, including her relationship with other cats in the house and generalized anxiety. Asking a vet for a second opinion or to evaluate your cat for signs of anxiety would be wise.

Litter box avoidance is one of the most common behavioral and/or medical issues that occur in cats. I've included some links to abstracts of peer-reviewed articles at the end of this post if you're interested in learning more about the research surrounding this issue.

If you believe you know better than other cat owners and animal behaviorists, then I'm not sure why you came here for advice. Adding a litter box often fixes or at least eases inappropriate elimination -- as many cat owners and veterinarians can attest -- but you will not even consider it as a possibility.

Common feline problem behaviours: Unacceptable indoor elimination - PubMed - NCBI
Advances in understanding and treatment of feline inappropriate elimination. - PubMed - NCBI
Causes of urine marking in cats and effects of environmental management on frequency of marking. - PubMed - NCBI
Thinking outside the box: feline elimination. - PubMed - NCBI

 

[PinkHairedCoder]

I'll repeat this one last time. SHE HAS HER OWN. The others aren't having an issue just her and she has her own. If she doesn't have to use theirs and they don't have to use hers or even go near hers. Then she doesn't need another box. It's not the amount of boxes she plain doesn't want to be in her box. She jumped out.

 

[war&wisdom]

I'll repeat this one last time. SHE HAS HER OWN. The others aren't having an issue just her and she has her own. If she doesn't have to use theirs and they don't have to use hers or even go near hers. Then she doesn't need another box. It's not the amount of boxes she plain doesn't want to be in her box. She jumped out.

Did you not read the other suggestions in my response?

Even if it's not the box, maybe it's the litter. Or the type of box. Or the fact that the other cats in the house haven't warmed up to her. There are so many possible reasons, and none involves a magic pill that will just "fix" your cat. Issues like this don't occur in isolation.

 

[war&wisdom]

The only reason I keep bringing up the litter box number is because you seem to think only "crazy" people would alter the number of boxes, when peer-reviewed research suggests that litter box changes (in number, type, placement, etc.) commonly solve improper elimination. It's not only rude but misinformed to dismiss those who have provided this advice as "insane" and suggest that they have been brainwashed by a man on Animal Planet.