Cat passed away-Other cat's behavior issue

amberlbarringer

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I recently had an old sick cat pass away at home at almost 14 years old. My other cat and her knew eachother for 13 1/2 years but we're never considered "close" friends. Now that she is gone, my other cat is urinating and pooping all over the house and mainly in front of me to witness. He knows he's doing something wrong because he stares at me then makes a mad dash around the house. This is a cat who has rarely ever missed the litter box.Could the other cat's death be affecting his behavior like this?
 
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amberlbarringer

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Also wanted to mention and just thought of this.. I do have another male cat in the house that was very close to this male. She treated him as her kitten. He seems a little depressed but no litter box issues. I'm just wondering too if she was kind of a buffer zone between the male's. Now that she's gone I also wonder if that is causing the male's to now but-heads now which might be a territorial issue.
 

catlover73

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I would suggest a vet exam for exam for the cat that is pooping and peeing everywhere to rule out a medical issue.  I do not have any experience with a cat pooping all over the house in front of me personally.  One of our male cats peed on my hubby's recliner in front of my hubby and he had never had litter box issues before at all.  He was taken to the vet and we found out he had a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). Once this issue was treated the peeing outside the box stopped on it's own.  The only time I ever had a cat poop all over my house was when one of my cat's got a tummy ache from human food he got into.  He had poop squirts for a few days and was simply not able to get to a litter box in time.  Once the poop squirts stopped the pooping outside the box stopped.   My cat that had squirts was meowing at me as it happened which made clean-up a lot easier.  I have a portable steam vac so it was not hard to clean up the accidents.  I knew what my cat had eaten and did to talk to my vet and she told me that the food just needed to get through him and things would go back to normal.
 
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amberlbarringer

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I will definitely look into the medical issue possibility. But he doesn't seem to be straining when he pees and he doesn't have loose stole.  It just seems the whole dynamic changed after my other cat died. 
 

catlover73

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My cat was not straining to pee when he peed on our recliner either. I took him to the vet because of the change in litter box behavior. UTI's can cause pain and I am thinking that if this is a medical issue it possible that is the reason for the change in litter box habits. I am not a vet but I think it is better to rule out medical issues first.
 
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amberlbarringer

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Taking him today to the vet. I've had cats for 45 years and have dealt with UTI..Doubt this is one since he is pooping more so than peeing..But checking any way. I dont believe in coincidences and since his and the other cat's behavior changed after my other cat's death, I think it's related. Was hoping for advice on behavior from anyone who might have experienced losing one of 3 cats after 13+ years of being together.
 

kattlover924

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Finally! Someone else who knows this isn't a simple UTI problem. Well . . . maybe it is; but if so, it's been brought on by grief. Just had my most beloved cat Kaya euthanized 7 weeks ago due to hidden disease, which took her suddenly. She was nearly 10 in human years. Her housemate, Telse, the surviving cat (soon 14), not only visibly mourned Kaya's passing (searching all over the house, "howling" in a mournful search effort we'd never heard out of her in 14 years), but I've just noticed brand new pee stains in the family room in the EXACT SAME SPOTS WHERE KAYA HAD PEED SOON BEFORE SHE DIED. How weird is this?! Kaya had started peeing in random spots on the floor and on a brand new ottoman a couple weeks or so before she died. I shampooed carpets a couple days after she passed and finally washed her cat bed about 2 or 3 weeks later, as I never noticed Telse using it.

I noticed this morning fresh pee stains and smells in what appears the same exact locations that Kaya had stained before (which were visibly lightened/gone and freshened after she died), and I was certain a week or two ago that Telse had peed on the ottoman and the accompanying sofa top (where both she and Kaya used to rest). It's not like Telse is simply randomly marking, but it's in the SAME SPOTS from what I can tell. ?!?! She has become more affectionate and will hardly sleep in a room that I'm not in when I'm home. Sometimes she will but, usually, if I'm doing a project or watching TV or something, she'll follow me from room to room and re-situate to rest. If I leave that room, she will either leave right away or soon after (unless she's "dead asleep").

She was always "queen of the hill" while Kaya was alive and the hierarchy was both obvious and respected by Kaya as well. Telse always seemed a bit jealous of Kaya and would customarily “unseat” her if she wanted to sit/sleep where Kaya was sitting/sleeping. Telse became very lethargic and quieter while Kaya was sick and was very depressed after she died (inactive, slept a lot, literally "looked sad" and listless; “sad eyes” like you’d see on a dog). She has resumed some of her playing and antics, but I just can't get over all this fresh cat pee in the areas that Kaya had decorated before. I'm so tragically sad that Kaya is gone, but one thing I was glad about was that the inappropriate peeing was over. Telse hasn't done that in probably 10 years or more and it's never been a real problem with her overall. While Kaya was alive, Telse would sniff Kaya's pee ALL OVER THE PLACE!! but would just walk away and NEVER peed outside the litterbox herself. And this is not a litterbox issue; litterbox is kept up, scooped daily, and washed/replaced with clean (identical) substitute box every 2 weeks.

No kids or other animals in the house. She's a mostly indoor cat. I recently moved to a new home several months ago and am integrating her as indoor/outdoor as able. No stress noted in new home once she adjusted (took several days). She even used to hide in closets in former home during any storm; now she just lazes around like, “Oh. It’s thunderstorming?” RIGHT after Kaya died, Telse regressed into fear and creeping around for a hiding place during a storm once or twice. She seems okay now as far as that is concerned. Still, she never peed outside the litterbox.

But . . . now peeing everywhere her deceased companion had peed weeks and weeks ago??
 

Purr0nica

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I believe the phrase is “bumping” this thread to see if anyone found a solution?...
Backstory I have a 6 year old, Moonbeam, and he’s never had a little box problem aside from spraying before he was fixed. About 2 years ago a got a second kitty, Arrow. He used the box for about 2 months and then seemingly only pooped in it when he felt like it (no urine problems) mostly around the box. I won’t list the dozen or so solutions I tried to fix this but nothing worked. Eventually he stopped cleaning himself after going to the bathroom and would leave messes wherever he sat. I made the heartbreaking decision to drive 4 hours away to the best animal sanctuary I could find. I know pets are a lifelong commitment and preach it myself, but it all just became too much for me.
Current issue Moonbeam is clearly distressed, howling and looking for his buddy (breaks my freaking heart) but I’ve noticed in the past month his gone outside the box 3 times. Could this be part of his grieving process, or could he have possibly picked up this habit from Arrow? I want to mention they were pretty close so I don’t think there was any little box bullying going on. I’m toying with the idea of isolation retraining but he’s already in distress, I don’t know if it would do more harm. Any input is greatly appreciated!
 

CatLover49

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I recently had an old sick cat pass away at home at almost 14 years old. My other cat and her knew eachother for 13 1/2 years but we're never considered "close" friends. Now that she is gone, my other cat is urinating and pooping all over the house and mainly in front of me to witness. He knows he's doing something wrong because he stares at me then makes a mad dash around the house. This is a cat who has rarely ever missed the litter box.Could the other cat's death be affecting his behavior like this?
Yes.I believe so.Cats can sense things.He knows the something about the routine has changed.I would consider calling vet n see what maybe could help him.So sorry for loss.May the sweet heart rest in peace.In cat heaven.
 

poivre

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Since we suddenly had to put Nellie to sleep 2 weeks ago her "sister" Norma-Jean has been mourning her and sleeps most days away in Nellie's bed. We are very cognizant that she misses her but was surprised to find 2 out-of-the box poops (one dried up near fireplace where she likes to lie and the 2nd right outside the little box next to the washing machine). Otherwise, she is using the litter box as usual and pooping there as well.
I am attributing this to her loss and will wait a bit longer to see if the behavior continues. If not, it will be pretty obvious what caused it temporarily.
 
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