Cat Randomly Decides When He Does And Doesn't Use The Litter.

[chazman1974]

We have 3 male cats who are fixed. Our black one over the last couple of months has decided to poop randomly throughout the house. While other times, hes content to use the litter box. Nothing has really changed. We are now at a point if he doesn't stop we will have to resort giving him away. But good luck trying to get rid of a cat that poops randomly throughout the house.

We have quarantined the cat at night and when we are not home to limit his hide and seek excrement adventure. Everything we read lately leads us to believe he is showing us who is boss, but out patients has come to its limit. Any thoughts!

thanks

 

[calicosrspecial]

Hi,

Cats go outside of the litter box for 2 reasons. The first is medical (pain typically but could be other issues) and the second is behavioral (usually territorial).

I like to rule out any medical issues first as it tends to be easiest. So I like to take them to the vet to get checked out. How old is he? Are his stools normal and is he going normally for him (times, amounts, consistency etc). Do you see him struggling in the litter box at all? Does he walk differently or seem more sensitive? Are his paws ok?

If he checks out medically then we will shift our focus to what might be causing him to make his scent well known to others. Cats want to cover their scent so if they are going outside they are telling someone "hey, I am here, this is mine". It could be caused by a lack of confidence driven by outside ferals cats coming around, bullying by inside cats, different smells of animals or strangers. It could be a lot of things. It could be stress, he could be picking up stress from humans inside the house. Usually with some detective work we can find a potential cause but at times we can't.

Where exactly is he going? If we can add a litter box to an area he is going more often that could be helpful. Typically we like to have one more litter box than the number of cats in the household.

How is he acting otherwise? Does he walk around the same places as he did before? How does he carry himself? Tail high or low? Body tall or low? Does he avoid areas? Does he walk cautiously in certain areas? Is he playing like he was? Interacting with the other cats like he was?

Do you have any ferals in the neighborhood and do they come around at all? Some feral could be causing him insecurity and he is putting his scent down to "let them know that this home in mine".

How do the humans in the house interact with him? Especially after he goes outside of the litter box? Cats take on our emotions so the more stressed and upset we become the more they can become and the behavior can get worse. I know it is hard but if the humans can stay calm while cleaning up it will at least not make things worse (cats don't respond to discipline and yelling). Also, cats do not like territory taken away (being locked up etc) and that can actually cause territorial insecurity to get worse and more of the behavior we are trying to eliminate. Trust me, he would prefer to go in a litter box and cover his scent but something is causing him to go outside of it.

I am trying to cover a lot of ground that may or may not be relevant so please understand. The more we go back and forth the more we can try to figure out the cause.

So I would highly suggest getting the cat into a vet so we can try to rule out any medical issues especially pain, infection, etc. I suspect he may be having intermittent pain but I am not a vet.

Then we can work on his confidence and behavior. A confident cat is less likely to go outside of the litter box as they are more territorially secure so aren't bothered as much by visiting ferals, they will not be bullied, they are more able to withstand upticks in human stress, etc.

We build confidence by increasing play (especially in areas he is going). Really good play sessions, stalking, pouncing. Hunt, Capture, Kill the toy. Then after play feed either treats or a meal. Eat. Also, try to get him in cat trees, anywhere up high. Also, add some scratching posts (especially where he is going) so he can get his scent on them so he can feel more ownership. Finally, be as calm and confident and loving towards him as possible. Give him good food, let him know he is wanted and loved.

I am happy to help you for as long as needed. The good news is, I think we can solve this. Cats don't want to go outside of the litter box so we have that on our side.

Please feel free to ask any questions, give any updates. I am here for you all for as long as needed. We can solve this.

 

[FelinskiFamily]

I recently read a post here about a similar problem. Someone sugested to check whether the litter company changed the composition and changing the brand actually solved the problem. The poster also had other cats who had no issues, just this one cat.