Cat urinates all over the house

[click4]

Hi,

I have 2 cats which share a litter tray.

one uses the litter tray fine, the other... even if the tray has just been cleaned she will always go to the toilet on the outside of the tray, but when it comes to urinating she will urinate on our laminate flooring in front of the door which has ruined it, or if we put any kind of rugs or mats down it only encourages her to urinate on it making the problem worse...as we have some carpet mats in the kitchen which she is always urinating on she also urinates on the carpet in the bathroom near the toilet.

is there anything I can do to stop this behaviour? its not new, she has always done it but the house sometimes smells of urine because of this so we need to do something about it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[click4]

just to add, the 2 cats are sisters and they are both indoor cats, the media used for their tray is cylindrical wood pellets.

 

[tulosai]

Hi 

How old are your cats?

The first thing that comes to mind is that she just might not like sharing  a tray, whether it is clean or not.  She may also not like to pee and poop in the same place.  I would add 2 more trays at a minimum and see if that improves the problem. If that does not work, only then would I try other things.

How are you cleaning the messes she is making? It is very important that you are using an enzyme cleaner.  If you are using just soap and water or anything that is not an enzyme cleaner, she will still be able to smell that she has peed there (whether you can smell it or not).  This will indicate to her that this is a 'good' place to go.

 

[peaches08]

Is she declawed? Even if she isn't, maybe she doesn't like the feel or smell of the litter?

When my old CRF kitty would urinate just in front of the litter boxes, I put down puppy pee pads. I know that isn't much of a solution but it was a last resort for a sick kitty.

 

[xenot]

I've always been told to let each cat have their own litter box.  Again, this is a territorial issue.  Peeing and marking are pretty much one and the same thing as far as a cat is concerned.  Also, my cat pretty consistently pees and poops in particular regions of the cat box.  I bet your female likes the same areas as the other cat or prefers to have her own litter box, as most cats do.  I remember seeing somebody who was so frustrated because they did not know that each cat might want their own box, that they actually filled a huge plastic kiddie pool with litter for their multiple cats' use!  That's just ridiculous!  Just get another litter box for the girl.  It will be a fun shopping excursion anyway because you know you love going to pet stores!

 

[click4]

 
Hi 

How old are your cats?

The first thing that comes to mind is that she just might not like sharing  a tray, whether it is clean or not.  She may also not like to pee and poop in the same place.  I would add 2 more trays at a minimum and see if that improves the problem. If that does not work, only then would I try other things.

How are you cleaning the messes she is making? It is very important that you are using an enzyme cleaner.  If you are using just soap and water or anything that is not an enzyme cleaner, she will still be able to smell that she has peed there (whether you can smell it or not).  This will indicate to her that this is a 'good' place to go.

Hi, thank you for the reply

they are 5 years old now, we have had them since kittens.

Will try to add further trays to see if it improves things.

the carpets, usually we don't know she has urinated on them because it dries up, its only the smell that tells us she has urinated there usually, only seen her once or twice do it.

the rugs and mats, we put them in the washing machine to clean, haven't heard of enzyme cleaner but will try it.

laminate flooring by the door will be hard to get rid of the smell because the urine has soaked into the laminate... may have to change it to remove the smell.

 

[click4]

Is she declawed? Even if she isn't, maybe she doesn't like the feel or smell of the litter?

When my old CRF kitty would urinate just in front of the litter boxes, I put down puppy pee pads. I know that isn't much of a solution but it was a last resort for a sick kitty.

Not declawed, is there any way to test this theory?

Thanks for the reply

 

[click4]

 
I've always been told to let each cat have their own litter box.  Again, this is a territorial issue.  Peeing and marking are pretty much one and the same thing as far as a cat is concerned.  Also, my cat pretty consistently pees and poops in particular regions of the cat box.  I bet your female likes the same areas as the other cat or prefers to have her own litter box, as most cats do.  I remember seeing somebody who was so frustrated because they did not know that each cat might want their own box, that they actually filled a huge plastic kiddie pool with litter for their multiple cats' use!  That's just ridiculous!  Just get another litter box for the girl.  It will be a fun shopping excursion anyway because you know you love going to pet stores!

Will try another litter tray, just only problem is if they don't use their "own" trays but rather any of the trays mixing them up.. which means she may still not use it.

Thanks for the reply

 

[peaches08]

Not declawed, is there any way to test this theory?


Thanks for the reply

Change only one tray's litter to something new. See what they do!

Also, has she had blood work done? My dear old Grey (RIP) did this for years, only to find out later with a new vet she had diabetes. Started treating her and bam, inappropriate elimination stopped.

 

[cprcheetah]

I agree try adding a litter box.  Maybe she doesn't like the feel of the pellets on her feet  when peeing.  Has she been checked for a bladder infection?  I had a cat who was peeing everywhere even on my couch, she had a low grade mild urinary tract infection, put her on antibiotics and no more peeing outside the box.

 

[cheshiresmama]

I would definitely get another litter box. One for each cat. Place it in the area that she's urinating in now. You should also try a different litter some cats don't like the feel of certain litter. I've heard that the general rule for cat boxes is 1 litter pan per cat and one on each level of the house. Make sure they are cleaned every day and easily accessible. Cats can be lazy haha .

If this is a new behavior I would take her to the she could have a uti or some other infection. I would also see if there's any strange cats hanging around outside she could be marking territory if other cats are hanging around outside your house.

 

[katluver4life]

You have already gotten some great advice, so I will just second the ones on getting the cat checked by a vet first and adding more boxes. Cleaning your house using a good enzyme cleaner is extremely important. Your cat will smell the urine where she has gone, even if you can't and will just continue to use those same spots until they are thoroughly cleaned. You may have to invest in a black light to find areas you are unaware of.

On another note, some cats are just drawn to the smell of rubber or plastic, and this is often why some use bath mats, ect, to go on. Try different textured throw rugs.

This article has many other tips you may find helpful http://www.thecatsite.com/t/9563/inappropriate-peeing-problems-answered.

 

[gibbyandgravy]

Can you suggest some good enzyme cleaners?

 

[katluver4life]

Here is a post that discusses many different cleaners and much more. You may find it very helpful. http://www.thecatsite.com/t/242388/best-urine-smell-removers-or-cleaners