Constipation/litterbox phobia

[keyes]

Please excuse me if this was posted incomplete.  Sadie had a mega hairball which also caused to her to become constipated.  End result is that she will pee in the litterbox but will not poop in the litterbox due the pain she was experiencing from being constipated.  In fact, she hadn't pooped for two days and as soon as I put down some newspaper on the floor, she pooped.  But, I want her to go back to using the litterbox for that little duty.  Does anyone have any suggestions on how to retrain her?  Am going to keep on giving her pumpkin in her food for the next couple of days just to make sure she's cleaned out.

 

[sugarcatmom]

I would get a second litter box and maybe put it in a different spot if possible. Try some Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract litter as well.

Is Sadie long-haired? What does she eat?
 

 

[keyes]

I have 3 litter boxes and she eats a combo of wet and dry cat food.  She is nine years old and this is the first time she has ever experienced this kind of problem.  I haven' changed brands either.

 

[keyes]

And she's a short hair.

 

[stephanietx]

If she eats canned food, you can about a teaspoon of pumpkin to her wet food twice daily to help soften stools.  I also concur with a new box, maybe in a different location and the Dr. Elsey's.
 

 

[keyes]

Am also doing pumpkin twice a day and the litter boxes are in different locations.  This ain't my first cat rodeo!  The one thing that I haven't trided is the cat attract litter and so that sounds easy enough and I will take and get me some of that.  Appreciate this very much.  I hate to see my fiur babies suffering.

 

[keyes]

Just an update on Sadie.  We got the constipation under control, a quarter teaspoon of miralax every day. I tried the Cat Attract litter additive.  Made no difference.  Got another litter pan and used a natural cat litter for it.  Pooped in it once and that was it.  She still uses the litter boxes for urination but that's it.  Just called the Vet and will be taking her in tomorrow morning for a look see.  I know that when she's done pooping wherever she pooped, she takes off like the devil dogs from hell are after her and then she stops, sits and starts licking at her rear end.  And when I touched her accidently the other day close to her anal area, she reacted as if in pain and jumped off the couch down to the floor.  Has anyone had any of their fur babies act like this?  The vet assistant said that they would be looking at her anal glands.  I've never had to deal with that in all the years of having cats in my household.  I have no clue.  And if it is that, and it's taken care of, then how do i go about litter box retraining?

 

[keyes]

Well, after 3 visits to the vet, physical exam, x-rays, another set of x-rays, bloodwork, urine testing and then to add to the fun, an anal probe and expressing anal glands-they were fine he just thought that while he was there--, they have found nothing wrong with Sadie.  The vet thinks, maybe, that she is experiencing pain in the spinal, tail or hip area when defecating and that's why she's avoiding doing that in the litter box.  He did give her a shot of an non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory pain medication to see if that made a difference or not.  It was supposed to last for about 3 days and I was to observe her to see if it made a difference or not.  I'm not sure if it did or not although yesterday is the first time I've seen a pile of poop where it didn't belong.  Just wondering if anyone has experienced anything like this or similar to this?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

So, let me get this straight.  Until just a couple of months ago, she was a model cal, using her litter box like a good little girl?  Then she got constipated and ever since she has not wanted to use her box for pooping?  Where is she going...in one consistent spot, or where ever the urge takes her?  Are you cleaning those spots with enzymatic cleaner, or could she be drawn back there because SHE can still smell it, even though we mere humans cannot? 

I'm a little confused by your statement above  " I'm not sure if it did or not although yesterday is the first time I've seen a pile of poop where it didn't belong "  .  This indicates to me that she HAS been pooping where you want her to poop.  If not in her box, where is that?  Maybe on puppy pads?  Anyway, if you've got her going in a specific place and want to retrain her to the box, you might try putting a box directly in the place where she is now going.  Then VERY GRADUALLY begin moving the box back to it's original spot.  But whatever you do, try not to yell at Sadie...she isn't doing this on purpose, and if you yell at her, then she will be even more conflicted about pooping. Not to say that you are getting upset with her, just saying this in case

BTW, there is another cat  having this same issue, although she is new to her "owner", and has been doing it since even before being adopted.  It's like she is petrified of pooping!  (we don't know her back history) 

 

[keyes]

There is no consistency as to where she will poop next.  The statement that you say you are confused about simply meant that I'm not sure if the shot worked or not pain wise.  The vet was hoping that if she was not experiencing any pain when pooping that she would not associate pain with the litterbox and therefore would go back to using the litterbox.  And no, I don't yell at her.  It's not her fault and I'm just trying to do what I can to get her back to using the litterbox when pooping.  The other thing about Sadie at this time is that she's pooping every other day which is not normal.  There is something going on physically that we just can't figure out.  If I used puppy pads do I have to use something with them so that she's attracted to it and will use it?

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

On the puppy pads, I'm not sure if they will work if she's not going in a certain spot each time.  You could TRY putting just a little bit of cat attract on a puppy pad to see if that might attract her to the pad, then see if you can at least get her to consistently use that as her new pooping area, then maybe gradually move that closer to a litter box

.

Maybe since you're using the Miralax, pooping every other day is going to be her new norm?  Perhaps it's cleaning her our? 

 

[keyes]

No, she was pooping every other day before I started her on the miralax.  At least, she goes for flat surfaces.  This morning it was my bed!  I picked up the puppy pads today and will try sprinkling the cat attract on the pads and will see what happens.  It's just so hard to understand when you know she's urinating in a litter box but when it comes to #2 no go.

 

[mrsgreenjeens]

  Yes, so hard to figure out what goes on in their little heads

.  Here's hoping those puppy pads do the trick

.  I actually have no idea if they will or not...just thought maybe

I'll be watching for what I hope is a positive post from you

concerning this