Crate Training My Cat

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

I am!! I swear i'm watching her so intently my eyes cross

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

She’s had supervised access to the whole house. No accidents yet! and she’s consistently used her litter box since it has remained in the crate. Nothing in the bath or anything! I’m not sure if we can ever get rid of the crate but right now, I’m just happy for what we’ve got.

I’m going to keep supervising her for another week I think as i just can’t accept that one week is enough to really be sure that she’s reliably behaving!

 

[rubysmama]

I don't blame you for not being convinced she's "cured", but sounds promising.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

Hello hello,

Just to say that i've been allowing her full roaming privileges when i'm home. No accidents to report! She hasn't even shown interest in the front door. I guess I should be giving her unsupervised access about now. Still nervous!

 

[rubysmama]

Let me tentatively say ... "Good girl !!!!

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

Another update - I am so happy that we did this. She is consistently using the litter box now. We have had one or two wees in the bath and one on the floor in the bathroom over the course of a month or two. When there was the accident in the bathroom, I crated her overnight and it hasn’t happened since. She hasn’t urinated by the front door AT ALL which is a huge relief.

Before crate training, she had got to the point of never using the box. We were getting through a lot of puppy pads, litres of simple solution and cleaning the floor morning and night. It was miserable and I couldn’t have done it for much longer.

Now, the vast majority of the time, we are functioning like a semi normal (!) cat family. No more puppy pads and no more heart sink moments when I get back from work. Thank god. I have never got so close to evicting a cat in my life. This was the last ditch attempt.

 

[rubysmama]

That is such good news! I'm so happy for you, and your kitty.

And thanks for keeping the thread updated, as I'm sure your story is helping cat parents who find this thread via Google.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

Frustratingly, she's peed on the new floor, by the front door. There is a food bowl to one side, she peed the other side. She has since used the litter tray, I don't think it is UTI related. Probably territorial as we just got rid of our old (her favourite) sofa. I have cleaned it and I am not sure how to proceed. Crate her overnight perhaps. Put tin foil down, maybe a scent soaker towel as well.

 

[rubysmama]

Sorry to hear that.

About likely not being a UTI, here's an excerpt from Litterbox Problems? Here's Why You Should Call Your Vet, so might be something to ask your vet about. There's a bit more about it in the article, as well.

"There is one type of urinary tract inflammation that can be difficult to detect and even more difficult to treat. It's sometimes called the Pandora Syndrome, but officially it's known as Feline Idiopathic Cystitis, or FIC for short. There is no bacterial infection and no crystals are present, yet the inner layer of the cat's urinary bladder is inflamed. The culprits are stress hormones. Susceptible cats have more receptors for stress hormones within their bladder. If the cat experiences a high amount of stress, the bladder becomes inflamed and urination becomes painful."

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

I’m afraid the wheels have fallen off. Perhaps I shouldn’t be so dramatic as she does still use the box but far far less reliably now than last month.

Even though I have taken her to the vet several times and they’ve never thought she has anything wrong with her, I have changed her food to Royal Canin Vet Urinary dry food as she reliably eats that. I have also been giving her Cystease laced Sheba which she has less frequently.

I feel a bit frustrated that the vet hasn’t been more helpful and am loathe to go back and throw money at them for no benefit. But I don’t know what else to do if this new food doesn’t work. Maybe the behaviourist.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

Maybe put her in the crate twice a day like you do sunny.

 

[rubysmama]

I feel a bit frustrated that the vet hasn’t been more helpful and am loathe to go back and throw money at them for no benefit

Are there cat only vets in your area? If so, it might be worth making an appointment.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

I have never heard of such a thing! I can have a google but I haven’t heard of one.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

The nearest thing I can find is this practice:
Cat Friendly Clinic | White Cross Vets
What do you think?

She does still take herself to the litter box, just not every time and now I feel like I can’t trust her to have unsupervised access to the house where she can wee on the floor by the front door.

 

[rubysmama]

At this point I don't think a second opinion could hurt. So might be worth trying.

I found this one. Is it anywhere near you?
Just Cats Veterinary Clinic - Home

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

It would be a third opinion.

No unfortunately that one is not close by, thanks anyway.

 

[rubysmama]

How old is she again? How long has this been going on?

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

She is 9 and a half years old and she has always had a thing about front doors. The more recent deterioration in general box use started when we moved house in May 2017, so 7 months ago.

 

[rubysmama]

So frustrating. If only cats could talk.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

Hi. The vet knocked her out, shaved her belly, scanned her bladder and cultured the urine. No bacteria was evident. She has very early stages of kidney disease which might cause her to urinate more but the vet couldn't say that it would be expected to directly cause pain. So special diet it is. She's not peeing in the box anymore so we're back to supervised access to the house.

Is it awful to be thinking of rehoming her?