Desperate: Cat Peeing in House

[Gemini69]

Hello,

My boyfriend (of 6+ years, also best friends since high school 14 years) has two cats and I’m at my wits end with one of them. He’s been pissing in the house (outside litter box) for 4 or 5 years now. It feels like we have tried everything. My boyfriend has spent over 10k trying to fix the problem, and he’s done over 40k worth of damage to the floors. He terrorizes his cat brother - so much so that he’s losing tons of hair and hides in the cabinet all day. Both cats are on Prozac and the terror is also on Buspirone. (I have a sweet chihuahua mix that he terrorizes too.) Our house smells of piss so badly and it’s making me lose my mind. My boyfriend doesn’t have the money to fix the piss smell sufficiently and also doesn’t seem to be as effected by it as I am. I love him so much but I know we can’t move forward in our relationship and get married while the cat is living under our roof - having to live in a house that smells like a porter potty is making me miserable. Traveling a lot helps me avoid utter desperation but I know that’s not a solution. We have been to couples therapy and I told him I couldn’t live with the cat and the smell....he said he would try rehoming but then changed his mind. The trouble is...not even sure who would take a cat that pees inside.

We see a definite correlation between very bad peeing and guests coming over. He pees on beds and furniture when people stay over. And not having guests is not an option...we are very social people.

Here are some things we’ve tried:
- feliway and similar products
- every single brand of odor removers and self made concoctions literally
- behavioral therapy
- dozens of vet visits to find out if there’s anything medically wrong (there isn’t)
- Prozac and buspirone
- multiple litter boxes cleaned neurotically
- putting tin foil on some of his fav pee spots
- keeping him out of guest room (he’s then obsessed with getting in there and peeing)

I’ve done so much research online and just feel like we have exhausted every possible avenue - outside of maybe just making him an outdoor cat....thoughts on this??

My boyfriend loves the cat and doesn’t want to abandon it. But I also know I can’t live with the smell and behavior problem.

Please help.

 

[ArtNJ]

How old is the cat? At what age was it spayed or neutered?

You mention beds and furniture, and the guest room. Whats in the guest room, a floor or carpet? Or another bed that gets peed on?

 

[Gemini69]

A ArtNJ - he is 7 years old and was neutered as a small kitten.

The house has hard wood floors (mostly ruined beyond repair...we had a cat urine specialist come out). One room is totally ruined...we don’t even use it anymore (except as a “cat room”). Guest room is least bad bc we try to keep door closed...although guests often forget. In that room there is a bed, side table, dresser, exercise bike.

We have also tried other diets and litter. He takes a special urinary wet food for dinner currently.

 

[Maria Bayote]

Please do not give up on him. And sending him to live outdoors is not safe. If something happens to him, your BF could be saddened about it as this cat seems important to him.

How about building him a catio outside? A catio with a mini cat house so he can stay there majority of the day and night. That way, he won't be able to roam about in the streets and risk getting him into an accident.

 

[Gemini69]

Maria Bayote - really interesting idea about the Catio! I was just looking at some designs online. This this particular cat seems *very* interested in outside. We have a detached garage that we could maybe build it off of and keep the two cats totally separate...

 

[Maria Bayote]

Maria Bayote - really interesting idea about the Catio! I was just looking at some designs online. This this particular cat seems *very* interested in outside. We have a detached garage that we could maybe build it off of and keep the two cats totally separate...

Then that is perfect! Everyone is happy! Goodluck, and thank you.

 

[ArtNJ]

A catio sounds like a possible solution. Things definitely sound like they've gone too far for training to do anything.

For further tips, I'd head over to the breeding subforum here, forget the exact name. Apparently unneutered males often eventually start spraying in the house and once they start, they dont stop, so breeders are knowledgeable about how to keep a cat where they wont ruin the house. They have the expertise you need, in other words. Just for example, the catio design might take into account that you want them to go to the bathroom outside with some design feature designed to encourage that? I mean, I have no idea, thats a guess, but they would know how one handles that.

 

[Claire07x]

Hey, I've actually made a video on this and tips on how to fix it, if you'd like to check it out?
Hopefully it'll give you some good info and suggestions!

 

[danteshuman]

What did the vet say? Kidneys ok? No URI or bladder crystals? If the cat gets the all clear;

Are you using a black light to identify pee spots and an enzyme cleaner? (I buy natures miracle. If the pee spot has set in for a long time buy an enzyme cleaner for set in stains.) Is all or most of the pee around the same place? If so have you tried placing another box in that spot? Have you tried cat attract litter?

Hang in there! It takes time along with trial & error. Litter box issues are solvable but it is a slow road, trying to figure out what your cat is screaming for help for. Most litter box issues can be solved by the above.