Female urinating on carpet

[wedsky]

I have a female cat that has been urinating on my carpets. I took her in as my exhusband was going to put her to sleep because she ruined his home. So, I thought I have more time a patience to work with her but she has now ruined three rooms in my home in which I have had to take out and replace the carpets. She is about 8 and has been obviously doing this awhile, and has been checked out by vets, and she has no urinary tract, etc problems. I have tried everything from sprays, to changing litter types. I do have one other female cat, could that be the problem, (My exhusband did not and she did the same thing in his home). Has anyone experienced this? My current husband is extremely upset and is pushing to get rid of her, and I just can't do that. I would rather isolate her in a room, but what kind of life would that be....any help would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[simon's mommy]

My male did this. I put him in the bathroom for a few weeks and he is fine now. I would only let him out if I could see what he was doing. He was in the bathroom for 2 weeks for re-training he did very well. Good Luck.

 

[mofong]

I just went through the EXACT same thing. My cat checked out fine, too. I have wall to wall carpet, so I couldn't throw mine out. I had the carpet professionaly cleaned, twice, and then deodorized the area with a neutralizer called Nature's Choice for Cat Urine. It takes about two weeks to dry. In the meantime, I covered the area with aluminum foil (punched holes in it) and sprayed it with cat repellant. While this was going on, I kept my cat in the bathroom with her litter box. Changing the litter daily helps, as you can keep track if she is going or not. After about two weeks, she was let out. I also covered the area with a large thick rug, and she hasn't had any inappropriate urinating yet... I did let her out during her two weeks, but only if I could follow her around. She tried twice to pee again, and I immediately told her NO, and put her back in the bathroom.

The key is to get her use the litter box only. Now that my cat is back to the box, and I keep it extra deep for digging, she uses it all the time now. Even though it may seem harsh to confine her in one room, it is only temporary until she gets into the habit of using and digging in the box.

The other extreme that my vet told me to do, is to put her on kitty Prozac. He said that if there is no physical reason, then the cat is probably anxious about something, and causing her to urinate inappropriately. Behavioral problems should not be a reason to put an animal down, especially if they are not life-threatening.

 

[ms kitty]

I've also had the same problem this week with my 30lb female. She did this once before. I think it's a jealousy problem. I have a 2 yr. old Persian male. She absolutley HATES him! When he tries to play, she gets upset...It doesn't happen very often, but I noticed him cornering her a few times. That's when she started it.
I bought an Equalizer from the vet, made by EVSCO. It solved the problem last time, hopefully it will do it again!
ms kitty

 

[hattkatts]

I agree with the isolation routine. Either a bathroom or a Tokyo cage for a couple of weeks should do the trick. The idea is nothing that resembles dirt or grass (like a carpet); you want a smooth floor except for the litterbox. You must know there will always be that one exception that may NEVER train and be prepared for that fact. In that case they may become an outside cat, or worse.

Pete

 

[rene]

I am assuming she is not declawed - because declawed cats can tend to have litterbox problems - the litter hurts when they try to dig because they have no claws and the litter gets between their pads. If she is declawed, get a litter like Feline Pine that is not sandy - but expect that the behavior may not be able to be altered. You need to cage her - and don't feel bad about it because the alternative is either to put her outside or to euthanize her because no one is going to adopt this cat with her behavior. So cage her with a litter box, bed and food, for at least two weeks - then I would move her to the bathroom - a little more freedom, but still not around rugs. Also, she may hate your litter, so get three or four different kinds and line them up in the bathroom - let her choose. I have three cats that live outside - one refused to litter box train and I would not allow him to ruin my home - and I really love my cats (ask any of my volunteers). But you have to be realistic too - this cat is not happy and your husband and you cannot be happy with the situation either. Good luck.