I am so upset

[dtolle]

My cat decided to use my plant as a litter box last night for no apparent reason. She is litter boxed trained, she is one year old, she has no behavioral problems as of now, and she is very PREGNANT!! I have no idea what possessed her, but all of a sudden she ran in the dining room and had a bowel movement in our potted tree plant, then was really frisky for about 5 min. When I realized what she'd done I immediately put her in the basement ( where her litter box is). I am really upset for more than one reason, first of all the smell was absolutely horrible. And more importantly, I don't want my kids to discover that and touch it god forbid. The whole reason why we put her litter box and food in the basement is so nobody bothers her down there and she can be comfortable.
Does anyone have an opinion on perhaps why she did this and if it maybe has anything to do w/ her being pregnant?? And what should I do if it ever happens again?? I am not keen on the idea of letting her use anything in the house for her potty.
Thank you all. And Happy Sunday to everyone!!

 

[dawnt91]

I'd be willing to bet it has something to do with her pregnancy, but I'm not very experienced in these things. When Muffy was pregnant, she never did this, but she did have other strange habits. Maybe it's hormones. I'm sure you'll get some great advice here from the other members!

 

[buttercup429]

Hi, I'm not claiming to be an expert but I would say it has something to do with the pregnancy. It might be because she is so full of kittens she didn't have enough room to hold anything else long enough to get to her litter pan in the basement. It could also be a hormonal thing like Dawnt91 suggested.

What I do know is about cats using houseplants as litter pans. This happened to me once and the best advice I can give you is either repot the plant or at least remove most of the soil and replace it with new. Otherwise she will smell where she went to the bathroom and keep using it in the future.

Best of luck from, Peepsqueake & Buttercup. :tounge2:

 

[lotsocats]

Make sure that her food is no where near the litter box. Cats do not like to potty near their food.

Buy some decorative stone chips to put on top of the soil in your plant. They look better than soil and will keep the cat out of the planter.

Be patient and please get her spayed as soon as possible (unless you are a breeder).

 

[dtolle]

Thanks for all the great advice. It seems that it was a one time thing. She used her litter box yesterday with no problems. I figured it was due to the pregnancy for some reason....I can't wait for her to deliver!!:tounge2:

 

[buttercup429]

Hey Dtolle, the best of luck with the delivery and kittens.

Keep us informed if you can.