Male cat peeing on dog bed.

[Zyante]

Hello,
We have a male cat who is 2yrs old. We have had him since he was 7weeks old. We also have an 11 yr old dog. They sleep together and go on car rides together and the dog even subjects herself to playing with the cat.
the cat will be great and then suddenly pee on the dog bed. Other times he’s sleeping on the bed. He has occasionally peed on towels or a small kitchen rug. We’ve eliminated most of that but the dog is old and needs a bed. He’s physically fine and has been to a vet, his box is enclosed and cleaned. It’s placed on the opposite side of the living room. We have a small apartment where the living room, and kitchen are basically all open. We no longer allow the dog on the sofa because the cat peed on the sofa after the dog had been there. I don’t know where to make a change or what to try. Is our apartment layout too open? Does he snuggle the dog one moment only to decide she’s not his type and pee there the next? Does he want an open box where the dog can sneak his poo out and eat it? Can I make a dog bed that springs up with the dog leaves it to follow us around the tiny apartment thinking we have food? We love the dog and cat but I’m constantly buying or washing beds. Waterproof materials don’t work because the dog “fluffs” them and her nails eventually get through the waterproofing. We only have a small washer and dryer so I try to have her bed covered then I wash the outer layer. I have to wash the dog at times because she’s gone and sat on the bed, in the pee. If I catch the cat starting to look like he’s going to use the bathroom outside of his litter box, I can quickly redirect him to the box and he uses it instead. It’s when I’m not home or the dog gets up or something and we miss it. Help. I hate cleaning this and I love my furrry guys but it’s too small for this. Attached is a picture of the offender, Dr. Emerson Jones and his dog pal Sofy. Sofy has to be coaxed to get on the bed if he’s there and if she’s already there, the cat just hops on without concern.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

Hi, sorry to hear you're having this problem. I had a cat peeing outside the box problem for years and it was a nightmare.
Have you tried a Feliway plug in? And do you have an excellent enzymatic cleaner or would you just throw away peed on items? Its super important to eliminate the smell beyond just what you can identify but what your cat can identify.
What kind of litter are you using? How far from the litter tray are the "accidents"?
Do you have scratching posts or boxes around the place?
It sounds like it could be about territorial insecurity in which case the Feliway and alternative methods of marking ones territory might do it.

 

[Zyante]

I haven’t tried the plug in feliway. I’m not sure how that works, but I’ll google it. I don’t think our cleaner is good enough, I read another post with some suggestions so I’m going to try them. I’ve tried washing the beds or items, and I’ve also tossed many. I just got some waterproof nylon to make a cover for a bed.
We are using a a cat attract litter, clearly he must think he’s a dog because he’s not always using it.
the dogs bed is across the living room, about 15 ft from the litter box. It’s closer to the water bowl and the dog food bowl. We only have the one enclosed box and he’s got a scratching basket that (not meant for him) he uses all the time. He has places he finds to sleep and relax in all over the apartment. A Lower kitchen cabinet, one above the Fridge, a small space on a cabinet and a few other places.

Hi, sorry to hear you're having this problem. I had a cat peeing outside the box problem for years and it was a nightmare.
Have you tried a Feliway plug in? And do you have an excellent enzymatic cleaner or would you just throw away peed on items? Its super important to eliminate the smell beyond just what you can identify but what your cat can identify.
What kind of litter are you using? How far from the litter tray are the "accidents"?
Do you have scratching posts or boxes around the place?
It sounds like it could be about territorial insecurity in which case the Feliway and alternative methods of marking ones territory might do it.

 

[Not Jackson Galaxy]

The Feliway emits cat pheromones that helps cats feel more relaxed. If he is insecure about his territory that might help.

 

[di and bob]

I think it is quite the opposite, the cat loves the dog so much he is marking what smells like her as his own to warn others off. It is not so much peeing as it is marking, which are two different things entirely. He keeps marking it as his, and you keep removing the smell, he is getting more and more frustrated. You might try getting a cat heated pad for Dr. Emereson Jones and putting it under a fleece blanket near the dog bed, he just might prefer it and leave the dog bed alone. maybe he is marking it as his, trying to move the dog out. My cats will sleep wherever you put a pad. if you think he is frustrated or stressed, there are calming natural remedies on Amazon for cats, I give a lot less then the recommended amount for vet trips and it really helps.

 

[Zyante]

I think it is quite the opposite, the cat loves the dog so much he is marking what smells like her as his own to warn others off. It is not so much peeing as it is marking, which are two different things entirely. He keeps marking it as his, and you keep removing the smell, he is getting more and more frustrated. You might try getting a cat heated pad for Dr. Emereson Jones and putting it under a fleece blanket near the dog bed, he just might prefer it and leave the dog bed alone. maybe he is marking it as his, trying to move the dog out. My cats will sleep wherever you put a pad. if you think he is frustrated or stressed, there are calming natural remedies on Amazon for cats, I give a lot less then the recommended amount for vet trips and it really helps.

He doesn’t seem stressed and he doesn’t seem to “Mark” in the way cats are said to. He squats and pees. I could try a heating pad in one of his special spots.

 

[Rooker]

I have the same problem. Male cat, about year old now, started peeing on the dog's bed when he was about 7 months old. He loves the dog, they get along well. It is also strange because he loves this dog bed and sleeps in it almost every day! But then once every 2 weeks he will just squat down and piss in it. The dog bed is fairly far from the cat litter. We clean the cat litter every day.
Why is he doing this? Has anyone found a solution that made the cat stop peeing in the dog bed?
I am worried that he will start peeing in different places as well if we don't stop this behavior now.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Rooker]

bump

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi Rooker ! Since your cat loves the dog bed, he is probably peeing on it to claim it as his own - even if he loves the dog. If he is not peeing anywhere else inappropriately, it is not as probable to be anything health related, so less likely he will pee on other things. Can you buy a duplicate bed, so each of them have their own?

 

[Rooker]

Hi Rooker ! Since your cat loves the dog bed, he is probably peeing on it to claim it as his own - even if he loves the dog. If he is not peeing anywhere else inappropriately, it is not as probable to be anything health related, so less likely he will pee on other things. Can you buy a duplicate bed, so each of them have their own?

Thank you for the reply. I am going to get him a bed for himself so he can sleep in it. He doesn't always want to sleep in the dog bed, he uses two other cat trees to sleep on and never pees there even though he is sharing them with another cat. I wonder why it is the dog bed he wants to pee in.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Thank you for the reply. I am going to get him a bed for himself so he can sleep in it. He doesn't always want to sleep in the dog bed, he uses two other cat trees to sleep on and never pees there even though he is sharing them with another cat. I wonder why it is the dog bed he wants to pee in.

Unless the dog uses the cat trees, then he does it strictly because it's the dog's bed and I would guess he wants it for his own!! I suppose you could try using towels with the other cat's scent on them and place those in the dog bed? As long as the dog doesn't mind! Maybe if he smells the other cat in the dog bed he will stop??

 

[Rooker]

Unless the dog uses the cat trees, then he does it strictly because it's the dog's bed and I would guess he wants it for his own!! I suppose you could try using towels with the other cat's scent on them and place those in the dog bed? As long as the dog doesn't mind! Maybe if he smells the other cat in the dog bed he will stop??

I can try that too. Thanks for the advice. So far I have removed the dog bed completely and replaced it with a smaller bed for cats. We'll see what happens...