My cat sporadically pees outside the box, possibly related to playtime with other cats??

[pippapurring]

95% of the time, my 1.5 year old ragdoll Teddy pees in his box and he's fastidiously clean. Since kittenhood we've had issues with him peeing outside of his box. We got him neutered around 8 or 9 months old, we live in Sweden where early neutering is frowned upon, though we insisted on getting our other male Tuffs neutered at 4-5 months and have never had an issue with inappropriate peeing from him or our female cat Tony who was also spayed late, around a year old. Before he was neutered he would pee much more often on a particular couch we've since removed from our home. Now that he's been neutered the inappropriate peeing is much less frequent, I can't say exactly how often but maybe once every couple of months. We have feliway in our bedroom and since adding it he hasn't peed in our bedroom once. We've also noticed much less scratching on the furniture in our bedroom from all three of our cats since the addition of feliway. 

Today, though, he peed on a bed in a different room in the middle of playtime with our other cats. He was all riled up, running around with Tony and Tuffs, and then he just jumped up on the bed and popped a squat. Fortunately my boyfriend saw him and picked up him right as he started peeing, so only a small amount of the bed was hit, but Teddy peed all over himself, my boyfriend and the floor as a result. There isn't a feliway diffuser in that room and we're taking steps to remedy that (the diffuser we have says it covers 76 square meters, our apartment is about that size) but I'm wondering what else I can do to solve this problem of inappropriate elimination. It's not like I can prevent our kitties from playing with each other. We close the doors to both bedrooms when we're out of the house to ensure they don't have access when we're away from home. I'm wondering if this is a stress reaction, and if so, would Teddy prefer to be an only cat?? He's our little man, the first cat we got together, and I love him to pieces. I can't imagine giving him up. At the same time, I don't want him to be stressed out or unhappy in our home. I'm not sure what to do beyond what's already been done. Any advice would truly be appreciated! 

 

[joeaustin]

my cat just started going to the bathroom outside of her box, not sure why.

 

[pippapurring]

There are a huge number of reasons why a cat might pee outside their box, I've learned quite a bit doing my own research on Teddy. Do you have more than one cat, for example? Multiple cat households need to have at least one litter box for each cat in order to encourage appropriate elimination inside the catbox. Is your cat spayed/neutered? Cats who aren't spayed/neutered are much more likely to go outside the catbox. Lots of cats will refuse to use the box unless it is spotlessly clean and contains a littler they enjoy, as well. 

My cat seems to have a very specific set of circumstances that cause him to go outside the box, the past two times he's peed inappropriately he's been playing with our other cats. He doesn't seem stressed when this happens, as he's often the cat who initiates the playtime, but I wonder if it's a stress reaction. I'd love to hear from anyone who has been in a similar situation!! 

 

[cat nap]

Hi @Pippapurring ...I'm just wondering how your Teddy is now doing? 

I doubt very much that your Teddy would prefer to be an only cat, especially if he is one of the cats in your avatar...because seriously, they are both so cute, and totally look relaxed. 

 

 

 

I would first get Teddy checked out thoroughly by a Vet to rule out any urinary issues, ...such as crystals, uti's, small bladder, anal glands,  etc.  Getting a thorough urinalysis done, and bloodwork, would at least rule out anything medical, and treatable.  

Because Teddy does this in the middle of playing, the first thing that I thought of was 'urge incontinence' and needing to urinate fast, like some people do, due to a smaller bladder, or fuller, or type of food eaten...(eg. too much salt)...but I'm not sure if cats are similar to people in this regard, so that would be something to ask your vet.

Also, because you mentioned that Teddy had been urinating outside the litterbox, before, and preferring the 'couch'...I'm wondering if he somehow got used to the softer materials, and now thinks it's okay to just jump and urinate on anything soft.

  Even if it seems weird, having litter boxes spread out within the apartment might help, just to get him to use the closest one.  Some members, here, have mentioned quite interesting 'cat litter box furniture' ideas, to make it look like the box is part of the decor.  You've already mentioned trying out the different types of litters, so you probably already know of the 'cat attract' litter, or Dr. Elsey's additive. 
You do really have to make sure that any urination is properly cleaned up, with an enzymatic urine cleaner, and perhaps a 'black light'...being that it prevents the cat from going back to the same or nearby spots.

 [article="29728"]How To Remove Cat Urine​[/article]  

 [article="32366"]How To Solve Litterbox Problems In Cats The Ultimate Guide​[/article]       (actually, I think you've done most of the things mentioned in this Article, but it may help with some more ideas.)

So interesting that the Feliway is working to stop the peeing in the bedroom, meaning that it does have a calming and positive effect on all the cats, so your idea of adding another one, may just do the trick.

One last thing, for the meantime, until you can figure out why Teddy needs to go up high, or on the bed, and not in the box,...is perhaps getting some sort of waterproof covers for your soft furniture, beds, and other places, which Red Top Rescue had a fantastic idea for, in this thread.  I really think that these crib covers, with soft linings, would be good regardless, to prevent leak-through.

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/294624/cover-for-brand-new-leather-couch      (it is Post #2, with a great photo.)

I really think this is a solvable issue, but I cannot think of any more ideas, right now.  Perhaps, it's also a type of 'marking' the territory, but I just don't know.

Please keep us posted, if you do find out the root cause, or if the Feliway helps further.