Stress pooping/separation anxiety? Would another cat help?

[iambic]

Hi y'all.

Anyway, I'm sure some of you have heard about my Imogen's disgraceful litterbox habits before, but here's the latest.

I've been using the Feliway religiously, and I even got to the point where I could leave Imogen out with full run of the apartment and she would both pee and poop in her litterbox while I was away, no problem! She even did great when I was gone for a day and a half over the weekend! (You have to realize, I never thought I would get to this point; I was ecstatic and praised her highly and played with her muchly.

)

So, this was the weekend before last. And of course, the very next day, after I returned home, things went downhill again. But, I think I've figured out the reason why: she was picking up on my stress, and she reacted by pooping in a non-approved place. (I had had a truly horrific day at work and was freaking out/crying in fear of losing my job -- technical issues had caused me to miss deadline, all sorts of crazy stuff.)

You see, we're the only two living souls in the apartment, and I'm pretty sure she emulates whatever mood I'm in. While it's flattering, it's sometimes a pain, especially now that she hasn't been able to figure out how to use the litterbox again since last weekend.

So, what I'm wondering is this: would it help to get another cat? Someone for her to play with while I'm at work all day, someone to keep her calm, to help show her how to use the litterbox...all that good stuff. (I know that's the ideal situation and that bringing a new cat in could easily result in more stress for her, I'm just wondering if anyone here has had any experience calming a cat with another cat.)

Imogen is the most loving thing in the world. She loves strangers, tries to play with dogs, and doesn't mind going to strange places. However, I have not evaluated her around other cats.

She does have some visual issues as far as I can tell. It's hard for her to follow things/toys by sight rather than sound...I think it's a depth perception thing. Either that or she's severely farsighted (can't see things right in front of her face very well.)

I'm thinking about contacting a few rescue groups and asking if I could bring her by to meet with the other kitties and see how she might get on with them.

Anyway, I'd appreciate your thoughts/opinions on the matter! Thanks

 

[ldg]

How old is she? And not being familiar with the background, we do know this is not health related? (Sorry, have to ask!)

We have a kitty that stress peed. Bringing in a new cat didn't trigger it - but she was only two at the time. I hope others have experience with this. Personally, I think it'd be more likely to trigger stress than relieve it. But maybe you can sign up to foster instead of adopt, and test the waters, so to speak????????????

I also think taking your kitty somewhere to see how she interacts with other cats is no real indication of how she'd react to another cat in her territory. Cats are very territory-oriented, and this is what causes the stress with new introductions.

I'd consider looking into fostering - then if it doesn't work out, it wasn't a long term commitment. But you never know - maybe if you're fostering kittens, it'd bring out the "mother" in her?

 

[iambic]

Thanks LDG

She's just over a year or so old, and this is most definitely not health-related. I've had the vet check that already.

And I hadn't thought about a temporary foster situation, but that's a great idea! Thanks!

 

[merrytreecats]

Maybe get a small dog if you know she's good with dogs? That is, if you have time for a dog.

If not, I'd say it's worth a shot to take your chances and see. Maybe foster a cat or kitten that you could later keep if things work out? Because there is NO way to tell how it will go down, though the way you go about it has a lot to do with it. Try a young, male cat, if you want my opinion; male-female relationships with cats seem to be a little smoother in my experience as long as they are fixed and one isn't really domineering.

 

[hissy]

I am not sure what you are talking about regarding her "disgraceful" litter box habits but adding another cat to your home is not the answer. If she is avoiding the box there are reasons why. Did you check this post?

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9563

Also what plays into it is how you react when she has disgraceful litter pan habits. There are always reasons why cats act out and have behavior issues. Sometimes it is simple to determine why- other times you just have to dig a bit deeper.

 

[iambic]

Thanks, hissy. I do get frustrated sometimes, but I do my best not to transfer that to kitty when she has an accident. And I've been dealing with this for almost 7 months now...ever since I got her.

I've tried 5 different types of litter and 3 different types of boxes. I've tried sequestering her in her "bathroom." I've tried the Cat Attract litter and litter attractant. I've tried staying by her litterbox and watching for her to show she needs to use it so I can help show her how (snap my fingers over the box to get her to put her front legs up, then gently tickle her back feet until she lifts them and gets in the box.) The only thing that's helped at all is the Feliway, and that not completely.

Buuutt...I do know she can be taught. She's gone weeks without any problems, and then it's like she forgot the meaning of a litterbox. But I really do think it's a stress thing. I've noticed on many occasions that prior to her acting out, I would be in a stressed state for some reason. And lately, nothing else in the apartment has changed -- no new furniture or anything, no strange people showing up recently-- except for my stress level last Monday. When that happened, then *boom*, she was middening again.

So I now have 2 Feliway diffusers going in my 700 sq ft apartment. (I bought a second one as soon as this happened, as she's also been known to forget how to use the litterbox in those few days between when the old Feliway runs out and the new refill gets charged up. I figured I'd alternate the two, so one is always at least half full.)

Even though her litterbox is kept meticulously clean, I'm going to do another thorough dumpout/scrub/refill tonight, just to see if that makes a difference.

I guess my whole line of thinking was that 'If she's so stressed out by me/empathetic towards me, would it help her to have a feline companion to go to for comfort, so that she doesn't have to face her resulting stress alone?'

Poor emotional kitty. It's a good thing I love her

 

[ldg]

As I pointed out, bringing another cat into the territory causes more stress, certainly initially.

If you want to consider it, however, I would definitely learn as much as possible about how to do introductions.

Also, you mention you've tried different types of litter boxes - but keep her litter box (singular) meticulously clean. You've had more than one box out at a time?

And it could very well be that the stress peeing IS medical. Were x-rays of her bladder taken? A cat's bladder is often the first place in the body to be affected by stress. It's called "idiopathic cystitis," and it is marked by a thickening of the bladder wall and inflammation, causing the cat pain. They will pee outside of the box when this happens. Sometimes a certain antibiotic will help reduce the inflammation and help prevent (or stop) any bacterial infection, though often those don't develop. Our Spooky develops this condition from stress from time-to-time - and we're not aware of anything changing in our home. We make sure to use the Feliway spray regularly and up dabbing under her chin with the Bach's Flower Essences (Rescue Remedy) to 2x/day (we already put the drops in the cats' water dishes every day when we clean and refill them). We make sure to give her extra attention (though we live in a multi cat household) and talk softly to her - do everything we can to help keep her calm. It can take anywhere from a week to a few weeks for her condition to subside.

 

[iambic]

Sorry, I should have been more clear: she has two litterboxes, but they are positioned right next to each other (small wall space in bathroom.) When she's behaving, she has consistently used one box for pee and one for poop. She clearly knows the system.

And if she were peeing outside the box I'd certainly take her to a vet right away -- I've read enough on here to realize just how serious that is -- but she's not. It's just poop. She'll pee in the box(es) consistently, but it seems as though every time she's stressed, she'll poop somewhere else, somewhere completely random: the tile floor, the carpet, the rug, the couch, the other tile floor, the top of the toilet...you name it. It's not as though she's expressing a surface preference, because she'll go anywhere! As far as I can tell, the behavior is much closer to something called middening (http://thecatbehaviorclinic.com/defe...middening.html, http://www.our-happy-cat.com/cat-poo.html), a form of marking territory that's usually a direct stress reaction. And, consistent with the middening theory, Feliway has been the most helpful thing. My vet didn't have any advice for me other than everything you guys have said: change litters, boxes, locations, use Feliway, try to create calm environment. All that good stuff.

So, yeah...

 

[ldg]

Sorry - it IS right there in the title of the thread! I have no experience with stress pooping (something to be happy about, right?!)

 

[iambic]

Lol yeah! Consider yourself lucky!

I found a tiny half-poop in the litterbox yesterday, so I'm going to consider that a step in the right direction, lol. Still hunting for the rest of it, if there is any...

 

[duckman]

Can you tell me what you ended up doing? My cat is the SAME WAY. I know that he was very attached to his mother, and I'm assuming he also does not like to be alone. We have tried everything... but are still finding surprises on our floors.