Recognize And Limit Your Cats Stress
So you now praise your cat when they pee in the litter box. But if that doesnât fix the problem, look for try strategies that reduce stress. Donât praise or cuddle them when you find catpee on your bed. Ignore what happened. Clean everything up and use cleaners that remove the smell. While baking soda helps, it doesnât remove all traces of the mess. We find that products with enzymes that remove the smell and waste work best. The product we use in our clinic and at home is Natureâs Miracle. It has enzymes which remove the proteins in your cat pee and solid waste.
Next, try to find out what stresses out your cat. Could it be your new kitten or puppy messing around too much? Could it be your new robot vacuum is terrorizing them? Is it separation anxiety? This is hard to diagnose without a video camera to see what is happening after you leave. Or your neighborâs new found love of the trumpet? When you find what changed in your cats environment that may be causing them stress, look for ways to relieve it. Check how your cat feels from day to day and at what moments they seem to show signs of stress.
Place Trays Where Your Kitty Likes To Use Them
If you have noticed a trend in where your cat seems to be urinating, try relocating their litter tray to this area. There may be a reason why this area was a preference for them – perhaps its a secluded area of the house. If this location isnt ideal, gradually move their tray a little bit each day to a better area, keeping in mind what your kitty liked about the location.
Similarly to how our kitties like to mark their territory, if they catch their scent in places theyve urinated, they are more likely to urinate there again. Thats why its crucial that you clean the areas theyve urinated on thoroughly to remove the odour, otherwise all your litter tray efforts will go to waste!
Get Your Personal Advice on Why Your Cat maybe peeing on things with our quiz Cat Pee, Help Me!
Why Is My Cat Peeing On My Bed
Isolating just why a cat keeps peeing on their humans bed is the first step to correcting the situation. In all cases, the cat is communicating some sort of a problem or issue, and simply ignoring their unwanted behavior will not make it go away.
Here are a few potential reasons why your cat is peeing on your bed:
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Jealousy And The Single Cat
As in the case of Nikki and Tiger, jealousy over other cats being added to the household can cause a cat to urinate on the bedding, clothing or other belongings of his chosen human. Cats do this to mark their territory and re-claim what they think belongs to them. Although some behaviorists may not agree, I do believe there is a certain amount of revenge involved as well when a cat pees on the bed, which is why only their special humans bed and belongings get targeted.
Clean Up All Urine Accidents Properly To Discourage Peeing Outside The Box
Between your care as a cat parent and the help of your veterinarian, youll have your kitty on the mend and back in the litter box soon. And one more thing: make sure you clean up any urine outside of the litter box completely, so that your cat doesnt return to that area to pee again. This is very important for re-training them to use the litter box and not picking up new habits. Try ARM & HAMMER Pet Stain and Odor Eliminator Plus OxiClean to neutralize the urine smell and remove stains.
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How To Stop A Cat From Urinating In The House
This article was co-authored by Pippa Elliott, MRCVS. Dr. Elliott, BVMS, MRCVS is a veterinarian with over 30 years of experience in veterinary surgery and companion animal practice. She graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1987 with a degree in veterinary medicine and surgery. She has worked at the same animal clinic in her hometown for over 20 years. This article has been viewed 55,488 times.
Most cats learn to use the litter box without much training. However, sometimes a cat might have issues urinating outside his litter box. This can be caused by stress, the location of the litter box, the type of litter, or an underlying medical condition. Figuring out the cause of your cat’s litter box problem and proceeding accordingly can help eliminate the problem.
What Are The General Treatments For Elimination Problems
Treatment focuses on reestablishing regular litter box usage. The litter material, box, and location may need to be made more appealing . The cat will need to be prevented or deterred from returning to the soiled areas. If there is a component of anxiety or marking behavior, drugs may be useful. Litter trials , location trials and litter box trials may be useful for determining the cats preferences. The cat will need to be confined when it cant be supervised. However, the first step you should take is to review the basics of litter box training .
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Your Cat May Be Missing You
If youre gone from home for longer than normal, cats can sense when youre not around, and a cat urinating on bed might indicate that she misses you. Its strange, but its true!
Cats may be urinating on your bed as a coping mechanism, since cats enjoy having their smell mixed with that of their chosen person. Peeing on cat owners beds might provide cats with a sense of security.
Stressed Out Or Anxious Cats May Pee Everywhere
A cat who is anxious, nervous, or stressed may pee outside the box. This isnt revenge-peeing or holding a grudge though many humans blame passive-aggressive kitties.
A distressed cat can forget routines or legitimately have difficulty with bladder control. They also may not feel comfortable using the box due to whatever is stressing them out. Some factors to consider:
- Did you get a new pet, lose a pet, or foster some kittens? Did you have a baby or adopt a child? Your cat may feel uncomfortable and as if their territory has been invaded. New pets and children also make loud and unexpected noises, which no cat is a fan of. Repeated loud noises and erratic behavior can create underlying kitty stress that leads to peeing outside the box.
- Did you have a change in routine? A new work schedule or visitors to the home, an illness or injury? What about home renovations or a new appliance installation? Cats get nervous about changes to their home structure and may respond by inappropriate urination until they feel safe again.
Your veterinarian can help if you have a stressed-out kitty, with advice and behavioral modifications or perhaps with medication. If you can identify the likely cause and its something that wont continue , you can re-establish routine and see if the behavior clears up on its own once things are back to normal.
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Why Is My Cat Peeing Outside Her Litter Box
Contributions from Petfinder.coms FurKeeps Kickoff Ask the Experts Forum and Janice Fenichel, D.V.M
House soiling, or urinating outside the litter box, is very common. Non-medical causes, often inaccurately labeled behavioral problems, usually are perfectly normal feline responses to an environmental stimulus and can be subdivided into urine-marking and normal voiding outside the litter box. The latter, which is the most common cause of feline house soiling, includes cases where cats may stop using the litter box because they dont like the type of litter or the location of the box. These aversions may arise over pain from a medical problem, fear after being startled or attacked by another cat while in the box, or odor due to infrequent cleaning. A behavioral specialist can help sort out why a cat has stopped using his litter box and suggest ways to get him back to it.
In contrast, cats urine-mark objects to define territory, compete with one another and announce sexual availability. Marking is seen more in unneutered felines, in males more than in females, and in overcrowded households.
How Can I Determine Why My Cat Is House Soiling
A cat may not use the litter box if it prefers another location or substrate. This change in preference may arise independently or may occur because of aversion to the present location or substrate. A substrate or location preference can be diagnosed by a careful history into where the elimination is found. If it is always found in one place, this indicates a location preference, while elimination on one particular surface type or texture , indicates a substrate preference. Of course a preference for more than one location or more than one surface may also arise, and they are not mutually exclusive. For treatment, if it is happening in only one or two places, the problem might be resolved by preventing your cat from having unsupervised access to that location. When no one is home, or you are asleep, the cat may need to be confined. When you are at home, you should always know where the cat is. This can be accomplished by watching the cat or by using a bell on an approved cat collar or a leash and harness. Alternately, the location could be made aversive to the cat.
“Relatively speaking, making the soiled areas less appealing may get the cat back to using its litter or may drive the cat to a new, unacceptable area.”
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Why Is My Cat Peeing Outside Of The Litter Box Is This An Emergency
If your cat is peeing outside of the litter box, he may be trying to tell you something. Some cat owners understandably feel angry when their litter-box-trained cat is urinating outside the box. This can be very frustrating and can affect your relationship with your feline family member. While there are many behavioral reasons for why your cat may be urinating inappropriately, there are also several medical reasons. Some of these medical reasons warrant an immediate trip to the animal emergency room! Before you assume your cat is peeing out of spite, keep in mind what your cat may be trying to tell you.
Medical Reasons
Cats may urinate outside of their litter box if they are experiencing:
- Trouble urinating/urinary obstruction
- Kidney disease
- Cancer
When should you go to the animal emergency room for this?
A cat being unable to urinate can be a life-threatening emergency. If your cat cannot pee, contact your family veterinarian or local animal emergency hospital immediately. This is a very common problem seen in veterinary emergency rooms and the sooner your cat is treated, the better their chance of survival. This condition is more common in male cats.
Signs your cat should see a veterinarian immediately:
You Can Wait If
Behavioral Reasons
Once medical conditions are ruled out with blood tests and imaging, cat owners can explore behavioral reasons for a cats toiletry troubles. Your family veterinarian will help you determine possible stressors and provide helpful tips.
Let Your Cat Pick The Type Of Litter
Heavily perfumed cat litter may seem to be the better choice , but cats tend to disagree.
Their noses are more sensitive than ours, so what seems pleasant to us can be overpowering to them.
They also like to stick with whats familiar, so a cat may urinate outside the litter box if you suddenly switch to a new type of litter.
Studies have shown that among cats, the all-around favorite litter type is an unscented, clumping clay litter containing activated charcoal.
If you want to try a new type of litter, make sure you have at least one box in the house that contains the old type of litter just in case. If your cat rejects the new litter, dont use it.
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Why Cats Spray Urine
Spraying is a marking behavior. They are leaving their urine scent mark in their environment to let other cats know that they’re around. It helps them control their territory as well as avoid conflict with other cats.
Knowing this will help you figure out why your cat is spraying and help understand why some of the steps to stop your cat urinating everywhere might work.
Your Cat May Feel A Need To Mix His Scent With Yours
Sometimes peeing on the bed has something to do with your cat wanting to mix his scent with yours .If this is the case, it isn’t out of anger or spite. Instead, it’s about marking you all as part of the same community. If you’ve been gone a lot, your cat might feel the need for extra bonding. If a new person is sleeping in your bed, your cat might feel a little insecure and want to show he’s still part of the same community. Bonding with your kitty through extra playtime can help ease that insecurity.
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Why Is My Cat Peeing Everywhere All Of A Sudden
You have a big problem: your cat, who was trained to use a litter box years ago, is suddenly peeing in random spots around your home. You’re at your wits’ end. As a cat owner, I can empathize: it’s maddening, destructive, and confusing. Your normally sweet and pristine little kitty is making your house a mess.
The thing to remember is that your cat is unhappy about the situation, too. Cats are very clean animals. If yours has been “inappropriately urinating” , then it’s trying to tell you that something is wrong.
There is a reason for this behavior, and it’s up to you to figure out why or it will continue. Below, you can find reasons and solutions to your cat’s litter box problem.
Did You Know?
The number one reason cats are given up is that they can’t be trained to use their litter box.
A Problem With The Litter Box Itself
When your cat starts peeing in the house, the litter box should be considered. All too often, we ignore the obvious: You rush your cat to the vet fearing the worst, only to find out that the problem is a simple case of user error.
A cat that is unhappy with his box will stop using it. Think about it: would you use a dirty, smelly toilet? Of course not. Cats are very clean animals, and some of them are extremely finicky about their litter boxes.
If you can answer yes to any of the questions below, this may be your reason.
- Have you recently moved the box? Cats adore privacy and lots of space, so make sure the litter box is in the correct location.
- Is the litter dirty?
- Are there too few boxes to serve all the cats in your house?
- Is the cat ever prevented access to the litter box?
- Is the litter box placed in a cramped spot? Does the cat have any reason to fear getting trapped there or not being able to escape easily?
- Is the box located in a location that offers no privacy?
- Does the litter box have a hood or sides that are too high?
- Has your cat ever been upset or interrupted while using the box?
- Are there any reasons your cat might have negative associations with the litter box?
- Is your cat expressing a preference for peeing on certain surfaces or materials like carpet, fabric, or dirt?
Note: A cat that has been declawed will have special needs when it comes to litter. You may need to switch to paper litter that is softer on those delicate paws.
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How To Stop Inappropriate Litter Box Behavior
Perhaps the most common reason cats urinate inappropriately is that they dislike the litter box. If your cat is peeing everywhere and you’ve ruled out medical issues, then it’s time to reassess your litter boxes.
In general, the key to stopping inappropriate urination in cats or avoiding it altogether is as simple as being a responsible, attentive cat owner. Keep your cat healthy and visit the vet for routine care and as soon as issues crop up. Minimize stress in your cat’s environment and try to keep a cat-friendly, low-stress home.
They Might Be Spray Marking Not Urinating
Its important to determine whether your cat is urine marking or relieving a full bladder. Urine marking is a natural instinct for cats, as unpleasant as it may be for us cat parents! If your cat is urine marking, they will be standing with their tail upright, while a small amount of urine is sprayed backwards onto a vertical surface, leaving a scent mark. Common places that cats may do this include near doors, windows, curtains, sofas and sometimes even shopping bags – basically anywhere that may smell different to what they are used to, which challenges their feeling of safety.
This is different to your kitty deciding that another area is preferable to their litter tray. Soft items, such as sofas, carpets, duvets or pillows may be attractive to them, as they are comfortable on their paws, the urine soaks into the material, and they may be areas that have a scent that makes them feel safe. If your kitty has taken to urinating in other areas and they are not using their litter tray, get them checked with your vet to make sure there are no underlying medical causes. Also check the location of the litter tray as well as the litter substrate.
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