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Thread: new cat trouble--who can help??

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    God/dess colleen's Avatar
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    Default new cat trouble--who can help??

    My son has a new cat. He adores the cat. The cat adores him--follows him everywhere, sits on his bed and watches him play . . . you get the picture. The cat has been in our house less than a week days, and geting rid of her is NOT an option.

    Now for the problem: this cat does not always ue the litter box. I think she uses it sometimes, but I know she has frequent accidents, too. To be speciffic, I am pretty sure she pees in the box, and I think she has pooped in it a few times, but we have cought her pooping on the floor twice. Both in different locations.

    Any suggestions how we can teach her the right way? We are about to buy a new house, and I woul dlike to leave the soiled carpet behind us in this house!


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    God/dess Nautilus's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    they generally grow out of indiscriminate carpet-dumping.

    all you can do in ensure said feline always has access to the tray - or put the cat in the tray room after it has eaten for a reasonable time.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    hmm well when i had my cat, i watched him and started to learn his "routine" before going to the bathroom and then i'd scoop him up and run like hell to the litterbox. eventually he just associated going to the bathroom with the litterbox.

    not sure if that's something you could do, but i hope that helps!
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Hey Colleen, had the same problem with my cat. One thing you might want to look into *i think this only applies if they're just peeing everywhere though* is taking him to the vet to see if he has a urinary tract infection. That will cause cats to go everywhere. Another way is to leave the cat in the bathroom with only the litter box, and food. After a few days they are normally used to going in the litterbox and you can let them out in the rest of the house. Hope this help, pm me if you have questions, I have 4 cats, and they're all nuts!

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    My cat wont take a dump in the litter box if it's not "clean" enough for him. Keep it scooped that's the way my cat likes it. We scoop it every time we walk by it and we have not had any problems.
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    God/dess Nautilus's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    oh god, ours is the same. there is all manner of howling if the dump volume is too great for little miss precious.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    I agree with nautilus and hannah. they do grow out of it, and I've also had to run a pooping cat to the bathroom (I held them on their back so their poop wouldn't land on the carpet.)
    I put Newspaper down in all the corner areas so I could keep track of pooping/peeing outside litter box.
    If he's an adult, then definitely he's trying to tell you something.
    Just stick with the newspaper, run him to the bathroom when you catch him, and hopefully you'll notice less accidents.

    Also--spaying and neutering has some affect on marking territory if he's spraying or doing that with his pee.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    If it's a male, it could be a way of "marking" his territory. Water bottles work best. If you catch him just "going" anywhere, walk up to him, take him by the scruff and say firmly and loudly, "NO!". When you get him to the cat box, put him in gently and pet him and say gently and softly, "good kitty" (or the like).

    If he refuses to go in the box regularly after a few weeks, you may want to consider making him an outdoor cat. Your son might love him, but unless you don't mind having your house destroyed, you'll have to teach your son that there are just some lines that can never be crossed. *sigh* I had to get rid of a cat that Makayla adored and that adored her. This cat was CONSTANTLY peeing on freshly washed clothes and peed on my Z Gallerie silk embroidered bed spread. No matter what I did, she would always pee on the comforter or the clothes. It was hard to get rid of her, but I refuse to allow a pet to behave that way in my house. We'll find another pet that behaves.

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    Senior Member TorontoGuy's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    I had this problem with a cat - the start of the problem was my fault... my apartment was kind of small, and the closet with the litterbox got a little smelly making the cats think it was unclean, and one of the two cats thought the smell made the litterbox the property of the other. As a result, he stopped using it.

    I solved the space/odour problem, but the second cat had started using a patch of carpet instead of the litterbox.

    I took him to the vet, and the vet gave him a shot of female hormones (similar to birth control pills, I think). It calmed him down and made him passive enough that when I caught him about to use the carpet, I could pick him up and move him to the litterbox without scaring him. On the down side, he did have a complete personality change for a week or two until the hormone shot wore off.

    However, in the end I had both cats using the litterbox again.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    try getting multiple litterboxes. some cats will only use one box for peeing, because they don't want to ruin their scent with feces. put the other litterbox across the room, or he may just consider it another pee box. also, try catattract litter. it has some bizarre scent in it that cats just love to defecate/urinate on. i can't explain it. and keep the litterbox as clean as you can. also, if you're using a scented litter, or one with large pellets or crystals, you cat might find it unpleasant and just not worth the bother. same thing with a litterbox near the washing machine, or in a cramped space, or with a hood.
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    Senior Member Widget's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Other stuff: If you have more than one cat, the dominant cat may be gaurding the litter box.

    Also, I new a woman who had an indoor/outdoor cats who would pee in open spaces for fear one of the other neighbor cats would pounce her.

    You have to change that litter on a day or two basis, even if it's scoopable, or if the cat finds anything remotely similar to dirt, grass, or anything to hide it under, it will use it. I think that's one reason they're always peeing on the carpet, it feels to much like grass.

    Male cats may always prefer something vertical to pee on, althought the majority can be *trained* to pee like a girl after neutering.

    My mom has an all indoor cat that actually has been trained to scratch the door, yowl at various doors, and hold it for long periods of time, until my mom opens the door to the basement where the litter box is kept. I cannot fathom how my mom has done this, but then she fully toilet trained four kids each before they were 2 years old.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Quote Originally Posted by Widget

    You have to change that litter on a day or two basis, even if it's scoopable,

    Male cats may always prefer something vertical to pee on, althought the majority can be *trained* to pee like a girl after neutering.
    I have never seen a male cat do this, ever, and good scoopable litter will last for at least a week if you keep it scooped.
    Last edited by big_daddy; 01-22-2006 at 10:37 PM.
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    Senior Member Widget's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Quote Originally Posted by big_daddy
    First I have ever heard of this. I have never seen a male cat do this, and good scoopable litter will last for at least a week if you keep it scooped.
    Really? I've heard it's common for male cats to pee on vertical things for territorial purposes. This was an outdoor male cat who became an indoor cat, he was also very territorial over the other cat living there.

    For the scoop litter, I would agree with you, but occasionally you can get an extremely pristine cat who won't use litter if there is a hint of urine smell, more so if it is another cat's urine.

    These are things I've heard from vets, SPCA folks, and cat-lovers in dealing with their cats or advising me when I have lived with cats. Cats are so complex though, sometimes they each need their own food dish and litter box, other times they share, and in one case I had a cat who would cover up the food and water dish with whatever was handy to keep the other cat from eating..especially annoying when he put clothing in the water dish. Also, even though this male cat was neutered, I swear it looked like it was always trying to mount the spayed female cat in the house. Maybe this cat just had lots of problems, it had been an alley cat for several year.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    neutered males will still engage in sexual play. i have a male cat who i adopted from a shelter organization when he was very young (they neutered him). recently i adopted a female cat as a companion for him. i haven't had her spayed yet, as she had a mass in her breast (it's been shrinking rapidly, so the vet thought it might be a retained infection, and surgery with an infection in the system isn't a good idea). she went into heat a week or two ago, and he mounted her constantly.

    urinating on vertical surfaces is usally spraying, a territorial marking, rather than simple urination for purposes of relieving bladder fullness. that's a far more complex behaviour to deal with....
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    Featured Member MadisonM's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Make sure you really clean the areas that your cat has gone to the bathroom. The cat will be able to smell their scent in those areas, and continue to go to the bathroom there. You have to make sure you really scrub those areas. Rent a carpet cleaner or use bleach if it is a hard surface. You may not be able to smell it anymore, but the cat can still detect the scent and keep going there.

    For a while, my cat would keep going to the bathroom in my potted plants that I have in my living room. We would spray the cat with water from a spray bottle every time he did it, and soon he stopped doing it. You could try doing that. Spray the cat, say no, and quickly pick him up and run him to the litter box.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    When you catch a cat in the act of doing something wrong, you should tap it on the nose and say NO sternly and remove it from the area it should not be in and place in at the litter box. You may have to do this a few times. This is a way to teach your cat good from wrong.

    Another thing you might consider is laying citrus smells where you do not want the cat to be e.g. by rubbing citrus soap on parts of the furniture or carpet so that the smell deters the kitty. A citrus spray may to too strong so soap is recommended, but obviously apply the soap gently so as not to get soap marking all over your house.
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Quote Originally Posted by VenusGoddess
    If it's a male, it could be a way of "marking" his territory. Water bottles work best. If you catch him just "going" anywhere, walk up to him, take him by the scruff and say firmly and loudly, "NO!". When you get him to the cat box, put him in gently and pet him and say gently and softly, "good kitty" (or the like).

    This is exactly how I was trained and I can say it worked. I just dreaded when my wife caught me peeing behind the couch, but I loved the petting when I behaved.

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    God/dess colleen's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    It seems she has been going under my china cabinet--only poop, though. I found it today when I was on my knees cleaning. I am going to send Hubby to the store to buy a spare litter box and a jumbo-sized bag of cat-attract.

    Does anybody think it would be a good idea to put the box near the china cabinet at first? I trained my other reformed stray by putting the box in the kitchen at first, then gradually moving it to where I wanted it to be.

    Thanks for all the advice guys. I love cats, my secret shame is that I wil put up with almost anything for my kitties. But this one is young and I want to get her started right.


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    Veteran Member TarynJolie's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Tips I can offer you include:

    Making sure the litter box is in an area that is easy for the cat to access.

    Try another type of cat litter.

    Spay/neuter your furbaby.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Quote Originally Posted by big_daddy
    I have never seen a male cat do this, ever, and good scoopable litter will last for at least a week if you keep it scooped.
    Male cats do this when they're not neutered. Kinda like Lions do in the wild. Mine did it for a week before he got neutered...after that, he didn't do it that way.

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    Veteran Member TarynJolie's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    My litter suggestion is the all crystal type that absorbs the urine ( you still have to scoop the poop)

    If you only have 1 cat it lasts an entire month. This type of litter is light years ahead of the old clumping type.

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Quote Originally Posted by colleen
    It seems she has been going under my china cabinet--only poop, though. I found it today when I was on my knees cleaning. I am going to send Hubby to the store to buy a spare litter box and a jumbo-sized bag of cat-attract.

    Does anybody think it would be a good idea to put the box near the china cabinet at first? I trained my other reformed stray by putting the box in the kitchen at first, then gradually moving it to where I wanted it to be.

    Thanks for all the advice guys. I love cats, my secret shame is that I wil put up with almost anything for my kitties. But this one is young and I want to get her started right.
    You know, she may like the "privacy". You know how young kids will go hide when they have to poop? The cats sometimes feel the same way. Get her a covered box with one of those swingable doors. Start it out by putting it where YOU want her to go. That way, she'll begin to associate the china cabinet as an "off-limits" area. Putting the box there may encourage her to keep going under the cabinet. If you catch her under there (for any reason...not just pooping, but sleeping, stalking, etc) shoo her out from under there. Don't let her get comfy under there (chances are she won't want to lay around there if she's been pooping there).

    Another thing...if she goes outside of her box for any reason, make sure you check the poop and note if there are any inconsistancies (hard stool, runny, mucousy). Sometimes, having bowel problems makes the cats go wherever they happen to be.

    Buy some Nature's Miracle (in the biggest container you can find) and use it to treat any areas in which you KNOW or suspect that any of your cats have gone. Especially for young cats, if they smell urine or feces, they'll associate that with an "ok to go" spot. I had a cat (who absolutely knows better) peeing in the corner because she got pissed off at me. She soaked, and I mean SOAKED an area of our carpet after repeated session in the corner. I used the Nature's Miracle (and it took a few days to take effect) but you cannot smell cat urine in our house AT ALL. It's a great product and I highly recommend it.

    If you have multiple cats, you need multiple litter boxes. I had 4 cats one time and 2 liked to have the really super fine sand-like litter for peeing in and the bigger crystal/rocks for pooping. The other two preferred the cedar type chips to pee on. Picky, picky, picky. LOL You'll have to try a bunch of stuff and see how all the cats react to which and who likes what most. And, cleaning the catbox out each day or every other day is a must for multiple cats.

    Good luck and let us know how it turns out!!

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    Veteran Member susie's Avatar
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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    If you catch it after they do it(up to 24 hours after), go find the cat, grab it, take it to the spot they went, tell them no, scoop it up with the kitty scoop, and deposit it in the litter box, hold their head near the box for a second(not in a mean way, just to make sure they get the scent) then leave it in the box for a day. Repeat as needed and they will be done with it if only to be done with you making them sniff when they don't want to.
    Do not let the cat think it rules the roost, if you catch it scratching or doing territorial things(including rubbing their chin) make sure you spray that area with your perfume. Your the queen of your roost, make sure they know it, or your nose will pay the price.
    Cats are very territorial, and can only learn a few words, keep that in mind while training them. Keep it to, good, their name, no, leash, nice, and the word you use for special foods and treats. I taught my latest two with gestures and finger taps(their inside only, or they would know here kittykitty)
    Anyways, good luck with your kitty.
    Susie

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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    Make sure you're using an enzymatic cleaner (Nature's Miracle is not anymore) like Simple Solutions. Get a couple of the cheap litter boxes and put different kinds of litter in them until you find the one that she always uses.

    Quote Originally Posted by colleen
    It seems she has been going under my china cabinet--only poop, though. I found it today when I was on my knees cleaning. I am going to send Hubby to the store to buy a spare litter box and a jumbo-sized bag of cat-attract.

    Does anybody think it would be a good idea to put the box near the china cabinet at first? I trained my other reformed stray by putting the box in the kitchen at first, then gradually moving it to where I wanted it to be.

    Thanks for all the advice guys. I love cats, my secret shame is that I wil put up with almost anything for my kitties. But this one is young and I want to get her started right.



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    Default Re: new cat trouble--who can help??

    if you think it might be related to anxiety, you can try using feliway, which is like an air freshener but emits soothing cat pheremones that help calm them down. also, bach's rescue remedy is good.

    and i've actually read the opposite from what vg said. i don't know. i guess try one way, and then the other?

    the crystal litter is great for keeping stink out, but some cats won't use it. i think it hurts their paws. there's also some concern about the safety of it as cats might groom stray particles off their paws, but these concerns exist for most non-organic cat litters.
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