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- Jun 22, 2023
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I have a one year old neutered BSH who refuses to poop in his boxes. I have taken him to the vet numerous times, and they cant find any health reason and think its behavioral. He pees 100% of the time in the box, using all the different types of litters i have tried out (crystal, many diff types and brands of clay, corn, pellets).I have 3 litterboxes set up for him throughout the living room, all open litter pans with low sides, and i scoop them all 2-3x a day. Every month, i thoroughly wash all the boxes out.
His behavior: he starts out in a litterbox, digging furiously, then tries to poop. If he doesnt poop in 2-3 seconds, he runs out to the floor, usually 1-5 feet away from the litterbox, digs on the floor, then poops. If i am home, i just need to LOOK at him (eye contact) and shift in that direction and he frantically runs back into a litterbox. Sometimes he goes box 1- floor, sometimes box 1 - floor- box 2 - floor, sometimes box 1 - box 2, floor. Once in a while, he’ll poop directly in the bathtub. He always "starts" in a box - i can tell based on the way the litter is moved around - but for whatever reason is impatient and runs to go on the floor.
His behavior: he starts out in a litterbox, digging furiously, then tries to poop. If he doesnt poop in 2-3 seconds, he runs out to the floor, usually 1-5 feet away from the litterbox, digs on the floor, then poops. If i am home, i just need to LOOK at him (eye contact) and shift in that direction and he frantically runs back into a litterbox. Sometimes he goes box 1- floor, sometimes box 1 - floor- box 2 - floor, sometimes box 1 - box 2, floor. He always "starts" in a box - i can tell based on the way the litter is moved around - but for whatever reason is impatient and runs to go on the floor.
As of a week ago, i started diligently now putting his poop back in the box, which appears to freak him out. Hes been weirdly staring at it, pawing at it, generally pawing around the box now. Now hes getting worse. The WORST INCIDENT- he pooped on the floor next to the box, then kicked / pawed litter all over it. I think he thinks he is burying it. No, this is not him pooping over the edge. He deliberately poops on the floor, then leans over the box and throws litter on top of the poop.
Other relevant details:
- he is on a dry food only diet (he refuses to eat wet food) and gets a daily probiotic
- he has a sensitive stomach - we finally found a dry food that works, and his poops look healthy. That said, he without fail gets diarrhea if i give him a new treat, try to introduce a new wet food, or forget to give the full dose of his probiotic
-at one point earlier on, his vet put him on metronizadole, which made him poop perfectly in the box. That said, he was on metronizadole with the WRONG diet, so as soon as we took him off, he went back to his bad behavior / diarrhea. He is off the meds now, bc again i think we found a dry food that suits him
- for one month only, maybe 3 weeks after he was neutered, he was perfect in using the litterbox when i sprayed them all everyday with a mist of enzymatic pet cleaner. Then one day- he just stopped, and this trick doesnt work anymore.
- he DOES behave perfectly at any home other than our own. I take him with me when i go somewhere for a week - i use the same litter box, same litter- and he poops perfectly.
I'm at my wits end, and im starting to seriously consider rehoming him. I cant deal with this - i wake up every morning to the smell of poop, and i start everyday off with cleaning his poop off the hardwood floor. I cant ask any friends to help catsit for me when i leave town, and pet sitters are costing me a LOT. Im also paying for pet fees on flights, trains, constantly buying litter boxes / litter, throwing it away when i leave, etc. Its all too much and too stressful.
HELP!!!!!
His behavior: he starts out in a litterbox, digging furiously, then tries to poop. If he doesnt poop in 2-3 seconds, he runs out to the floor, usually 1-5 feet away from the litterbox, digs on the floor, then poops. If i am home, i just need to LOOK at him (eye contact) and shift in that direction and he frantically runs back into a litterbox. Sometimes he goes box 1- floor, sometimes box 1 - floor- box 2 - floor, sometimes box 1 - box 2, floor. Once in a while, he’ll poop directly in the bathtub. He always "starts" in a box - i can tell based on the way the litter is moved around - but for whatever reason is impatient and runs to go on the floor.
His behavior: he starts out in a litterbox, digging furiously, then tries to poop. If he doesnt poop in 2-3 seconds, he runs out to the floor, usually 1-5 feet away from the litterbox, digs on the floor, then poops. If i am home, i just need to LOOK at him (eye contact) and shift in that direction and he frantically runs back into a litterbox. Sometimes he goes box 1- floor, sometimes box 1 - floor- box 2 - floor, sometimes box 1 - box 2, floor. He always "starts" in a box - i can tell based on the way the litter is moved around - but for whatever reason is impatient and runs to go on the floor.
As of a week ago, i started diligently now putting his poop back in the box, which appears to freak him out. Hes been weirdly staring at it, pawing at it, generally pawing around the box now. Now hes getting worse. The WORST INCIDENT- he pooped on the floor next to the box, then kicked / pawed litter all over it. I think he thinks he is burying it. No, this is not him pooping over the edge. He deliberately poops on the floor, then leans over the box and throws litter on top of the poop.
Other relevant details:
- he is on a dry food only diet (he refuses to eat wet food) and gets a daily probiotic
- he has a sensitive stomach - we finally found a dry food that works, and his poops look healthy. That said, he without fail gets diarrhea if i give him a new treat, try to introduce a new wet food, or forget to give the full dose of his probiotic
-at one point earlier on, his vet put him on metronizadole, which made him poop perfectly in the box. That said, he was on metronizadole with the WRONG diet, so as soon as we took him off, he went back to his bad behavior / diarrhea. He is off the meds now, bc again i think we found a dry food that suits him
- for one month only, maybe 3 weeks after he was neutered, he was perfect in using the litterbox when i sprayed them all everyday with a mist of enzymatic pet cleaner. Then one day- he just stopped, and this trick doesnt work anymore.
- he DOES behave perfectly at any home other than our own. I take him with me when i go somewhere for a week - i use the same litter box, same litter- and he poops perfectly.
I'm at my wits end, and im starting to seriously consider rehoming him. I cant deal with this - i wake up every morning to the smell of poop, and i start everyday off with cleaning his poop off the hardwood floor. I cant ask any friends to help catsit for me when i leave town, and pet sitters are costing me a LOT. Im also paying for pet fees on flights, trains, constantly buying litter boxes / litter, throwing it away when i leave, etc. Its all too much and too stressful.
HELP!!!!!