another pooping problem - indoor/outdoor cat

mandini

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I'm having problems with my youngest cat. She is 8 months old so she's still a baby.

Like my other two cats, she is indoor/outdoor and once the weather warmed up in March I phased out the litter box. They now all go outdoors. They go out in the morning when I leave and come back inside when I get home in the afternoon/evening. They are in and out when I am home. She never has any bathroom problems in my bedroom during the night.

However, she is repeatedly pooping in one corner of the living room. She will do this even when the door to go out to the backyard is open, four feet away!

The weekend before last, I went out of town and my roommates watched my cats and put them in and out. I brought the litter box back to my bathroom just in case the cats got stuck inside. Well, my naughty girl pooped FOUR times in the living room corner in the three days I was gone!!! I think she was angry that I was gone, which indicates she is having behavioral problems and not that she is sick or anything. She's done it just once since (tonight).

Our backyard has high fences and is closed off, so I don't know why she would be afraid to go outside. She loves being outside after dark but not too much during the day.

any suggestions? she seems to really like that one spot.
 

taterbug

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Can you not put her a litter box in that corner? I have indoor/outdoor cats,but I always have their litter boxes available at all times.
 
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mandini

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Originally Posted by taterbug

Can you not put her a litter box in that corner? I have indoor/outdoor cats,but I always have their litter boxes available at all times.
Definitely no... it's in the dining room right next to the table.

Also note that she chose to go there even when the litter box was available in the next room.
 

white cat lover

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Has anything major changed in her life or yours?
Have you cleaned the spot with an enzymatic cleaner?

I've known cats with health issues to poop outside the box. It might not be a bad idea to get her vet checked as well. Is she spayed? Did she have any sort of bad experience in the yard making her wary to go out?
 

missymotus

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Clean with an enzyme cleaner and put her food bowls there, cats will not toilet where they eat.

I would also leave the litterbox indoors. You also mention she's afraid to go outside, if she doesn't want to go out then why force her?

As white cat lover said, a vet trip isn't a bad idea. Just to be sure it's not health related.
 
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mandini

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I used a rug cleaner for pets and that seemed to do the trick. I sprayed all the other corners too in case she thought about switching! She's now meowing when she wants to go outside. Yay!

She's still unhappy about being outside without me, except at night (which she loves). She loves being outside during the day when I'm out there with her. We have a very nice backyard with a high fence and trees, bushes and a patio with padded furniture to lay on. My cats have always been indoor/outdoor cats so she's going to have to get used to it.
 
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