Adpoted Cat, day 2-Peed on roomates bed again

elanaqua

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Howdy Cat Owners,

I'm new to the whole thing myself two days ago I adopted a cat. She's been really fun, and though it's only been two days I am a bit frustraited on how to handle this new behavior of hers. Yesterday she peed on my roomates bed, I grabbed her up and set her into the litter box so she would finish in there. She did and then wandered off to clean herself. After a cleanup we figured cats are smart she knows where the box is now, she's 4 years old and they said she was house trained so no harm no foul.

Today after coming home my roomate was greeted with a fresh pile of poo and another soiled set of sheets. What do we do now? I know it's day two, and it's too early to go all nuts, but I really can't have her pooping all over the place. She's four years old, and I can understand the stresses of a new move but it's just not ok.

We didn't have much help with the new cat, and the shelter didn't offer much in the way of advice, so we missed out on the whole "corner off a room with the box, food, water, and bedding" and let it stay there till she gets used to things. Though on the plus side it is a small cabin with only two rooms.

Anyone know where I proceed from here? I was recommended to put her in the bathroom with the litter box, food, water, and some bedding for a bit and so far that's all anyone has told me at this point. Seems a bit mean but I don't know, as I said new to this.

Signed,
New Cat Owner In Trouble
 

white cat lover

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Welcome to TCS!


First step: V-E-T! Going outside the litterbox can mean a UTI, which means it is painful for her to go potty. While she may look outwardly healthy, one a urine sample can determine if she has a UTI. It is also a good idea to get her physically examined by your vet to rule out any other health issues.

Second: Is she spayed? Declawed?

I reccomend confining her to a small-ish room with her food/water/litterbox/toys. Don't put the food & water right next to each other, she won't want to use the box then. Make sure you are using a litter she likes. And that the box is "right" for her. Some cats won't use covered boxes, etc. Some also do not like strongly perfumed litters.
 

hissy

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Hi new cat owner..

Your kitty is stressed, her peeing on items that are your smell is her attempt to make the room hers. It is a typical reaction from shelter cats kept in cages. After all, in a cage, they pee, eat and sleep in the same area. It is a routine that is hard to break, but it can be broken.

It isn't "mean" to confine her for awhile. Look at it this way, your bathroom should be a lot bigger than her cage was for her. She needs two litter pans not just one. Her water and food bowl need to be far away from the litter pan. I generally put the litter pan in the shower or bath and just make sure the drain is covered so litter doesn't fall into the pipes.

Give her a comfortable bed- the favored place of choice for a cage shocked kitty is behind the commode, so just pad that area well.

Give her time and strip off all the bedding of the bed she soiled and launder it in Dreft, adding an enzyme remover to the rinse cycle to help remove the odor.

She is used to only small spaces with people cramming up to her cage. It's only been two days. Draw on your patience and understand she has had a hard time, she will mellow out and get used to things but it won't happen overnight.
 

sakura

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Oh your poor roommate! That sucks. A few things:

(1) She absolutely needs to go to the vet. Most vets will do an initial check for free anyway for new pets, so she can get that taken care of while she's there. The most common reason for inappropriate elimination (at least with urine) is a UTI. Cats are good at disguising pain, but this is the one sign that can indicate that something is wrong. You want to rule out any physical issues out first.

(2) The bathroom may seem mean, but it's really not. She is in a new space and being in a small room to get used to is easier on her. If your bathroom is large enough for 2 litter boxes, use 2 but at least 1 and then put her food/water as far away from the litter box as you can. (It obviously helps if this isn't a bathroom that gets much use). Plus it's easier to clean up any mess in a bathroom.

(3) Type of litter box and type of litter. Cats can be really picky about litter. Most do not like closed boxes (it's like a cat version of an outhouse). It should also be large enough. I would have at least 2, because some cats will not poop in the same box they pee in. At least start with 2 for now, you might be able to get away with just 1 in the future. For litter, do you know what she was using at the shelter? I would use unscented clumping clay litter for now. You can buy a product called Cat Attract by Dr. Elsey (it's at PetSmart) to mix with the litter, it's a great product. The same company also makes Cat Attract Litter.

(4) If the vet rules out the UTI possibility, then you know it's probably behavioral. It kind of sounds a bit territorial, especially because of the poop thing. There is a neat product called a Feliway Diffuser that can help with territorial marking issues. I would buy at least one to put in your roommate's bedroom (if that's ok with her). The diffusers are sold at PetSmart, PetCo, etc.

(5) Not sure what your roommate is planning to do with her sheets but you need a really good enzyme cleaner otherwise the cat will keep going in the same spot. You are going to want to make sure to clean the part of the mattress that it was on too. If your roommate has ever had a cat, then maybe the at is picking up on the scent.

(6) I'm assuming she's spayed because she came from a shelter, but if not, then you want to do that ASAP.

(7) How does your roommate treat the cat? Cats pick up on hostility. I had a rooomate whose cat I did not care for (it wasn't spayed because it was from her boyfriend's mom's manx cattery and I think they were planning to use her as a breeding cat when she got older, anyway - I was not a cat person back then and I certainly did not care for a cat in heat!). The cat definitely picked up on it and would mark only my things. Seeing as how she's only been home a few days, I doubt that's the case with your cat.

Congratulations on your new cat!! If you have any other questions about your kitty (like what type of food to feed her), this forum is a great resource


Oh, and pictures are always fun! If you have any of your new cat, I'd love to see them.
 

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Congrats on your new cat!! I think all the advice has pretty much been given, but I'll reiterate to get her to the vet. When I adopted cello, he peed/pooed on my shoes two or three times in the first week which frusterated me. I took him to the vet and the poor thing did have a UTI from the stress of moving etc. Got it cleared up with a couple courses of antibiotics and we haven't had that problem since and he's been perfect with the litter box.

Goodluck
 

jellybella

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Welcome to TCS


Your new kitty is certainly stressed (even though you're nice, she doesn't know that yet and everything is new and strange), stress can lead to physical and behavioral problems.

When we first got Stan he pooed everywhere but the designated boxes
he peed in a corner while we were in the room
Vet said no UTI, so we knew he was trying to tell us something. We had to keep him in a big dog crate when we couldn't supervise him. It actually seemed to calm him down and after a week or so he was using the box regularly. I found out he likes two boxes--one for each function, and that he was very particular about the placement of his boxes.

Now that we know better everyone seems to be happy
 
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elanaqua

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I have a schedualed visit to the vet today, so we will head there after work. After a bit of thought I decided to put her in my bedroom, she has been sleeping in my bed mostly so she is probably most comfortable there. I Put two litter boxes into the bedroom one in each corner, and in the opposite corners I put food/water, and toys.

She actually gets along with my roomate and myself rather well, usually curls up on my lap when I'm reading a book, and likes to sit on my roomates lap when she's on the x-box.

Thank you so much for all the advice and help, I will let you know how it goes and will post a picture in the upcomming days! Thanks again,

A Not As Stressed Cat Owner
 

ldg

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Hope it goes well at the vet.


Also, if any of the pee got onto/into the mattress, that needs to be treated with an enzyme cleaner as well.

Cat pee (or poop) must ALWAYS be cleaned with an enzyme cleaner. Anything else may make it smell acceptable to a human nose - but it will still smell like pee to a kitty nose. Just follow the directions on the enzyme cleaner. Keep in mind that when they say you need to completely soak the area affected by pee, they mean it. You have to use the stuff generously and let it air dry. So when pee is on a mattress, soak it with the enzyme cleaner and then cover it with a towel folded over twice - change that every day or every other day as needed. It may take a few days or up to a week to dry completely.

Nature's Miracle is an enzyme cleaner available at most pet stores or supermarkets, though we didn't have great success with it. We keep Nok-Out handy. (http://www.nokout.com). We have two boys that are prone to blockages - we know they need to go to the vet when they start peeing outside the box.

...but I've heard that Anti Icky-Poo is fabulous: http://www.catfaeries.com

And as others have pointed out, it SO is not mean to confine them to a small space at first. Cats are territory oriented more than they are people oriented, and when you bring a new cat home it's actually best for the kitty to get used to a new environment if it's a smaller space. When they're happy and comfortable with that, then just open the door and let them explore in their own way and at their own time. But it is FAR less stressful to be in a smaller space before being confronted with a HUGE new territory with lots of strange smells and sounds!

Laurie
 

sakura

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Originally Posted by elanaqua

I have a schedualed visit to the vet today, so we will head there after work. After a bit of thought I decided to put her in my bedroom, she has been sleeping in my bed mostly so she is probably most comfortable there. I Put two litter boxes into the bedroom one in each corner, and in the opposite corners I put food/water, and toys.

She actually gets along with my roomate and myself rather well, usually curls up on my lap when I'm reading a book, and likes to sit on my roomates lap when she's on the x-box.

Thank you so much for all the advice and help, I will let you know how it goes and will post a picture in the upcomming days! Thanks again,

A Not As Stressed Cat Owner
How did the vet visit go?
 
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elanaqua

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Well Pino (I decided on a name finally... though something tells me she just sorta responds when she wants too and a name means little to cats), hates cat boxes. In the end after a long drive we made it to the vet and she was very happy to get out. The vet took a look and said she was healthy and it the stress of moving into a new area. He also said that cats do not really like tile or linoleum floors. It turns out that the floor in our house gets a bit nippy and that it wasn't the best place to put a litter box. After moving it to another room she has been using it regularly and has been very happy.

Still trying to secure a camera soon as my neighbors get back from their vacation I'll throw up a few pictures. Pino has been acting very well, she has even stopped the "attention meowing". For some reason every time I go into the kitchen she sits in the living room and meow meow meow. I think her previous owners didn't let her in the kitchen. She is wandering about now and being curious like a cat.

Thank you so much for all the help.
Elan
 

mrblanche

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So good to hear you got a clean bill of health.

Sometimes even well-housebroken cats have a problem at first. When we got Sterling, he had one little episode in a closet in the front bedroom. After that, we had no further trouble.

Usually, putting a cat in a small place like a bathroom, where they don't get easily confused, will solve the problem. Just 24 hours is all it takes, usually.
 
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elanaqua

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Yes that was the solution in the end, she spent a good two days in there. The first day the door was closed, the second the door was opened but I think she liked the fact my room was warmer than the others and was quite content to sleep the day away on the bed.

What are the hazards of leaving the litter box in my bedroom? Is amonia a problem? I would like to put it in the bathroom but I think she hates the bathroom for some reason. The house is really just a bit too small elsewhere for one. Maybe an automatic cat cleaner box?
 

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One reason I don't like having a box in my bedroom is the litter scatter. The rooms with boxes have to be vacuumed/sweeped pretty much every day or the house gets litter tracked all over it.

If she just didn't like the floor, you could put a mat under the box...I have three boxes on linoleum. All have a large litter mat underneath to catch the litter scatter.

Glad to hear she's doing well!! (and Nature's Miracle is your friend...we buy it by the gallon)
 

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What kind of floor covering do you have in the bathroom, and what is the temperature in there?

Some cats hate to walk on a cold, bare floor. Come to that, so do I!
 

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Or maybe you can go to a carpet store and see if you can get a good sized square of off cut carpet to put under the litter boxes to both make it a little warmer and catch the litter.
 

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Originally Posted by elanaqua

Yes that was the solution in the end, she spent a good two days in there. The first day the door was closed, the second the door was opened but I think she liked the fact my room was warmer than the others and was quite content to sleep the day away on the bed.

What are the hazards of leaving the litter box in my bedroom? Is amonia a problem? I would like to put it in the bathroom but I think she hates the bathroom for some reason. The house is really just a bit too small elsewhere for one. Maybe an automatic cat cleaner box?
Automatic boxes are ok but most are HUGE. Not every cat will use one either (some are afraid of them). The one I see get the highest reviews here is The Litter Robot.

If you are going to keep a box in your room, I would use crystal cat litter (because it's nicer to look at, lol). It's kind of expensive though and you have to make sure to stir it everyday since you aren't scooping out urine (no clumps), it's being absorbed by the crystals instead. Crystal litter doesn't have the tracking issues that other litter types can have (at least that has been my experience). There is also the issue of getting her used to a new litter type, it takes time. Generally I don't like recommending covered litter boxes but I have the Booda Dome and it's nicer looking than most other covered boxes. It's on the small side so if your new cat is larger, I wouldn't recommend it. (The Booda Dome is at most pet stores). The Booda Dome is nice b/c it fits in spaces that some square boxes won't fit.
 
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