Marking all of a sudden? (Three rescued cats)

So, let me preface this by saying I know absolutely nothing about cats! I'm a dog person in my heart, but love all animals. I have two large dogs.

November 1st I found two male kittens around 4 months old (what my vet tells me) and the mother on the side of the road. Mom was still nursing a bit.

One male was sick, hence the name Sickey... I forget the term "upper respitory" something or other after some blood work was done to rule out feline leukemia.

Mom and Ira were spayed/neutered 2 months later, so Ira was 6 months. Sickey was neutered 2 weeks later because my vet said he had to have at least one set of shots before he was neutered, and his shots were delayed because of his sickness.

As I said, I know nothing about cats! My vet had told me that the males would not mark if they were neutered at 6 months old.

And yesterday, one of them peed on my new carpet! I don't know which one, and I'm not sure why. I also have no idea how to prevent this from happening again.

They have one kitty litter that is cleaned out at least once a day and I always top it up with fresh litter. Every two days I empty it out completely and fill it with fresh litter.

One scenario I have in my mind (which I have absolutely no idea if it holds any weight) is: They are indoor cats now. A few days ago, before this incident, I had tied them up outside with a harness on for about 10 minutes each just to get some fresh air. Perhaps being outside has made them feel the need to mark?

So my question is:

Why has one of them done this?

And is there any way of preventing this from happening again?

Also, while I'm posting, Sickey, the kitten that my vet said had the "kitty flu" has runny eyes. Some days they are more clear than others, but on the whole he always has a brownish coloured goop in them. My vet has told me that this reddy brown colour is okay and normal and that some kittens get damaged tear ducts from having this kitty flu. When I first got him, I did use an eye ointment on him for a few weeks because they were infected, but my vet has told me he'll always have runny eyes.

Is there anything I can do for him?

Sorry for the long post, but I thank you in advance for you replies!

Hello and welcome to TCS!

Thank you for rescuing these three cats AND for spaying/neutering all of them. You did a couple of wonderful things!

Let me preface this by saying I am not an expert and any advice that I give won't be comprehensive. I unfortunately do not have the amount of necessary time to give a thorough answer. But other members will surely chime in.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

I forget the term "upper respitory" something or other

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That would be "Upper Respiratory Infection," or URI for short. Very common.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

My vet had told me that the males would not mark if they were neutered at 6 months old.

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Wellllllllll.....That's not quite true. Generally speaking, if a cat is spayed or neutered before reaching sexual maturity --- or, more exactly, before engaging in marking behavior --- the likelihood of marking (spraying) decreases significantly. BUT, it's not a guarantee. Some cats remain intact for years and never mark. Some mark constantly post-sterilization. And any cats who feels his/her territory is threatened, particularly by an intact cat, is likely to mark as a means of "reclaiming" territory. Doesn't sound like that's what's going on here but I figured I'd mention it for edification.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

And yesterday, one of them peed on my new carpet!

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I must emphasize that this is not marking! Marking is when a cat sidles up next to a vertical surface, sort of kneads/treads with the front or back paws, lifts the tail up and releases a brief stream of urine. Your cat simply eliminated inappropriately. There's a big difference.

Inappropriate elimination, which occurs on a flat surface such as carpeting, is almost always a sign of at least one of the following:

● Stress
● Illness. Specifically, a Urinary Tract Infection, or UTI.

A UTI occurs more frequently in males than in females, resulting from the shorter and narrower urethra. A cat can develop crystals in the urine, which over time often leads to a blockage. And pain. The cat will make more frequent trips to the litter box, having to strain more and more each time in order to pass the urine. Cats are very good at association, and over time a cat in this situation tends to associate the litter box with the pain that he/she feels. The cat's way of dealing with this is to begin to avoid the litter box.

So any time that your cat eliminates inappropriately, and there's no other explanation that you could think of (such as a dirty litter box or your dogs or the other cats guarding the path to the box), you need to make a trip to the vet. ASAP. I can't stress this enough. Cats excel at hiding illnesses --- it's necessary for their survival in the wild and even a housecat will retain this instinct. So by the time the cat "announces" that something is wrong, often whatever is bothering him or her is already at the urgent stage. If a cat becomes completely blocked up and can't urinate, the toxic urine remains in the system and within only a couple of days, literally, the cat can die. I don't write this to scare you but merely to underscore the importance of having the cat examined by the vet pronto. Since you don't know which one did it, I would bring all three of them in.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

They have one kitty litter that is cleaned out at least once a day and I always top it up with fresh litter. Every two days I empty it out completely and fill it with fresh litter.

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It's very good that you are diligent about maintaining a clean box, because some cats are very particular. Might I suggest adding at least one other box? The general rule of thumb is, one box per cat, plus one extra. Many folks find that to be overkill, and I wouldn't expect you to go from one box to four. But having at least one other box has the following benefits: (1) Some cats like to urinate in one box and defecate in another; (2) It is more difficult for cats or dogs to intimidate a cat who wants to use the box by "guarding" multiple boxes.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

is there any way of preventing this from happening again?

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There are no guarantees, of course, but there are a few things you can do to decrease the likelihood of this happening again:

(1) Purchase a few Feliway diffusers and put them near the litter box(es). These are plugged into outlets (they look like plug-in air fresheners) and emit synthetic pheromones that mimic the "happy scents" that cats leave when they mark objects with their cheeks. Although it is now commonly also used as a calming agent of sorts, Feliway was originally developed primarily to combat inappropriate elimination, because cats don't pee in places where they've done facial markings. Do a search for Feliway at this site or on the internet and you'll find more detailed information.

(2) Thoroughly soak the affected areas of the carpet with an enzymatic cleaner, such as Nature's Miracle, Nok-Out, etc. These are found at pretty much any pet supply store. Using an enzymatic cleaner is an absolute must, because that is the only way that you will be able to remove the smell as far as your cats (and dogs) are concerned. Their sense of smell is much more acute than ours is, so just because something smells clean to you, doesn't mean it smells clean to them. If your cats and dogs smell urine in the carpet, that's more or less a green light, telling them that it's OK to urinate there. Not something that you want to encourage. And with a total of 5 animals in the house I would be very concerned that some or all of them might engage in a peeing contest of sorts to "replace" another animal's scent with their own.

(3) Pick up some Cat Attract or Kitten Attract litter and/or litter additive. Apparently these products contain scents which draw cats to the litter boxes and thus encourage compliance. Their success rate seems to be pretty high.

Again, this isn't comprehensive by any means but I think it's a pretty good general guideline. And like I said, other members can offer additional guidance. Lastly, in the Behavior forum there is a sticky entitled Inappropriate Peeing Problems Answered that I encourage you to read.

Good luck and let us know how things turn out.

Wow! Quite a bit to soak in!

And yes, getting them spayed/neutered was our main priority. I'm an assitant trainer at a competitive obedience club, and I know how important it is to alter your pets! So spaying and neutering was at the top of my list after figuring out what was wrong with Sickey.

Our original plan was to fix them, then find them homes, but all three cats get along famously with my two large dogs, and we decided we couldn't split up the family!

Okay, so we can rule out actual marking, because this was definitely a piddle spot on the carpet, that was clearly cat urine.

So, peeing on the floor was a result of three things: illness, stress or a dirty box? I don't see how these cats could be stressed in anyway, I assure you they have quite the pampered life!! LOL.

Although we did have some friends visiting all day the same day they piddled. We usually don't have company over, and these are wild cats. Ira is more than friendly enough with my bf and I, Mom has come around quite a bit, and since we've moved Sickey has become a lot more friendly.. with us! I know shy dogs could very easily be stressed by this, could it be enough to make a cat piddle in nervousness?

And if this was a UTI, would it still be happening? It has only happened once so far, and I believe in my first post I said it was yesterday, but I'm thinking it was the day before last. Or would it be completely random?

Is it severe enough that I should make appointment right away? Or wait to see if it happens again if the visitors could be enough to make them stressed?

I actually already have a second box, a "back up" if you will, but I had assumed as long as I cleaned it out whenever it was dirty they would be fine. My dogs don't bother the cats in any way shape or form, so I know the piddle wasn't due to the box being blocked.

I'll set up the second box tonight

Thank you very much for your informative response!

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

Although we did have some friends visiting all day the same day they piddled. We usually don't have company over, and these are wild cats...I know shy dogs could very easily be stressed by this, could it be enough to make a cat piddle in nervousness?

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It obviously depends upon the personality of the cat. But some cats have been known to "act out" when a piece of furniture is moved, so....yeah, human strangers in the house for a few hours could theoretically be enough to bend a cat out of shape if it's not something that the cat is used to. Who knows how much human contact any of these cats had before you found them, particularly the two kittens? One of them just might not react well --- at least not yet --- to other people who suddenly appear in his territory.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

And if this was a UTI, would it still be happening? It has only happened once so far, and I believe in my first post I said it was yesterday, but I'm thinking it was the day before last. Or would it be completely random?

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It would likely happen with increased frequency. Maybe on Day 1 the box is used 75% of the time. Then Day 2 it's 50%, etc.

But now I think there's at least some reason to believe that it might be stress from your friends' visit, and not a UTI.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

Is it severe enough that I should make appointment right away? Or wait to see if it happens again if the visitors could be enough to make them stressed?

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Well, if you want to be 100% safe and sure, you can make an appointment with the vet. Sudden behavioral changes are often, but not always, indicative of a medical issue. And like I said earlier, a UTI is a serious thing.

But if you wanted to take a wait-and-see approach, I suppose that's OK under the circumstances, but just be sure to keep a close eye (and nose) on the situation. If it happens again I wouldn't hesitate to seek medical care. If it did happen again, hopefully you'd be able to identify which cat it is. The other 2 cats and your wallet would appreciate that.

Originally Posted by RescueKitten

I'll set up the second box tonight

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Good. I've always felt that the easier you make it for them to comply with litter box usage, the better off everyone will be.