Cats are destroying my house

butterflyy

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I really need some advice, because I am at my wits end. I have 2 male cats, about a year and a half old each, they were brothers from the same litter and we have had them from 6 weeks old.

They are both neutered and I have taken both of them to be tested for UTI's which came back clear.

Over the last year or so, we have had to rip up ALL of our carpet, replace a couch, throw away a recliner, and they have already destroyed the new couch from spraying.

They will literally spray in front of you if they feel like it. The latest event, which has me VERY upset was finding out that they are now jumping on the kitchen counter and spraying the wall by my dining room table, which also has pee on it. They have ruined the bed in my guest bedroom by soaking the ENTIRE bottom boxspring all the way around which I have just recently noticed...I couldn't figure out where the smell was coming from. I don't even think I could remove the urine from it at this point.

We have been using Nature's Miracle to clean up with, which apparently does nothing at all, because the cats will go almost RIGHT behind us and spray in the same spot. This is not limited to under windows, its EVERYWHERE.

We have tried putting foil over where they pee, they are not afraid of foil, infact one of them loves foil and proceeds to rip it down. The Feliway diffusers do nothing at all.

We have 4 cats total in the house, the 2 females never leave the 1 room upstairs, but there are 4 litter boxes in that room, and 2 downstairs which = 6 boxes for 4 cats and we scoop them 3 times daily. The boxes are not covered.

Since spring has arrived, my 1 male cat is DYING to get outside (he has always been an indoor cat however). There are plenty of stray cats here, and I know indoor cats will mark if they see cats out there. I know people suggest to cover the views so the cats can't see outside. We have ALOT of windows in our house, and with spring here that not only would be a pain, but almost impossible since the windows open from the bottom up. I did mention above they DO spray by windows but it is not limited to only that.

My question is, when is enough enough? I love these cats, but they have and are literally destroying this house. Should I let the cats outside? The idea of having an indoor/outdoor cat has never thrilled me, plus we live on a very busy main street.

What else can I try to use to clean up the urine with? Something that actually works. They are spraying EVERYWHERE and it is very hard sometimes to know where the spray to clean it everytime. I plan on getting a blacklight this weekend (not even sure I WANT to see the whole picture lol).

They are spraying several times a day, ALL over the house. This is really out of control. Any advice you can give besides the obvious which I have already read about is more than welcome. Thanks in advance.
 

pee-cleaner

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You really have a BAD issue. I've been there myself. Feel free to PM me.

As for cleaning, I've also found Nature's Miracle to be inadequate. What DOES work is:

2 cups hydrogen peroxide
2 t. baking soda
2 drops liquid dish soap

Mix together and either pour or spray on the area. Be sure and thoroughly saturate and allow it to dry completely. Stubborn areas may take more that one application.

Good luck.
 

monaxlisa

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I have the same problem
Except all five of mine do it. They're brothers, pee every where, the Natures Miracle does clean the smell but it doesnt stop them. Its horrible, theyre locked out of the bathrooms, extra bedrooms, closets, etc. Mine were all indoor/outdoor cats before I moved and they did it even when they could go out. Good luck!
 
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butterflyy

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1 of them is 13 years old and she pretty much just likes to lay around in the sun and keep to herself. The other is a stray we brought inside, she spooks easily and the room up there was where we brought her in the first night after we had her spayed. So it is her "safety zone" really. We did not ever bring her inside until she was spayed and got her shots and a check up from the vet though.

But yes they are both spayed, the females I mean.
 
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butterflyy

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Originally Posted by pee-cleaner

You really have a BAD issue. I've been there myself. Feel free to PM me.

As for cleaning, I've also found Nature's Miracle to be inadequate. What DOES work is:

2 cups hydrogen peroxide
2 t. baking soda
2 drops liquid dish soap

Mix together and either pour or spray on the area. Be sure and thoroughly saturate and allow it to dry completely. Stubborn areas may take more that one application.

Good luck.
Is this mixture something I can use on hard surfaces too, like the walls and baseboards? And should I use something before this to clean the urine off, then spray with this?
 

pee-cleaner

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Yes, you can use in on hard surfaces. No real need to pre-clean other than wipe up with damp paper towel. Don't use on fine wood furniture. I even used it on my leather sofa with success (it would have been a goner otherwise so had nothing to lose.)
 

plar

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Originally Posted by Butterflyy

They are spraying several times a day, ALL over the house. This is really out of control. Any advice you can give besides the obvious which I have already read about is more than welcome. Thanks in advance.
You should drop the cats at the nearing animal shelter or the street. Make them someone else's problem.

Sorry I was joking. I have no idea what to do, except that I wish you best of lucks/
 

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My Oscar started spraying a few months ago. He was checked for a UTI, we tried Feliway, Cat Attract, changing to other litters...nothing was working. So now he is on amitriptyline, an anti depressant. It's very cheap, and on the $4 generic list at pharmacies. You might want to check with your vet about it, after you've exhausted all other options. It seems to be working here.
 
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butterflyy

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Originally Posted by Kit E Cat

My Oscar started spraying a few months ago. He was checked for a UTI, we tried Feliway, Cat Attract, changing to other litters...nothing was working. So now he is on amitriptyline, an anti depressant. It's very cheap, and on the $4 generic list at pharmacies. You might want to check with your vet about it, after you've exhausted all other options. It seems to be working here.
I was actually thinking that it could be something like this too. Both of them, while they have completely different personalities, have their "mental issues" if you will. One of them spooks out over anything he doesn't recognize, and the other one is very high strung he can't sit still more than 2 minutes.

I had considered Rescue Remedy, I used to own a dog grooming/pet sitting business when I lived in Florida, and a customer of mine swore by this. Has anyone used it, and if so would you recommend it? I am tired of wasting money at pet stores on stuff that isn't working =(

This is the site for it, any input? http://www.rescueremedy.com/pets/
 

kit e cat

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I tried rescue remedy with Oscar and with one of my dogs.I'm not a fan of over medicating or medicating when not necessary, but the amitriptyline was our last resort. It seems to be working. Cheap as well. Even for 2 cats it would be cheap. It didn't change his personality in the slightest either, except that he isn't aggressive anymore towards the other cats. He's still sweet and loving. I thought it would dope him up, but the vet said if it did, it would only last for about the first 2 weeks then his energy would come back. And that was true.
 

marjan

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A lot of maybies here...

Maybe you want to try to cage one of the male and alternately cage the other male cat. Maybe the males are stress with each other. Maybe both male are not comfortable with each other yet so they are marking their territory.
 
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butterflyy

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Originally Posted by marjan

A lot of maybies here...

Maybe you want to try to cage one of the male and alternately cage the other male cat. Maybe the males are stress with each other. Maybe both male are not comfortable with each other yet so they are marking their territory.
The 2 males have been together since they were born. This was something that started after they were neutered too. 1 of them started spraying at about 6 months old. They sprayed even before the 2 females came here (see my original post for info about that).

Kit E Cat - Do you think that I would have to physically take the cats into the vet in order to get them on anti-depressants? The more I think about it, I really think that could help, in more ways than just the spraying, and I am certainly willing to try anything at this point. We are going on vacation next week for a week so right now wouldn't be good money wise to spring for 2 cats to see the vet, just wondering if this could be something they could prescribe over the phone. Thanks again for your info and input!!
 

howtoholdacat

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Have you always used the same vet or have you seen another for a second opinion? Sometimes neutering goes wrong. Maybe it's a case of some "boy parts" not being completely removed?
 
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butterflyy

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Originally Posted by howtoholdacat

Have you always used the same vet or have you seen another for a second opinion? Sometimes neutering goes wrong. Maybe it's a case of some "boy parts" not being completely removed?
Oh my gosh, that would be awful =( Both cats were spayed at the local ASPCA here, but they no longer have a vet section, only an adoption section. They have seen the new vet 1 time this year so far for shots, thats it.

So far today (that I have seen) they have sprayed 6 different times. I am sure most of you here know how lovely cat urine smells especially once the weather gets warm.
 

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I just wanted to add that mine started it after they were neutered too! Hmm, very weird, Ive always wondered if my vet messed something up. I also wanted to say that I use the Natures Miracle Orange Oxy which works better (it seems) to clean up the pee than the regular. You might want to invest in a black light if you havent already, so you can make sure you dont miss spots.
 

meezersmom2

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I must be in the dark about this--I was under the impression male cats that had been neutered were unable to spray. (Sounds like I was misinformed!) However, my younger male kitty (whom I jokingly refer to as "Studly" acts as if he would very much like to get his paws on a female, because he's always "humping" a soft blanket or whatever, and does, on occasion, shake his tail, going through the motions of spraying (thank goodness, nothing comes out!)
 
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butterflyy

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Well I got the blacklight. I am sitting here crying right now as I type this. It is MUCH worse than I had ever thought, I am overwhelmed, disgusted, angry, sad and everything else all at once. I have NO idea how I will be able to clean all of this, and many things in my house are destroyed.

The room with the 2 female cats, and my guest room are just....there is no words. The males are spraying ON my female cats food and water dishes and all over the walls near them. I do wash those dishes everyday when I give them fresh food and water, but this is just disgusting. The baseboards ALL around the room are covered with cat urine, and I scrub those down EVERY weekend.

They were spraying before the 2 females came here however. I don't even know what to do at this point. I am mixing up the hydrogen peroxide/baking soda mixture that pee-cleaner recomended, and will start cleaning tonight.

After I had done the sweep with the blacklight upstairs, I took a quick shower. In the 20 or so minutes I was in the shower, they sprayed the door to my guest bedroom, and there is fresh spray on my couch. I am in tears, I just don't know how to handle this.
 

monaxlisa

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Im sorry its so bad
I've had a few nasty shocks like that too. I havent tried the peroxide/baking soda but when I run out of my Natures Miracle Ill give it a go. What I've been doing is wiping up the pee with lysol wipes and then spraying it with the cleaner. You could even add a drop or two of essential oil (like orange, or lavendar or something nice and soothing) do the peroxide mix so it smells nice.
 
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