Geriatric Litter Box Problem

myboys15

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My boy Marty is 17 1/2 years old. He has age realted kidney problems and arthritis of his hind legs. He drinks LOTS of water. In the past he would use the little box and occassionaly get urine and litter stuck to his foot.

Now if he uses the litterbox 5 times at least 4 of those times he has litter on his feet, bum and pee-pee. And, if I get lucky with no litter on him, his pee-pee area is wet. I use scoop away.

Has anyone else gone through this?
Anyone use Pine or newspaper litter?

I have also thought that with his leg problems using a "lowered Lipped" litter box, thinking that he may have trouble getting out of the box after using it. And, stepping in the "pee" trying to get out.
 

happilyretired

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When my girl was about 15, we discovered that she had a spinal injury that limited her mobility (she died at close to 20). My vet recommended a stainless steel pan (about 18x22) with a one and a half inch lip (from a restaurant supply place) to use as a litter pan to help her get in and out. About the same time, she had a tumor (fortunately benign) removed from a paw, and I switched from clumping litter to Yesterday's News (used at the vet). I removed feces daily and changed the litter completely every other day. The newspaper pellets worked well in the shallow pan, and I don't think that clay litter would have worked.

We had no litter box problems from then on.
 
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myboys15

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Oh My! I am so sorry about your girl. It sounds like despite the injury and tumor she lived a great life with you.

I will try the newspaper (yesterday's news) and the pan suggestion. My Marty was studded before I adopted him and in the past "sprayed" in the litter box but I do not think that would be a problem now.

Thank you!
 

abunaisakana

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When we inherited a late teens kitty with mobility problems and later bladder incontinence. We had to wash her hindquarters for the urine and we also wiped her with baby wipes, her privates were very inflamed because of constant urine touching them. We also put her bed, food, and her litter right next to each other so she wouldn't have to go far to use the litterbox, which we surrounded with sheets of plastic.

The fact that your boy is wet a lot of the time makes me wonder if he isn't also having some incontinence issues (although I assume you would notice this in wet bedding) or it may be hard for him to go and he dribbles on himself (UTI?).

Or it could be the fact that getting into and out of the box is hard and he ends up sitting in the litter instead of squatting. I think the best thing to do is try and observe him in the litterbox to know exactly what he is experiencing in there.
 

mews2much

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I use Yesterdays News with Coco my 16.5 year old Cat. My Coco has the arthritis bad. Hav eyou talked to the vet? Yesterdays News does work better with her so it might help your cat.
 

darlili

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I wonder if Dr. Elsey's (of Cat Attract fame) senior cat litter might help a bit as well. below is the description from the web site. I think you don't have to keep the litter very deep with this formula, so it's a little easier for some older cats to use. I just love the Cat Attract stuff, so I'm always willing to try one of his other formulas as necessary.

Also, I've read using very low-walled litter boxes (even sweater boxes) might help with older cats, if their flexibility becomes limited.

And, I'm sure you've been to the vet and checked for diabetes, etc., etc. Thank you for caring so much for your guy in his elder years...

"This litter will help prevent kidney failure and urinary infections that can cause non-use of the litter box. Precious Cat Senior litter has a small particle size that cats prefer. Senior litter absorbs urine on contact and traps it inside the crystal to prevent bacterial growth, thus helping to prevent urinary tract infections. Its small particle size and dust fines also coat and dehydrate cat feces to reduce odor and prevent bacterial growth of E-Coli. E-Coli bacteria grow on feces and along with reduced natural body defenses can lead to kidney failure, urinary and uterine infections. Precious Cat Senior has no organic material such as wheat, pine, corn and paper that can support bacteria and fungal growth, there by helping to prevent urinary infections.

Prevents bacterial growth
Biodegradable ? when put in a compost pile or landfill, the material completely biodegrades back to the earth in one month
Traps urine on contact
Non-toxic
Helps prevent kidney failure and urinary tract infection
Small particle and dust fines coat and dehydrate feces
Easy to scoop
Low tracking
Each cube contains a free litter box solutions booklet'
 
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myboys15

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Thank you all for the suggestions and ideas.

My Marty sees his dr. 2-3x a year due to his age and kidney issues. I am at a loss some time bc up until his brother passed away he was fine. In the past 2 years he aged 10 years. In the past month he has slowed down. He is due for his 6 month check up next month.
Thank you again and I will look into Dr. Elsey's (of Cat Attract fame) senior cat litter.

I will post an update!
 

momofmany

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Originally Posted by darlili

Precious Cat Senior has no organic material such as wheat, pine, corn and paper that can support bacteria and fungal growth, there by helping to prevent urinary infections.
Thanks for posting that! I hadn't even thought about organic materials supporting bacteria and fungi. I use a product with corn and Muddy is having recurring problems. (time to switch litter brands!)
 

laureen227

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Originally Posted by Momofmany

Thanks for posting that! I hadn't even thought about organic materials supporting bacteria and fungi. I use a product with corn and Muddy is having recurring problems. (time to switch litter brands!)
here's a link for the CatAttract if you can't find it locally - they have a vendor list.
 
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