please help :(

Hey Guys

I really need some advice.
I have a 9month old ginger boy tabby... He is a happy cat, really soppy & loving & i love him so much! I am a really clean person & he always has a clean tray...
About 3 months ago i had my house re-carpeted, i have a looped carpet mainly throughout but in my bathroom i have a normal fluffy shag pile average bathroom carpet in cream!.
Recently he has been pooing on the bathroom carpet & its got to the stage now where he is doing it everyday & night or when ever he needs to go.
I have an off cut piece of this same bathroom carpet by my front door as i havn't got a mat yet so its just there for in the meantime, so the carpet by the front door doesnt get dirty when people come in & if i keep the bathroom door shut he will poo an wee on that!
I have a 3 year old little boy who has always been gental & good with him & i have never let him teroise the tabby they get on great, but i cant live with my bathroom door shut all the time its impossible...
I have read through most of this site, & last night i gave him 2 trays one in the normal place which is down the stairs & another in the bathroom as i read this may help him having the 2 trays & putting it in the location he keeps going to, well last night he went in the tray in the bathroom & i thought woohoo cleaned everything out... today i went to work & come home at 5 to find 3 poos on the bathroom carpet & the tray clean as i left it when i left for work this morning!!!!!!!!!!!! I just dont no what to do anymore i no its not the litre or the type trays i have, people have said to me he just be a dirty cat??? i thought cats were very clean???? i cant clean up poos everyday plus iv got my little boy to think about to this is very unhighgenic not to mention its completly recking the carpet & my bathroom is starting to stink, i love my cat so much but i just dont get why he is doing it????? before i had my carpet laid he did a few poos in my lounge which was the same txtured carpet but it was only a few times so i put it down to maybe accidents but this is gettin beyond a joke now can anyone help or tell me why my cat seems to love pooing on this certain bit of carpet im going out of my mind x ;(

Have you tried replacing the carpet with one that is a different texture?

With pooping like this and no other new animals (especially cats) in the home, it is one of two reasons:

1) Health
2) He's unhappy about something

Re: Health.
When cats that were using the litter tray stop using it, often it is because there is a health problem - it is often the only way they have to let us know there is one. Has he been to a vet within the last month or so to have a full check-up? Have you taken a poop sample to the vet? Has the vet taken a pee sample?

He could have a sensitive stomach, some type of digestive issue, colitis.... any number of things.

Re: He's unhappy about something.
Some cats are very picky about their bathroom habits. This can be something that develops. Some cats do not like to poop or pee in the same litter box. Sometimes adding another litter box (preferably in a different room) can help resolve the problem. Sometimes it is the type of litter. How are you sure it is not the type of litter or the tray? Because he used it before? Given that he is no longer using it, we cannot rule out that a problem has developed.

When is the last time you changed the tray being used - or bleached it out? If it is plastic, it absorbs smells - and cats' noses are FAR more sensitive than our noses. The trays themselves need to be bleached regularly - and even then, they need to be replaced sometimes.

Even cats that used to pee and poop in one tray sometimes decide they don't like doing that anymore.


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Once you rule out a health or diet issue with your kitty, if you try replacing the tray, or adding another tray - perhaps trying a new litter in the second tray - and none of these things work - maybe the best thing to do is to replace your bathroom and front door carpet throw rugs with a completely different style. Place the ones he's been using in the bottom of litter trays. If he starts using the trays again - add some litter to the bottom, and place those carpet pieces over the litter. Then slowly cut down the size of the carpet that is covering the litter - until he's just using the litter.

I repectfully disagree with Laurie. I suspect it is because you laid new carpet down- thus taking up all his old familiar smells that he has laid into your old carpet by kneading it, walking on it and laying on it. You have introduced a brand new smell in his home and he is confused. There is an ALIEN alert going off in his head and he is establishing his dominance by pooping on this carpet to try and get the old smell back.

You talk about a bathroom carpet- are you talking about a bathroom mat? Just a throw type carpet in your bathroom? If it is what we in the USA use typically in our homes it has a rubber backing. It is the rubber smell that is encouraging him to poop and pee there. If that is the case, then find a bathroom mat that does not have the rubber backing. You can find those- it just takes some searching.

Do you have access to purchasing Feliway Spray? If so, you need a fairly large bottle of it, perhaps even two or three. It isn't cheap, but it is more effective than anything else out there. You will need to spray the carpet several times a day, liberally and everywhere. This gives it a friendly scent and takes away the threat of an invader. Your cat should calm down, and stop being so edgy and pooping inappropriately. You just mention poop and not pee? That is why I believe it is not health related- BUT if the cat is also peeing (squatting and peeing small amounts then moving off and doing it again) then your cat likely has an UTI brought about by the stress of the introduction of the new scent.

I hope you can solve this problem, because it almost sounds like you are ready to toss this cat out of your life. I hope not, because in doing that you lose and your other cat will also become affected and mourn the loss of his friend.

Best of luck-


MA

I would consider a health issue first of all, and bring him, and a stool sample, to the vet.

Pooping three times in one day is not normal for a cat. Cats usually poop once every 24 to 36 hours.

There's something physically wrong, IMO

Welcome to the forum, and please keep us posted on (what's his name?)

MA, I certainly don't disagree that it could be the new carpet - but it was put in three months ago, and the cat began pooping (not peeing?) outside the box "recently." Our Spooky peed on the rubber-backed bathroom throw, but I didn't realize it was something that would attract them to poop on it as well. My understanding is that the original poster's cat was only pooping outside the box, and I reacted the same way as otto did - pooping more than once a day isn't normal for a cat, which sounds like a potential health issue to me.