Adjusting an indoor/outdoor cat to indoors only

momofmany

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With my recent FLV positive problem, I've taken away outdoor privileges from my cat Bob. We know the outdoor ferals have FLV, and don't want him bringing it into the house with him.

He has been in a week and is behaving badly. Besides the obvious trying to slip outside everytime we open the door, and going from room to room, window to window and meowling like the world just ended, he is spraying and peeing in all the wrong places. I caught him 2 days ago peeing on the cat tree, and this morning peeing on our bed. I have various shapes/sizes of litter boxes, some open, some closed. I clean them out regularly. I don't think it's the litter boxes, he is simply mad at us. Our house is old and has lots of nooks and crannies for the cats to find their own space.

He was king of the outdoors and is lower on the pecking order in the house. Any ideas on how to adjust him to life in the great indoors?
 

shell

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He isn't peeing on things because he's mad at you. He's doing this because he's trying to tell you something is wrong. Is he neutered? How old is he? How many litter boxes do you have?

Maybe you could try to keep him in one large & dark room and only allow him to come out for a few minutes everyday. Everyday, you could add more time for him to be out of that room. Play some classical music and go in there several times a day to play or just read a book to him. At least that way it will relax him more and more. It sounds like he really isn't used to staying inside for long periods of time and it will take a lot of work to get him calmed down.

These are only suggestions...I'm not a expert or anything. I'm sure Hissy and many others could give you more help.

Good luck!
 

hissy

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I would say you need to take him to the vet. The stress of him being confined indoors may be to much for him and he has a urinary blockage. That would be my first guess.
 
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momofmany

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He is 6 years old and neutered. He had a vet exam last week and checked out OK. We have 4 litter boxes for 8 cats. We changed them out completely 15 minutes before he peed on the bed this morning.

We have 2 rooms quaranteened off for Ruby (one room) and the kittens (another room). I have 2 rooms left for quaranteen but neither has air conditioning and it has been close to 100 degrees here lately. Perhaps if it cools down I can try to separate him for a while until he gets used to using a litter box. He did spend more time outdoors than in and probably hasn't used a litter box since he was a kitten. I think he just forgot what they were for! My red-tabbies all have stubborn genes in them along with that red-headed temper (like their mom) :-(
 

kitty queen

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Maybe you could do some shifting around. If you had one of those circle gates, you could put the kittens in there, put Bob in the room the kittens had. That way they aren't closed in a room, but are seperated. You might be able to put them in a secluded corner. I would try to retrain him to use a litter box. If it is a pecking order thing you could feed him seperately for a while, so that he feels that he is at the top, when he is really the only on there. Does the rooms that don't have airconditioning have a fan in it? As far as I know you can use those heating pads for cooling also. There are ways to cool a room. If the kittens and the adult cat are all infected with the same thing, then maybe you could keep them together? I don't know. Be creative. Things will work out.
 

hissy

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Well it is possible that he still does have an UTI stress can trigger those quickly. But what I would do if I were you, is go out and buy a bag of organic potting soil and use that in his litter box to see if that helps. Once he catches on, start mixing it with a little bit of clay litter until you have all clay litter in there for him.
 
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momofmany

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I'm going to bring him back to the vet tomorrow. I realized that I had him checked out at the time I brought him in the house. He's been in a week now and the stress could be getting to him. Good advise.

I have ceiling fans in both remaining rooms but those rooms get warmer than the outside since they are upstairs in the house (and heat rises). He's used to heat but I don't want to smother the guy.

In about 3 weeks when I have rerun the FLV tests on everyone, I could potentially open up the kitten room and let Bob have that. It has a window airconditioner. Then again, I could just install another window air-conditioner in another bedroom.

Haven't caught him peeing since yesterday morning. I think I'm going to have to spend the time re-training him on using the litter box. I've done that before - difficult but doable if you can isolate him. In the last 6 years, he is only in house long enough to eat and get lovin and he's out again (he's my busy cat). The only extended stays are when the weather is really hot or cold and he doesn't like it outside.
 
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momofmany

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I took Bob into the vet yesterday and he checked out clean for UTI. He is settling down a little bit - I'm giving him extra attention and he gets a "special treat meal" at night. No spraying (that I've found) since late last week. He's still not entirely happy, but at least he is not physically ill. I guess we just ride this one out with him for a while longer.....
 
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