MAJOR Problem  

Well, my first thought is to ask your husband what he'd like done with him when he's well over 90 years old and sick because someone brought toddlers into his house! And ask him how much fun it would be climbing several flights of stairs, in his 90's, to go to the bathroom! Maybe be nicer about it, but he's not being very understanding, IMO.

Seriously, your girl may not be able to get up and down those stairs so well and quickly enough - I'd definitely be putting boxes on every floor. If the kitten's poo is so stinky, I suspect his food isn't agreeing with him...talk to the vet about alternates and slowly introduce new food to him. The kittens may also be bothering her when she's using the neighboring boxes. She needs her own boxes (also, try Cat Attract litter).

I'm honestly not sure what to do at this point - can you segregate the kittens into a separate area? Unless you can make the study a perfect world for your girl, and make sure you spend plenty of time with her? I kind of hate the idea that she's isolated from her home.

Also, now that her appetite is off, I think you really need to see the vet and make sure she's ok - the stress of the kittens may really have thrown off all sorts of functions - I'd definitely be checking for UTIs, etc.

BTW, have you tried Feliway diffusers? How did you introduce the kittens - I wonder if you have to go back to square one there.

If it were me, and the kittens weren't working out, existing cat takes precedence. Figure older kitty has earned seniority and a stress-free retirement package for services rendered, and the new kitties have only been there a few weeks and are more likely to be rehomed than a cat well over 10 years old.

For a two story, I'd put a litterbox downstairs somewhere. Sometimes when you gotta go, you really gotta go, and in old age I can imagine that "uhoh" can happen more often. Personally, I'm a fan of keeping litterboxes in closets, and just putting a cat door on the closet door. Rule of thumb is usually to have numbers of cats +1 litterboxes anyway. So one cat gets two litterboxes, two cats get three, three cats get four. I went overboard and my two cats get four (two in each closet in separate rooms), lol, but hey better safe than sorry. Best of luck.

My boy had really stinky poo on two brands of food - introduced another food, stink mostly gone - and he rarely covers. That's why I brought that up. Especially since only one cat has the issue- the food really may not agree with him, so I'd think I'd be asking vet for advice on alternate foods. In my case, Nutro and Hills CD worked well - others, not so much. My girl, of course, has a cast iron stomach - eats anything, and her poo truly has very little odor. She must have good stomach enzymes!

Also, you said Mist had gone from an eager eater to having little appetite - that's not a good sign, as you know. That, with the litter box issues, suggested a vet check to me. I'm not sure why your vet's office started talking about sedatives without a physical exam - unless that was just in chatting with the receptionist, and really not sure why she would bring sedation up on her own. In any event, with all the stress Mist is going through, a senior panel and check up is not amiss, IMO - I'm guessing she goes twice at year at her age, so maybe her next check up is coming right up?

My boy had all sorts of litter box issues - believe me, I've had poo and pee in undesirable places - and it turned out, in his case, to be physical issues induced by the stress of introduction, and later, by having struvite crystals and a reaction to the fish wet Hills C/D. When I brought my second cat in, my boy, I was strongly advised to bring in a cat who was about the same age - I still had some issues, and it was a hard week or three. I did learn quickly never ever to move a litter box to a new location too quickly, though! Actually, I just kept adding more - I've got four smallish boxes, in different areas, for two cats, and I'm on one level. I bet Mist will be happier utilizing a box without worrying about the two toddlers bugging her or potentially guarding the boxes against her.

Every cat behaviorist will suggest boxes on every level, especially for cats either very old, or very young - not always that easy to get to the box in time. I spent a lot of time checking for guidance on box issues - I know it's not fun, and I know it's hard to stay calm and understanding. And I know a lot of people are adverse to having boxes in different areas - but, when working with cats who have had inappropriate elimination issues, I think you really have to look at it from the cat's perspective, not the human's.

Glad to see your husband was able to calm down - nope, not fun to run into poo in the wrong place, but not fun for the kitty who poo'd in the wrong place - whichever one it was, was trying to tell you something.

I'd also get the Cat Attract and Feliway diffuser for a try pretty quickly.

Oh, I've read some TCS members have put in a screen door in when the babies are able to leap over baby gates.

Poor Mist! Poor you! Poor husband!

In my opinion, I'm with Ducman69 that Mist deserves all the consideration. I'd put easy access litter boxes, with cat attract litter, wherever she goes. I'd let her have exclusive access to one floor of your 2 story house, and the kittens could have the other floor. If that means layering baby gates on top of each other or installing a screen door (temporarily) then I would. And I believe in Feliway diffusers - though they take time to work and you may need several They are for Mist, so they should be wherever she is isolated.

Mist has been through a lot with the loss of Fog (even if it wasn't obvious - it rocked her world) and now the newcomers. She is an elderly cat and needs peace and comfort for her old body and mind. Please give her lots of love and attention. Kiss her on her nose for me, will ya?

A trip to the vet wouldn't be a bad idea either.

And maybe a food change of Mr. Poe would help the problem there. It's worth experimenting with that.

I hope things clam down and work out. These kinds of problems are not unusual when integrating cats into a household. Poop on a leather sofa is easy to clean up, at least. It could be a lot worse.

Best wishes,

Robin

Since she isn't eating, you should take her to the vet, make sure she's ok. Make sure it's not something else, other than the kittens causing her to stop eating. Our original vet blamed the kittens. There was something else wrong, Lynxx died before the second vet had a chance to run more tests. Just because problems started for her when you got the new kittens, doesn't mean the problems are all caused by the new kittens.

One thing the vet told us yesterday is that when a cat doesn't eat enough, they become more skittish, nervous, and jumpy. With Mist not eating well, this is only contributing to her skittishness. The desire for her to withdraw indicates something is definitely not right. Get her to the vet NOW for a complete blood work up and thorough examination to rule out any liver function problems and also kidney problems. The stress she's been under is definitely not good for her body and really only aggravates everything else.

When you get home from the vet increase the number of litter boxes in your house to at least 4 and make some of those easily accessible to her. You might want to put up a kiddie gate on the stairs so that she has run of the top floor and the little ones are confined to the bottom floor. Run several feliway diffusers and if need be, get one of those comfort collar things for her.

Whatever you do, you MUST keep her eating and drinking.

I would still get her to the vet just to be sure all is well with her enzymes, liver, and kidney functions since she's not been eating. Feed her small frequent meals until she's back to her normal feeding level.

Oh, she looks just like my little girl!

One e-vet told me that when a cat is off their appetite, anything is ok to get them eating again - they actually keep cans of Friskies, etc., at the clinic to tempt the finicky. It must be the equivalent of McDonald's fries.

Maybe the out of sight, out of mind will work for her (and hopefully the terrible twosome will not be tempted to bother granny down the road) - but, honestly, at her age, I'd really get her in for a senior panel. It can't really hurt, and if nothing whatsoever is wrong, you've got the baseline. It's on my mind because I just made appointments for my two for later January - and they're only 8-ish (adopted as adults). Technically they're not seniors as that's defined these days, but you get more tests with the senior panel.

I'm assuming she's got a pan in that room, right? Has she pooped yet, or is it too early?

With all the stress she's had lately, I would still consider having blood work done again. Stress can really do a number on the body and it's possible that things are off because of that.

An older cat may not mind having a bedroom/study to herself. It's peaceful. One of my mom's cats (OK, one of my childhood cats!) is 21 now, and has had the bedroom to herself for a few years. If we try to take her out, she runs right back in. . .if we close the door, she runs to the door and sits quite stubbornly waiting to go back to HER room! So if that's what keeps Mist happy (and the couch poop-free), it sounds like a good solution.

I think a lot of the same suggestions are going to apply. This kitten may have had an 'uh-oh' moment and not been able to get to/remember where the heck the litter pan was - it keeps moving on him, if I reading this right. Again, I suggest adding a lot more pans to the home, in various locations, despite what hubby might want. Kitten Attract or Cat Attract litter is suggested, at least in one pan. And get the Feliway diffusers for the home. Also, give your husband a beer or a massage, whatever he needs to calm down a bit.

How did you clean the sofa - with an enzyme cleaner or something like Zero Odor to remove the odor? Otherwise, kitten just figures it's another nice place to poo.

And this kitty is under stress as well - last one in, big cat hisses at him, mommy and daddy stressed, etc. I really would suggest a vet check for all the cats.

And, honestly, hubby has to chill a bit IMO - of course it's annoying, but we are talking very senior citizens and babies he's angry with, and without even trying the usual recommendations. First he wants to toss the cat of many many years...then he wants to toss out babies. Then he's not amenable to making sure they have enough bathrooms in enough locations, at least as you describe it. Honestly, if it were me, he'd be the one getting tossed. No one is even sure which cat it was, let alone check for any physical issues, right?. I think it's a little early to be talking about rehoming, don't you? And, yes, I have lived through this and thought about rehoming - but most times a little patience and trying a few things resolves the issue. BTW, you need at least four boxes, in different locations, for three cats. Not four boxes lined up next to each other - that looks like just one big pan to a cat.

BTW, how often are the pans being scooped? This little one might be picky about texture of litter or cleanliness - but I suspect it's more that he just can't get to the box quickly enough, or that he's ill. Was the poo totally normal? A lot of times sick cats will eliminate inappropriately to communicate that they are feeling unwell. The first thing with any elimination issue is for the cat to have a thorough exam. If a few more boxes and Cat Attract doesn't work over the weekend, I'd be getting them all into the vet Monday morning. I'd still get Mist in for a check up, no matter what - her last panel was before the kittens were brought in - that's a lot of stress that she's been under in the last month or so - and that's all it takes to affect her health. Hopefully there's been no physical issues, but it wouldn't hurt to have her looked at.

I hope your husband calms down and shows a little more patience with all the cats, as he did with Mist earlier. Pets are like kids - or any human - accidents are going to happen. And it's not fun, and it's hard to be calm, especially if expensive things are getting 'ruined'...but in my case I figured I offered my cats a home, and it was up to me to try every possible solution to our litter box problems. I just hate to see cats returned for litter box issues right away, before trying suggestions offered by vets or behaviorists - it's often a death sentence, as you noted with Mist. I'm sure many people would have put my Dante to sleep with his issues - and it wasn't fun, but he hasn't had an 'accident' in over a year, and looking back, I can see why he had issues to start out with. He's returned my efforts with love and devotion, honestly. I no longer care about the carpet in the back bedroom not being pristine anymore.

I'd ditch the husband, but can understand after that much time to train him maybe it's not an option. Ask him if he'd dump their children if they had an accident when potty training?

Add more litterboxes in more readily available places. Feliway may help. Make sure you clean the area with an enzymatic cleaner. And yes I know in this location it sounds insane - but put a litterbox there. Cat attract litter has been known to work wonders. Squishy sprays in the house, but not when he has CA litter.