New home/litterbox woes/leaving cat alone?

Hello!

Here's my story.
My ex and I adopted two cats a few years ago. When we split, he kept them. The older of the two, Cleo, started peeing on his bed a few months ago, at times when we was going on vacation or when he had new women over(!) and finally he decided he couldn't take it anymore and gave her back to me.

She's been with me for two days now. The first day when I left for work she peed on my couch (over a spot that a dog had peed on a *long* time ago.) Then last night she decided to use my couch as a litterbox and pee and poop. I did research on this site, found a lot of great info, and so far, she hasn't done it again. I have food set out on the couch, I cleaned with an enzymatic cleaner,I bought and used Feliway, and Cleo now has two litterboxes, very similar to the ones she had with my ex. We'll see how it goes.

She's also VERY jumpy, runs and hides under my bed or behind the fridge when there are any loud noises from the upstairs neighbors. She seems to be in better spirits as time passes, but I'm worried about this weekend. I have to leave her alone for most of Sunday, and then most of Monday. I'm worried she'll freak with me gone so long.

Any comments or advice??

WELCOME to this site! I am addicted to this site. Grin.

Sounds like u are on the right path regarding the peeing situation. That's great that ur ex was willing to give her back to u instead of to a shelter or something like that!

Have u taken her to a vet? If not, it might be a good idea to take her to the vet and just make sure that everything is okay healthwise because sometimes peeing problems is a sign of urinary infection (NOT ALWAYS but just to be safe..).

It will take her time to adjust to being in a new home. How long has she been with ur ex? The length of time with him probably will be a big factor in how long it'd take her to adjust to the new home. I'd recommend trying to spend as much time as possible with her the first few weeks.

Regarding u being gone during the weekend, one idea is to get a friend (who's already familiar with the cat if possible) to come and stay with her so she wouldn't be alone? That might help her feel less lonely.

I also would recommend getting another cat to keep her company while u are gone especially since she apparently have grown up with another cat? Would ur ex consider returning the 2nd cat to u? Since Cleo has grown up with this other cat.. I have 4 cats and let me tell u I feel so much better about leaving them during the day or weekend because I know they have each other to play with. (Of course I have friends who would come check on them, feed them and clean litterboxes if I'm gone longer than 1-2 days).

Keep us posted..Hope it works out!

He may give me the other cat, we did talk about it. The thing is, we got her after Cleo, and they didn't always seem to get along. He thought it was possible that she was part of the reason Cleo was peeing inappropriately.

As for a whole new cat, I'm not sure if she'd adjust well to *another* new cat. I'd love get one but....I don't know.

I believe he took Cleo to the vet when the peeing problem started. I need to check with him on that one. I asked him to come check on her Sunday for me, but he says she'll be fine. I'll ask again.
I'll be back late Sunday night, and then late Monday night, so I'll guess she'll be ok if I don't find anyone to come.....

How old is Cleo? Age could be a factor when adopting another cat. It's okay if they don't ALWAYS get along though. Some of my cats snaps at each other once in a while same as us humans snapping at each other. Grin. Could u clarify on how they didn't get along? Did they growl/hiss at each other or actually get in FIGHTS? If they do get into FIGHTS then it's not a good idea to keep them together I think..

If u do decide to bring the 2nd cat in with u or adopt another cat, there's a great thread on how to introduce cats to each other - I think it's under "behavior problems". I'd encourage u to ck it out.

Cleo is 2 1/2, the other cat (Maria) is 1 1/2. As for not getting along....they would roll around with each other, but I could never really tell if it was real fighting, or play fighting.

Here is a thread that covers this subject, but first off I would take your cat to the vet quickly for an evaluation of a UTI.inappropriate peeing


I am also putting this is behavior for you-

Then she's young enough to adjust to having another cat around. Also, cats LOVE to wrestle and play so that's normal. U will KNOW when they fight cuz they'd growl, hiss and fur literally fly! I've seen it before with a stray cat I rescued- she attacked one of my cats several times and after I stopped the fights, there'd be CLUMPS of fur everywhere. I had to find another home for the stray cat because neither of the cats were happy with each other..

All 4 of my cats LOVE to wrestle with each other so they'd start biting lightly, chase and bat at each other then start rolling/wrestling. It's really funny to watch!

Keep us posted! Grin.