Cat suddenly deficating in house

Hello everyone

We have two 13 year old cat. In the last few months, we have found the occasional
cat poo/Number 2 in the house on the carpet.

we have a cat door, which they have used since they were kittens to do their business
outside, and now this is happening. It doesn't happen all the time, maybe once a week or so, and always near the same place.

One of them is also been drinking a lot of water lately.

Any advice or input would be greatly appreciated


Many thanks!

Hi @janeyctc   and welcome to the site.

ls it possible to keep the two separated for a while to see who's having the issue? And when you say cat poo, is it more like diarrhea/leaking, or a solid/dry turd?

lf it is medical related, try to see it as a good thing the kitty started doing this (l know that's asking a lot ). A lot of owners never know there's an issue when their cats only toilet outside.

Here's a great link for you to read on the problem: http://www.icatcare.org/advice/problem-behaviour/soiling-indoors

Given the age, and that's it's a sudden new behaviour, combined with increased thirst, l would definitely recommend a vet visit as a first step.

lf it ends up not being medical, could there be something new going on in your garden? Maybe a new cat coming around making your kitty skittish?

To start tackling the problem l'd separate them each into their own room for the day to see who is having issues.

Good luck and keep us posted 

Do you have a liter box inside still? If not, try it. Maybe they´re just feeling too old to go out in every weather.

Also try unscented litter. One of my boys pooped on the floor to tell me he didn´t like the scented litter. Keep in mind that cat´s noses are so much more sensitive than ours. Also they might not necessarily share human opinion on scents either.

A trip to the Vet is for sure in order.   In senior cats, drinking more water can be a sign of: kidney disease, diabetes, hyperthyroidism.......and bloodwork and  urinalysis can easily check for these.    A urinalysis can also determine if kitty has a urinary tract infection (UTI).   Cats will often start "pooping in the wrong places" when they have a UTI because their bladder area is very uncomfortable and they start associating peeing with discomfort so will then start using unusual places to do their business.    So your first step, as you have 2 of them, is to figure out which is doing the pooping and drinking more......mind you to be honest, at age 13 they should both be getting an Annual Senior Vet Check that would automatically include Senior bloodwork and urinalysis that checks for the conditions above.................make sure you request that their Thyroid be checked, too.............some Vets don't automatically include it, best to ensure that it is.

Do you have litterboxes in the house at all?

What areas are you finding  poop?  On piles of clothes?  On beds?

Is the poop loose like diarrhea?

Please......consider getting an appt ASAP for BOTH...............as explained above.    The above conditions can definitely be managed much easier when caught early versus when well advanced.   And all of them can increase a cat's risk for a UTI (and therefore the inappropriate pooping and/or peeing in the house).