Stray/feral peed in the house

We TNR'd this male cat over a year ago and in that time he's slowly become more social. Since September of this year, he's been coming into the house for increasingly longer periods of time, mostly to curl up on the sofa and watch Netflix with us at night (he likes cat videos too ). He goes in and out through a hole in our screen door, but since it's been getting colder I've been shutting the sliding door as well. We don't have a litter box inside, so if he gets off the sofa I will crack the door to allow him to go outside. All has been well... until last week, when I saw him pawing at the bamboo floor (in a corner where I had had a potted plant, but which I recently moved to another spot) like he was gonna pee there. I managed to interrupt him and he took himself outside to pee instead.

Fast forward to two nights ago when he'd been inside most of the day with me: He starts pawing at the hard floors again, this time in the kitchen, and squats. I was across the room and made a noise to startle him, which I thought stopped him. He went outside and seemed to pee there. He came back in and pawed in another spot and I thought, "This is getting ridiculous!" I shooed him away, but later saw that he had succeeded in peeing smallish amounts in both those spots! 

I'm not letting him in the house nearly as much now and he seems to run off to pee (in the bushes rather than his outdoor litter boxes) every time I shut the door on him. Any idea what is going on?!

I had been thinking of transitioning him to be an indoor cat because he seemed so comfortable inside, but I'm definitely having second thoughts now that he got THAT comfortable. Cat pee smell is the worst Any tips appreciated!

He may be marking, rather than peeing.  As he gets more comfortable with the new digs, he may want to make sure no one else claims his territory, hence the marking.

I agree with you - cat pee is not pleasant in any way shape or form.  Make sure you clean the areas with an enzyme cleaner (like Nature's Miracle).  The enzymes will kill the smell, making it less likely that he will pee there again.

If he's going to be inside for any length of time, can you set up an indoor litter box for him?  I'd sprinkle dirt on the litter at first, to show him what it is used for  Most cats used to going outside may not immediately recognize litter.  Having a litter box inside, even if you keep it very clean, is a sign that this house is HIS.  It may help alleviate the need to mark.

He's been outside for a bit, so he hasn't learned the niceties of being an inside cat.  It make him awhile, so be patient with him.

Thank you; I think I forgot that outdoor animals can be so territorial. He's got a pretty sweet setup in the backyard (and he mostly uses the litter boxes I set up for him out there), so for now I will fight his mind-control tactics and re-establish the house as mine   Is there anything I should know about doing this? Now I'm only letting him inside when I get his food ready in the morning and evening, at which times he's very eager to go back outside! Before, when he was coming in nightly for Netflix and it came time to go to bed, we'd have to chase him from under the tables and bribe him with treats to get him out of the house....

You really need to get him a litter box--I'm sure that will solve the problem. Mix in a little dirt from outside with the kitty litter and he will get the idea. He may be letting you know that he wants to stay indoors by peeing inside. If he's comfortable staying inside, get the litter box, and all will be happy   

OK, I'm giving the indoor litter box a try today. Thank you both for the tips, ondine and msaimee !

So much for reasserting my claim on the house... [emoji]128573[/emoji]

Well, today - after three weeks of no interest - he finally used the indoor litter! And not just once, but 4 times! Gave him treats after each time to encourage him to keep it up. Never been so happy to scoop a box [emoji]128516[/emoji] Woohoo!

congrates

Very good news.  Sometimes, they need a little time to figure it out.