Can someone help? I don't understand!

My 2.5 year old cat Max hasn't been using his litterbox. He poos on the floor about once every other day. We have started to clean the litterbox twice a day to try to solve the problem. We are not sure why he is doing it!! He will just go to the litterbox and instead of going in, he will just poo on the floor...right next to the litterbox. The litterbox is NOT dirty even a little bit. This is what is so wierd. Does anyone know why he does this or how we can stop it?? We have tried squirting him with water when he does it. He knows that he is in trouble even before we punish him...he knows what he is doing, but why does he do it??
Any advice would be helpful! Thanks!

Is he peeing okay in the litterpan? Have you taken him to the vet to get him checked out? Have you changed litter and using a clumping litter (some cats hate that because it balls up underneath and between their pads. If he is peeing okay in the box, then you need to make the area around the box unattractive for him. This can be done by taking a very large sheet of tin foil and setting it under the pan. But if he is not peeing that you can see, you should take him in to be checked as he could have crystals or other problems. Good luck. Also if Max is a long hair, you can try shaving the hair around his rectum and see if that helps.

Max was just in for his shots and I asked the vet about it...he said that everything looks fine. He is peeing fine and it is always in the litterbox. I will try the foil...that sounds like it might work.

My guess is that he is standing in the litter box and aiming outside the box. If this is true then try getting a litter box with really tall sides. He won't be able to squat and aim outside the box at the same time.

Nope, he's not doing that. He is purposely pooing outside the litter box. He doesn't even try to get in. I am so frustrated...I love him so much but he is really making me mad!! What is a good way to punish him so he won't do it again? Please help!

Another guess.....perhaps he hates his kitty litter. Many cats refuse to use scented litter and others don't mind the scents, but hate rough clay or other large grained litters.

Perhaps he pees in the box because he knows he would get his feet wet if he peed on the floor, but since poop stays right where you drop it, he will poop on the floor in order to avoid stepping in the litter.

So....get a couple of new litter boxes and try different brands of litter in each box. It will cost a few dollars to conduct this experiment, but it might end up reducing your stress in the long run.

By the way...try not to punish your cat when he is going potty. This will teach him to be afraid to poop and he will start doing it in hidden places far away from the box. Or...he will start holding it until he makes himself sick and pooping becomes painful.

Since he is doing it near the boxes he is telling you he knows the right spot to poop, but for some reason he doesn't like the box. Once we figure out why he doesn't like the litter box, we will be able to solve the problem with no trauma to the cat or to your relationship with the cat.

Have faith! With all of the cat people on this site, we'll figure it out eventually!

By the way...does his poop look okay? No blood or slime?

Hehehe! Poop looks great actually! If I catch him in the act, it doesn't even make a mess. We have been using the same litter for the last 1.5 years...do you think he's just starting to hate it now? I never punish him when he is going...but I will make a note to just ignore him, if I catch him. I'm going to try to get a litter box tomorrow and some new litter...ANY SUGGESTIONS??

I stopped using litter boxes years ago. I use those big flat plastic bins you get at K-Mart or Wal-Mart that you store sweaters and stuff in underneath your bed. But then, I have multiple cats, but maybe, you might want to get kitty a bigger box to use. And please don't punish kitty for going potty no matter where that might be. They are not like dogs and can't understand that type of discipline for doing what comes naturally.

My Loki will not use the litter box unless it is absolutely clean from pee and/or poop. So let's say he peed and I have not scooped he won't poop. Will you kitty poop in the litterbox let's say if he aleady peed in it and you have not cleaned out the pee clump? Maybe try two litterboxes one for pee and one for poop. Just a thought. Good luck!

I would try Hissy's suggestion. Usually when they poop right next to the box they are just not comfortable where they need to go. He may need more room to move or to bury it.

I wanted to thank all of you for your helpful suggestions. We had a little bit of a hunch that it was actually my other baby, Sydney, that was causing Max problems. You see, Sydney always pees in the corners and no matter what litter we used, it would only clump on the exposed side and not the other. I think that when Max stepped in the litter box and felt the squishy-ness, it freaked him out. So, we changed to the crystals. It took a little bit of getting used to them...they are kind of noisy when they are walked on...but Max is doing great now. He hasn't had an accident since we've got them! Just wanted to share...thank you very much!

A little persistence and a touch of creativity solve almost any problem! Good job helping your cat feel more comfy going potty.

This may be a long shot but here goes.
When Midnight was still alive he went through a very similar stage but it did not happen all the time, any way we invested in a few more litter boxes for a round the house , by sheer luck the store was out of the normal size ones and I had to buy the bigger size, this turned out to be a real blessing .
The problem resolved it self still not sure if it was the bigger size or the fact that he had others to choose from.
Try it it may work

Tish


never forget you Midnight