I have a three year old female cat that we adopted from a local animal shelter this summer. She's spayed and declawed. The shelter was wonderful in giving behavior tips, etc, and we acclimated her quite well. Introducing her to our family, house and dog slowly, the transition went wonderously. But then we noticed that she started urinating on the carpets in the room that her litter box was. I took her to a vet, ruled out health problems, and consulted a behaviorist, and cleaned all the places that she's marked. We moved her litter box and became religious about scooping daily, not interupting her, giving her privacy in the box, exclusive access, etc, etc.
About two weeks ago though, I started noticing more "spots" about the house, and thought that it was my over active pregnant imagination. So I got down on hands and knees and smelled, sure enough, she'd started to "mark" spots all around the house. There seems to be no obvious reason or choice for these places. She'll urinate behind the couch, in the bathroom, on my daughter's shirt, in the corners, etc. etc. I'm at my wits end. We've thouroughly cleaned all these areas, and even confined her to a room with only her litter box, now we are scooping twice a day, and our hearts are broken. I CANNOT have a cat indoors that urinates everywhere. It doesn't smell now, but I know this summer it will. I've taken her to a vet now, with no health problems. No new stresses or litter box ambushes have pre-empted these episodes.
Now I'm faced with a difficult decision...I cannot just put her outside. She's lived her life indoor's, besides, the previous owners declawed her making her defenseless to outdoor living. I cannot give her to someone, knowing that she has a behavioral problem, and that not all animal lovers are as understanding as I. My children and I are very attached to her, and the thought of putting her back in a shelter makes me cry each time i think about it.
HELP!!!! is there a solution that I'm not seeing? Will her behavior ever stop?....
About two weeks ago though, I started noticing more "spots" about the house, and thought that it was my over active pregnant imagination. So I got down on hands and knees and smelled, sure enough, she'd started to "mark" spots all around the house. There seems to be no obvious reason or choice for these places. She'll urinate behind the couch, in the bathroom, on my daughter's shirt, in the corners, etc. etc. I'm at my wits end. We've thouroughly cleaned all these areas, and even confined her to a room with only her litter box, now we are scooping twice a day, and our hearts are broken. I CANNOT have a cat indoors that urinates everywhere. It doesn't smell now, but I know this summer it will. I've taken her to a vet now, with no health problems. No new stresses or litter box ambushes have pre-empted these episodes.
Now I'm faced with a difficult decision...I cannot just put her outside. She's lived her life indoor's, besides, the previous owners declawed her making her defenseless to outdoor living. I cannot give her to someone, knowing that she has a behavioral problem, and that not all animal lovers are as understanding as I. My children and I are very attached to her, and the thought of putting her back in a shelter makes me cry each time i think about it.
HELP!!!! is there a solution that I'm not seeing? Will her behavior ever stop?....
