Urination problem - at wits end...

A little background... Mungo is 8 years old, neutered male, domestic tabby. He is asthmatic and on prednisone and theophylline. He takes those once or twice a day when having problems, otherwise every other day. He has a brother (Teaser) that is in good health. Their cousin (Scoots) is in good health (other than being fat).

Mungo has had a urination issue from time to time since he was about 1 yr old. He does not spray - he squats and urinates. He does the "squirt wiggle" all over the place when he is happy, but he shoots blanks.

From time to time, he will start urinating out of the litter box. We use Littermaids with premium clump litter and have not really changed litter in any pattern consistent with his urination issues. Shortly after the first time we caught his doing it, we found out he had a UTI which was dealt with. He has opted for our bed, our couch (2 of them), laundry (dirty or clean), and rugs galore. He has even gone in the wood box next to the wood stove.

The Littermaids are placed inside wooden boxes to hide them. They remain fairly odor free due to good ventilation and frequent cleaning. The one has the door off because the fat cat was having sizing issues with getting in and out. There are a total of three litter boxes, one on each level.

We have tried to clean the carpets by the book with Natures Miracle or Simple. It seems to be hit or miss with those two. I have tried Feliway spray but without much luck.

I am dying for some good suggestions. Our vet has been mostly useless as he keeps saying it is the other cat, or food, or dirty litter boxes. Scoots didn't exist during the first 4 years of this problem so that is not the problem. His food and amounts have not changed in years so that is out. As for the boxes, I know if it is real bad, he won't touch it so we are very religious about keeping them clean and odor free.

Any suggestions? We can't afford much more carpeting or hardwood. He is running out of chances...

I would get him to another vet fairly quickly and have them do a needle draw of urine from the bladder and test for bacteria. Sounds to me pretty much like he has a health problem and not a behavioral one.

I would also consult another vet ASAP. How long has he been on Prednisone? Has your vet ever checked his blood sugars to rule out diabetes or kidney problems? As for the littermaids, have you thought of adding another old fashioned litterbox? Maybe he'd prefer the low tech solution. Finally, I agree with you about Nature's Miracle & Simple solution. There are a couple of other products out there that contain a bacteria & the enzyme. NM & SS only contain the enzyme. The others have a natural bacteria that is activated by warm water which are able to digest the urine proteins after the enzymes have broken them down. Unique Distributors and Anti-Icky-Poo are 2 that I'm aware of that contain the natural bacteria & enzyme. Unique cleaner is sold only through distributors (it works on lots of organic stains & odors not just pet stuff), and Anti-Icky-Poo is only sold online. It may be a behavioral issue that he has developed with the other cats (this can happen even if they've been okay for a while). But with a history being on Prednisone, I would definitely get his kidney function examined.

Diabetes: Yes he has been tested previously and was weel within acceptable limits.

Behavior dur to other cats: He and his brother have been together the entire time. They play together, groom each other, etc. Mungo has been doing this since about 1 yr old though and it goes in spells. He can go for a year without incident, but then when it starts, it is hard to stop.

Litter Box: One of the boxes is an old fashion box. It is rarely used. It is usually only used when we all visit the basement together to do some work. We used them oiriginally but had problems keeping them clean.

Scoots is new to the family. When we moved into this house (we bought from my parents), he was my parent's outdoor cat. He came in a lot with us and they all got along (within reason). Mungo is very aggressive with Scoots but they do play "chase" and never fight. Heck, Mungo and Teaser get into knock-down, drag-out matches sometimes (play).

I will look into a new vet as I have been considering this. This is the third vet due to moves. The first two cared and were much more advanced. I think this vet is mainly a dog vet. The previous ones had multiple vet practices with experts in different areas.

I will also look into the other cleaners. As much as I have spent on NM and SS, I should be a part owner.

I agree with Hissy, that a vet visit is the best idea. However, if the vet finds nothing medically wrong, you can read through this thread for lots of ideas on how to stop this behavior.

Good luck and let us know what the vet finds.

I have to agree with the other that the first thing is a vet trip to rule out a current UTI. However, once that is taken care of I would like to suggest a litter brand. I use it because I've got 4 cats in 400 sq feet & one of them has a very mild case of asthma. It's called "Cat Attract". It's specially formulated for cats with litter box issues, it is also something like 98.7% dust free. I got it for the low dust because of Jordan's asthma. However, my hair dresser had a problem cat I told her about it & she switched. She told me her cat started using the box that day & has not gone ouside of the box again.

I definitely agree with the second opinion suggestions.

This page:
The Litter Box From Your Cat's Point of View
has some great info too - things about a box or its surroundings that might bother a cat and cause him to stop using the litterbox.

also this product draws them to the litter www.zero-odor.com You just spray the litter after your clean the box and also it knocks out odor.