Should He Stay or Should He Go?

Help! I'm at my wits end and entertaining the thought of getting rid of Valentine. We've had him since he was 4 months old, he's turning 8 years next month.

Over the years sometimes he has peed in the tub which of course I mind but I can easily fix with some Lysol and the shower water. But now he is pooping in the tub! And he's taught the kitten to do it!

I reprimanded him by placing him in the tub and saying sternly not to do this. His response was to go in the litter box and shake his tail as if he were trying to make a poop (although nothing came out since it was already in the tub). I said, "that's right," and left. But he continues to do so.

The other thing is he is waking us up late at night and early in the morning with a very loud and long meow that sounds like ROOOOOOO. If I close my door he does it more; if I keep my door open, he does it until I wake up and verbally invite him to come on my bed, then he goes to sleep--so either way my sleep is broken.

Re the poop: I cleaned the tub and put their food and water bowls in it, figuring he wouldn't poop where he eats. He peed right on the plate.

Also, while he loves me, he is cruel to my daughter and has been so since she was little. When she pets him he'll take a swipe at her and has even bitten her on the nose a few times.

Should I get rid of him? Any ideas?

Thanks,

Breindel

i hate to be overly critical- but this is not behaviour that warrants getting rid of your cat of eight years! There are many posts here about cats that do similar things as yours, and the behaviour is usually relatively easily fixed.

i am in the situation where my cat went crazy because she got scared at a noise, and viciously attacked me, my husband and our other cat- but we are working through it because, unless the cat is rabid or something, she is still the cat that i made a commitment to and still the cat that we love and is a part of our family.

i would suggest doing a search here for the problems you are speaking of- inappropriate pooping and meowing indicate that kitty might be sick. the swiping at your daughter doesn't sound like it is very serious, and that behaviour can be modified. i am new to this site, but it is a great resource with great suggestions for helping our kitties be happy and well.

I just think its wrong that anyone feel pets are disposable.After 8 years! Try keeping water in the bath tub. That should stop him from using it as a litter box. Or keep the bath room door shut.

dont get rid of him

try leaving some water in the tub or putting a litter tray in there. how many littert trays have you got already?

maybe you dont have enough, he doesnt like them or the litter is wrong for him?

has he been to the vets to rule out any health issues?

I agree with Maverick_Kitten ... a vet visit in called for to rule out any odd health issues first.

Keeping a little water in the tub is a good idea or moving the litter box there is another. A lot of people will "retrain" to a litter box by confining the cat in a small room (perhaps the bathroom) with food, water and litter box until kitty gets the hang of using the box again. There are many threads here on this topic - try doing a search for inappropriate elimination and see what others have tried.

The first thing to do is to make an appointment to take him to the vet to make sure he doesn't have some kind of urinary track infection or something else wrong. Illnesses manifest in unusual ways with cats.

Second. How many litter boxes do you have? With two cats the absolute minimum is two litter boxes, preferably at least three. The kitten may be adding stress to your older cat and may be bothering him while he in the box.

Third. You may need to clean the litter boxes more often than you did before because of the new kitten. If the kitten is stressing the older cat, the smell of the kittens pee and poop could be bothering him.

Fourth. Have you changed the litter lately? I had a cat that started peeing on my bed. Finally I remembered that I had changed the litter. Evidently she didn't like it and put up with it for a while but then got disgusted and this was the only way she had to tell me she hated it. Try putting a different litter in ONE of the litter boxes.

Fifth. Many people have suggested Feliway or Rescue Remedy to help calm cats down. If the vet gives him a clean bill of health, you might want to try either of these products. I believe I usually see them at Petsmart or other local pet stores. Rescue Remedy is something you put in the water, Feliway goes in the air. I tend to rely on Camomile tea.

As you can see, there are several things you can try. Please do not give up hope. Let us know how things are going and I'll keep my fingers crossed for you and your cat.

You can give rescue remedy to a cat?! I never knew that. As in the same kind of rescue remedy that people have to calm themselves down?

Hi, thanks so much for the constructive suggestions! I did the water in the bathtub thing already but it leaks. I think you've got a point there about changing the litter more often. And also the idea about confining him to his room with a litter box.

What kind of litterbox do you guys have? I've been using a plain one with no liners, so it's disgusting to change and clean out. I think I'm going to invest in liners, perhaps it will be more pleasurable to change more frequently.--Also regarding getting another litterbox...where do you keep your litterboxes? We have a tiny bathroom and keep the one in there.

Also, I'd love to hear your ideas if you have, for getting him to not wake me...I really need unbroken sleep!

One more thing. That loud ROOO noise? Usually means some type
of pain or discomfort when going poo.. get that checked. Could be
he's constipated, has bowl problems, impacted anal glands or something
else.

As to going in the tub... boy wouldn't I love MY cat to understand
that!! LOL. Its a good thing actually. Lots of people have cats
that go OTHER places! The tub is easy to clean up. Look on the bright side.

I disagree with those who would use liners. Just get a REALLY large
litter box and scoop 2x daily. If you can, right after they go.

OK, thanks. I actually scoop several times a day, whenever I see poop. How much litter do you put in, and how often do you throw out the old and put in fresh litter?

cat generally dont like liners as they catch on their claws and make scary rustling noises when they try to go to the toilet.

get a large plastic container (like a toy chest) and fill it half full with the best quality litter you can afford. that way they can dig and bury to their hearts content and because its so big it needs cleaning out less often.

this is what i have:


if you can fit it in your house, get two or three of these.

you could try 'cat attract litter' which is meant to encourage cats to use the litter box.

As for the waking you up, Mav has started doing that to me. shes does it because she knows i will pay her attention. as long as she has food and water i just ignore her if she calls me before 9am. shes slowly starting to stop doing it when she realises she wont get what she wants.

for the meaness to your daughter, there are lots of threads about telling you how to win a cats trust. they have tips such as, get your daughter to play witht eh cat more, get her to feed it, give it special treats etc so the cat will associate her with good things and love rather than as a threat.

I would check with the vet first.
Does the litter clump pee? One of the first litter I tried didn't and one of my girls would do her business someplace else. I have 2 cats and scoop 2x a day. I clean out the litterbox once a week with hot water. (I leave it in the tub with the hot water running in it). if the tub leaks boils some water on the stove, this is good at killing any odor in the box.
Hope this helps!

Originally Posted by bloob & valo

OK, thanks. I actually scoop several times a day, whenever I see poop. How much litter do you put in, and how often do you throw out the old and put in fresh litter?

Click to expand...

i put in a lot of litter because my cats really like to dig.

i scoop every day and change it when it looks dirty and i am unable to clean it by scooping.

Hi Maverick,

Thank you for so many wonderful suggestions! I live in an apartment. In which room do you keep the toy chest?

Hi Jamasmom!

I tried using the clumping stuff, Fresh Step, it was awful and stuck to his paws, he had to chew it out of the crevices. I went back to regular Fresh Step.

my bedroom and one in the bathroom. i still live at home so am constrained by what my parents will allow!

when i move into my own place i would keep one in the bathroom, one in my bedroom and maybe another in the front room.

I dont seem to have the trouble with litter box smells like other people have reported, maybe because my cats are very clean and i scoop a lot and use a lot of litter? I also use litter fresh and/or bicarb of soda to mask smells.

I think that you could probably get away with a litter box hidden behind a decorative screen in a room you use often in you scooped it out enough.

OK, I will try these ideas, and update you.

Thanks so much!

Breindel

Also, Jupiter has access to the garden and i think he prefers to poop in the bushes. that might be why it doesnt smell too bad!

If we didnt have a dog I would make an outside litter box too but i cant risk them being ambushed and drooled on when they are trying to do their thing!

LOL That's a funny image! Also, I was just scooping it and I realized another problem is it seems the litterbox leaks...whenever I pick it up to wash it out, the floor is disgusting! There's always a puddle of urine for me to mop up. Do the basic ones you buy at the pet stores (aka mine) leak?

the basic ones i bought from pet stores never seemed big enough for Maverick and she only weighs 6lb!

I had problems with them cracking, tipping etc before i used a big plastic chest. Sometimes she would actually pee over the edge as she prefers to go in the corner of the box because it was too small and the sides too low.

what litter box are you using? is it the tray types?