Help!!!!

Ok so we have three male cats, one is 6 (Jake), one 9/10 (Smokey) and the other is 12 (Tiger). We've been having a problem lately with one of them peeing on the carpets. It started about a week and a half ago and it was only in two places. Both in corners, and it wasn't spraying because it didn't really go up the wall at all. ALL CATS ARE NEUTERED. We thought it was Jake doing this, so we took him to the vet to rule out any health related things that it could be...turns out he had fleas and all our cats are indoor so it was quite odd, we've never dealt with fleas before. They were all treated and the fleas are gone now. The vet got a urine sample from him to see if he may have crystals but the test came back fine. So this meant that he was probably peeing in to tell us something was wrong (the fleas). Well anyways, it's been almost a week and there's pee in two other places now and it's not from before 'cause it's fresh. So now we're not sure who is doing it. My mom thinks it could be Tiger because she moved one of the plants he likes to chew on so he couldn't anymore and that he could be doing it because he's upset at her. She moved the plant about the same time we started to notice urine on the carpet. We aren't really sure what to do, but my parents don't want a cat in the house that's going to destroy the carpets by urinating on them and if it's not a health issue or behavior issue that can be fixed one of them is gonna have to be put down!! Does anyone have any similar experiences or know what it could be from????

Thanks in advance.

Whenver this kind of thing happens, you must always rule out
physiological things first. I'd take them all to the vet and make
sure none of them have UTI or such like.

If you rule out physical problems, then you're left with behavioral.
You might start by putting them in a small room, preferably a
non-carpeted room, and re-training them. In a small room,
they'll be careful about urinating near bed/food, so it limits
space, and on a non-carpeted floor, there's little to entice
them to urinate outside the litterbox.

Make sure you are very good at keeping the box(es) clean. Do
you have enough? The rule-of-thumb is one box per cat/one
box per floor. So if you have three cats you need at least three
boxes, and at least one box per floor. Clean out solids daily;
change litter regularly (I do once/week, but I'm anal ...)

Even if you've had laxer habits in the past, with older cats you
often find that they go more often, so what used to work in
the past won't work now.

You can try using Feliway near the areas you don't want them
to use as elimination areas. Ask your vet about it.

Make sure you've cleared out all the urine from the areas you
don't want them to use - but don't use an amonia based cleaner,
it's smells just like uric acid. Then cover them with something
that is an unattractive surface, like plastic. That will discourage
them.

Good luck!

Carol

You've been given some good advice there!

Initially, I would have the vet see all the cats to rule out any health problems - as you're not sure who is doing this behaviour.

Please don't consider putting your cats down, this is a problem that can be fixed!!

You will need an enzymatic cleaner to remove any trace of the urine, these are available in many places: pet shops and online.

Once cleaned, place foil on the floor over the areas where the pee was - this will discourage them from using the area again (as many cats do not like the feel of foil on their feet)

As mentioned too, you could invest in some Feliway to help with discouraging marking/inappropriate peeing and to help the cats to feel comfortable.

Good Luck! Please come back and let us know how things go!

Originally Posted by Sar

You've been given some good advice there!

Please don't consider putting your cats down, this is a problem that can be fixed!!


Good Luck! Please come back and let us know how things go!

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O please don't put him down! thats awful-
not to be mean here, but pets are NOT disposable! There is an underlying cause of his urinating-please give him a chance

Is it possible there are any females in the area in heat? That will cause males to spray-sometimes even if they are nuetered. Feliway works wonders for this

It's not my choice to put them down...I would never in a million years wish for my cats to be put down for ANY reason, but it isn't my house and it isn't my choice, so please don't get mad or rude with me.

Thanks for the good advice. We bought a cleaner last week that got rid of the smell, but whoever is doing it chose a different place to pee. I have told my parents over and over again that they should all go to the vet, but they never listen to me and when Jake first got fleas I noticed he was sensitive on his bum area (where the fleas were biting) I told my parents to take him to the vet 'cause it wasn't normal and they didn't listen to me until 3 or 4 months later when pee showed up on the carpet. Then when I said, "I told ya so" they agreed...but now they're doing it again.

I agree that the very first thing you should do is have all three checked for medical issues that could be causing this.

Here are a few links to articles that may help you:

http://www.hsus.org/pets/pet_care/ou..._problems.html

http://xmission.com/~emailbox/litterbox.htm

http://www.cozycatfurniture.com/cat_...r_2_issue.html

(this one is sort of opinionated regarding types of litter which many people may not agree with, but has good info on trying to figure out how to fix the problem)http://www.catinfo.org/litterbox.htm

If you cannot find a way to work this issue out, please ask your parents to surrender the cats to a no-kill shelter instead of putting them down.

Have you actually seen them spray from a standing up position?

Do you have one more litterbox then you do cats?

Please try getting some Feliway plugins. They are a little pricey but well-worth it

Originally Posted by weebee

It's not my choice to put them down...I would never in a million years wish for my cats to be put down for ANY reason, but it isn't my house and it isn't my choice, so please don't get mad or rude with me.

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Sorry, I did'nt know you were a youngen I did'nt know its your parents wanting them PTS I was'nt trying to be mean- I just don't think putting a cat to sleep is the solution. I was a little emotional though, so sorry for getting excited.

If they are spraying, rather than peeing-most likely there is a female(s) in the area that have come into heat. This is the time in spring when they start mating. A female in heat + 3 males in one house = territory marking. Feliway is a bit pricey, but I think it will work wonders for you and your kitties. With three males extra litter boxes are always a good idea

I'm sorry you have to go through this problem, and your parents really are'nt listening. I wish they could understand how much you love your kitties, and you are concerned about them.

If they were spraying, wouldn't it be up against the wall? The areas where there's pee are soaked in like a foot away from a wall...I don't know how they would manage to do that if they were spraying. The last couple days have been good...there's no new spots as far as we can tell...but the one spot in my parent's room is big and just STINKS horrible. We've tried all types of cleaners, some that were suggested to us for urine stains from pet stores...what actually works to get the stain out and the odor too?

zero-odor works well from what I hear- I have'nt tried it yet though. My cat (Chichi)peed outside the box this morning I don't know whats going on with the peeing? Maybe they all have spring fever or something I hope you find something that work for you, cat odors can be tough! When mine have an accident, I clean the area with hot, soapy water-let dry- then sprinkle baking soda over the area, let it dry- and sweep up the remaining powder.