Bedroom woes

[manders]

My cat Frank is a neutered, male, 4 year old rescue that we've had for almost 2 years now. In the past several weeks, he has suddenly started urinating on my SO's side of the bed. The first time that he did it, I blamed myself as I had had to put him in the bedroom for a little bit while we had some things delivered that required the front door to be left open. I quite thoroughly cleaned the sheets and mattress after that with an enzyme based cleaner and figured that that would be the end of that. However, he has since urinated in that same spot 4 times now. He was caught either in the act or very shortly after a couple of the incidents, was shown the spot, told no in a very firm tone, and given a swat on the rear before being removed from the bedroom. After the first several times, again followed by extremely thorough cleanings, we began keeping Frank locked out of the bedroom during the day and only allow him in at night when we are going to bed. He has not had any bathroom incidents when we are in the bed, it only seems to be when he is in there unattended. There had been no further incidents until today when I briefly left the bedroom open to go and grab a load of laundry. When I returned to the bedroom, he immediately slunk down off of the bed and proceeded to run out of the room which is when and how I discovered the latest indiscretion.

We took him to the vet to ensure that he did not have a UTI or any other health problems that could be causing this. He is on the same food and is using the same litter that he has been on or using for quite some time. He has not had any other accidents in other places of the house and is still using his litter box regularly. Also there have not been any major changes at the house or in our schedules. The vet advised us to place some treats on the bed where he has been having his incidents when we do allow him in there at night, as cats do not like to use the bathroom where they also eat, so we have been faithful to that as well.

At this point, I am just looking for any advice or experiences with similar incidents as I hate that I can't trust my kitty to have free reign of the house and I am also getting very tired of scrubbing the mattress and constantly washing and rewashing the sheets and blanket.

Any insight, help, or thoughts on the subject would be much appreciated.

 

[flintmccullough]

What-tests-did-they-do-at-the-vets?

What-do-you-feed?

Wet-or-dry?

My-thoughts-are,I-have-a-crystal-kitty,and-I-know-what-prob-happened-to-set-Frank-off.

My-other-thoughts-are-you-either-have-to-let-him-in-the-bedroom,or-not-let-him-in,he-is-not-a-trained-show-kitty,and-does-not-understand,why,he-can-sometimes,and-not-other-times.

Just-another-thought,he-is-not-a-person,that-understands,what-he-did-wrong,and-is-going-to-get-written-up-for-it.He-has-not-a-clue,what-you-showed-him-or-why,and-he-does-not-understand,or-know-why,he-was-hit.

I-will-leave-it-at-that,and-let-the-others-explain-it,or-my-bee-hind-is-going-to-get-swatted-by-the-mod-squad-or-advisors.

I-can-help-you-fix-this,as-the-rules-of-this-site-require,but-you-are-going-to-have-to-find-another-way,other-than-hitting-him,as-your-reaction-when-you-get-upset-about-something.

Those-are-my-thoughts-and-suggestions,as-requested.

 

[manders]

Let me begin by apologizing for the indiscretion of swatting at Frank. I did not realize until it was mentioned above that swatting is not In the least bit a good disciplinary action in regards to a cat (I read that many cats actually interpret that as an invitation for some rough-housing rather than as discipline). Also, I would like to make it clear that when I did refer to swatting Frank, it was genuinely only a light swat, never a smack. I could never ever intentionally harm my kitty and I plan to fully discontinue that behavior on my end from here on out. So, thank you for that valuable lesson.

That being said, I do not know exactly what tests the vet ran, but I will contact them for the test names. We did bring in a fresh urine sample and they drew some blood, but that is all that I can tell you at the moment.

As for food, we determined early on that Frank has a grain allergy so he only gets grain free food. Primarily Soulstic brand and Natural Choice for wet food and Solid Gold Indigo Moon Holistic for his dry food. He primarily eats mostly the wet food and the dry is more of a supplementary snack for him when our days run long.

Again, my apologies for any rule based infraction and my promise that swatting at him will no longer be an option in this house. Thank you.

 

[manders]

Oh and also, are there any further suggestions as far as keeping him out of the bedroom when unattended? The idea that it is only more confusing to him to be allowed in sometimes makes complete sense. I just can't bear the thought of not allowing him in to sleep by us but I also can't continue to tolerate him using the bed as a secondary litter box...

 

[flintmccullough]

Apology-accepted,we-all-make-mistakes,and-it-takes-courage,to-admit-when-we-are-wrong.

There-are-several-reasons,that-a-kitty-stops-using-the-kitty-box,or-sometimes-uses-it-and-sometimes-doesn't.The-first-being-a-medical-issue.They-associate-the-box,with-the-issue.

To-rule-out-a-medical-issue,they-have-to-do-a-urinealisys,and-they-have-to-do-what-is-called-a-"clean-catch".That-means-they-insert-a-needle-into-the-bladder,and-draw-out-some-urine.Then-they-test-it-for-bacteria-or-crystals.

That-he-is-peeing,is-really-a-good-sign,it-means-he-is-not-blocked,which-is-way,way-worse.

He-may-have-a-bladder-infection,which,if-ya-ever-had-one,ya-know,its-very-painful,and-us-ladies-are-prone-to-it.Or-he-may-have-a-UTI.That-test-will-tell-them.Bringing-in-a-urine-sample,which,I-commend-you,as-you-run-the-risk-of-it-being-contaminated.The-clean-catch,is-the-best-way-to-go,to-rule-out-a-medical-issue,which-you-always-want-to-do-that-first.

You-should-also-request,a-CBC-and-Wellness-Blood-Panel,they-just-draw-blood.That-tells-the-vet-if-any-values-are-not-normal,and-there-may-be-another-issue-going-on,and-if-so,it-gives-them-a-place-to-start.

Thats-why-I-asked,what-tests-your-vet-did.

If-its-a-medical-issue,which-mine-is,he-had-crystals,I-can-tell-you-exactly,what-to-do.His-happened-at-2-yrs-old,on-a-Sun-night-no-less,had-to-rush-him-to-the-ER.For-future-reference,*if*-a-kitty-is-blocked,and-cannot-pee,you-have-12-hours-to-get-them-to-a-vet,or,its-too-late.He-is-now-9-yrs-old,and-no-more-issues.

It-would-be-easier,if-it-is-a-medical-issue,as-it-would-be-much-easier-to-fix.

If-its-behavioral,that-can-sometimes,require-a-lot-of-detective-work,to-find-out,why-it-happens.

So-we-start,with-ruling-things-out,so-like-about-a-zillion-questions.

You-said,no-major-changes,does-that-mean-minor-changes?Like-what?

How-long-was-he-in-the-bedroom,when-it-first-happened?When-I-need-to-confine-them-to-the-bedroom,for-situations-like-yours,I-put-a-cat-box-in-there-for-them.

Any-other-pets-in-the-household,any-new-pets-in-the-household?

New-family-members,or-alot-of-people-over,that-were-not-previously?

Change-in-household-routine,change-in-work-schedule?

How-does-the-SO-feel-about-Frank,how-does-he-treat-Frank,how-does-he-act-around-Frank?

How-does-the-SO-treat-you?

Any-changes,that-there-is-stress-or-raised-voices-in-the-household?

Try-and-think-back,in-the-few-weeks-before-this-happened,what-has-changed,however-minor,it-may-be.

I-do-know,you-have-to-get-the-entire-smell-out,which-I-am-wondering,if-the-cleaner-you-used,may-not-have.The-others-on-here-could-best-tell-you-what-works-best.

That-Frank-only-does-it-on-the-SO's-side-of-the-bed,has-me-wondering,in-that-direction.Has-somethng-been-changed,been-moved,on-your-side,on-his-side?

Have-you-moved-Frank's-kitty-box?

Do-you-pick-it-every-day?

We-had-a-similiar-prob-on-here-recently,the-kitty-suddenly,turned-on-the-bf,we-were-stumped,until-the-poster-mentioned,a-cat-piano.I-asked-what-it-was.When-she-told-me,I-knew-what-the-prob-was,and-prob-solved.

So-we-have-had-harder-mysteries-on-here.We-just-have-to-rule-out-a-medical-issue,then-if-its-behavioral,do-some-detective-work,to-figure-it-out.

As-far-as-the-bedroom-issue,the-others-might-have-a-better-idea,how-to-handle-that-one.You-could-keep-the-door-shut-when-you-are-not-home,its-just-a-shut-door-to-Frank.But-if-he-is-trying-to-get-in-there,when-you-go-in,before-bedtime,that,is-going-to-confuse-him.

Start-with-the-vet,get-the-tests,and-rule-out-a-medical-issue.

p.s.Green-Bay-fan?

 

[manders]

Hi,

I contacted Franks vet and found out what tests they did on him. As you indicated, they did a full CBC and Wellness panel, all of which came back normal and they also did a urinalysis, complete with reflex (using the sample that we provided), which also came back with no irregularities. Do you think that we should take him back in for them to do a clean catch draw of his urine? I would feel so bad for my little guy if he did have a UTI because as you mentioned, they are extremely uncomfortable.

As far as keeping him contained to the bedroom, I also generally place his litter box in there with him if it is going to be any longer than 5-10 minutes and this delivery couldn't have taken any longer then 10 mins tops. I suppose that it would be wise to just put his box in there even for short periods of containment as he doesn't realize that he is only going to be in there for such a brief interlude. I do accept total responsibility for that first accident.

As far as changes in the house, we have been doing some minor remodeling the basement and the spare bedroom, involving some unfamiliar guests (i.e. contractors, etc).
We did recently discovered that we are expecting our first child (September 8) which was a pretty big surprise to us as we hadn't been planning on that and even had certain measures in place to theoretically prevent it (hence the remodeling of the spare bedroom). We did very quickly decide that it was a blessing and as far as our relationship goes, it is closer and stronger then ever. :-) But I suppose that it has added a mild element of stress due to the surprise of it all.

Also due to that news I have significantly cut back my hours at work in order to be able to prep things at home. Thanks to that, Frank is getting far more attention then he did before. This makes me happy as I always felt guilty leaving him alone for long stretches as he is such a social cat.

Brian (the SO) and Frank have a very good relationship. Brian always takes time when he gets home to squat down on the floor and give Frank some one on one time. Brian also holds the responsibility of cleaning Franks litter box, which is done on a daily basis and has been located in the same spot since he first came to live with us.

The only other significant change in routine that I can think of is that due to my being home more and the weather being mostly agreeable, Frank has been able to spend some time outdoors, which he seems to love. We have a good sized backyard and he is always kept on a cat harness and long leash with access to fresh, clean water and he is never left outside any longer then he wants to be. We also made the vet aware of this when it first became an option for him and she made certain that he was up to date on all of his immunizations and even had us purchase some additional medication to keep him protected and healthy when out there.

I feel fairly confident that I thoroughly removed any lingering urine odor from the mattress (even that which we as people can't detect while he still can) as I did some research in to the best way to go about fully cleaning it and the general consensus online was that enzyme based cleaners were the way to go. I used a product called Nature's Miracle Just for Cats Urine Destroyer and Eliminator. It was very well recommended and highly reviewed on numerous veterinary websites and the like.

P.S. I feel as though it would be a mortal sin to live in WI and not be a Packers fan. In fact, I would probably have been chased out of state years ago if I wasn't. ;-)

 

[manders]

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• manders
• Jul 23, 2013

Talking about Frank and his love of the outdoors reminded me of this amusing picture of what he used to do if we were outside without him, prior to his being allowed out on a regular basis.

 

[betsygee]

Talking about Frank and his love of the outdoors reminded me of this amusing picture of what he used to do if we were outside without him, prior to his being allowed out on a regular basis.

That's a cute picture.  We have a cat who does that--if we're outside, he will sit inside and stare at us through the window with the most mournful expression....

 

[flintmccullough]

Congratulations!!!

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• flintmccullough
• Jul 23, 2013

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• flintmccullough
• Jul 23, 2013

p.s.Die-Hard-Dallas-Cowboy-Fan,hence....Respect-The-Star,LOL.Farve-didn't,so-now-he-ain't-playin'-no-more,for-good.Dallas-hurt-his-leg,when-he-was-playing-with-Minnesota.Remember-the-Ice-Bowl?

Jerry-Kramer-was-offsides,refs-never-called-it,should-have-been-Dallas-going-to-the-Super-Bowl,instead-of-Green-Bay-that-year,LOL