Cat Peeing Everywhere In The House. Very Big Of A Problem

[Marasha]

Hello,

So let me start by saying that I have read many threads about this issue. Including the links about possible causes and such. But I would like to specify my issue because it can be quite complicated. Thanks for spending your time.

It started about 2 months ago. My male cat which is about 1 years old started peeing on the corners of the house. We took him to the vet and had him neutered. Then he kept peeing on the corners. He also started peeing on the carpets, curtains and the couch. But not all of them, only one specific curtain and one specific couch.

We thought maybe he feels imprisoned (purely indoors cat) and decided to let him on the balcony so he can relax. He goes out quite a lot. The balcony usually has other "street" cats that sit there but he doesn't seem to have a problem with them. I should also point out that the glass door for the balcony is right next to the curtain and the couch he likes to pee on.

Now, there are three more issues.
First, we have another cat (female, 5 years old, neutered, indoors) that doesn't like my male cat AT ALL although he doesn't have a problem with her.

Second, sometimes we let another male cat in (unneutered). Him and my male-peeing cat pretty much grew up together. Never had an issue with one another. They play and clean each other up.

Thirdly, there is another male kitty. He is a very good cat so we pity him and let him in for some hours during the day. He doesn't get along with my male-peeing cat at all. They fight quite a lot.

I thought maybe he is stressed but he doesn't seem like it. He is still playful and cuddly. He always want us to pet him. He goes to his litter to poop and he eats/drinks normally.

Half of the family is about to kick him out cause this problem. That will be bad since I live on a street with a lot of traffic (and dead cats).

I think that is all. For any questions or a better explanation, please let me know.

Thanks a lot for your time, any answers will be much appreciated!

 

[danteshuman]

When was he neutered? (It can take a couple of weeks to a month for his hormones to leave his system.) Generally speaking I'm for neutering a cat _before_ they start spraying, since they may never stop. I like to neuter by 6 months or spay by 4 months. Have you tried not letting the other cat in any more? Have you added new litter boxes where he keeps going? Is the outside cat neutered? If not, then neutering him may help. At the very least it will help keep him out of fights & prevent unwanted kittens. You can also try bringing the intruder cat into your home, in a room & try to do the cat introduction process..... Though I would try that after you get the spraying under control. If I was guessing I would say it sounds like you waited to late to neuter him & he is feeling like his territory is being threatened.

 

[littlecatt]

I agree, this sounds like a territory thing. Even my neutered, very friendly 9-year-old cat got territorial about outdoor cats. We have a big window downstairs looking out onto the patio and the outdoor cats would often hang out on there, and my indoor male cat began peeing on the couches right in front of the window. We ended up having to get thick curtains and professionally clean the couches. Even if he's cuddly, the peeing seems like a sign of stress. You might want to stop letting in the male cats for a while until the peeing is under control -- clean the affected areas with an enzyme cleaner and put your litter boxes there instead.

 

[Marasha]

When was he neutered? (It can take a couple of weeks to a month for his hormones to leave his system.) Generally speaking I'm for neutering a cat _before_ they start spraying, since they may never stop. I like to neuter by 6 months or spay by 4 months. Have you tried not letting the other cat in any more? Have you added new litter boxes where he keeps going? Is the outside cat neutered? If not, then neutering him may help. At the very least it will help keep him out of fights & prevent unwanted kittens. You can also try bringing the intruder cat into your home, in a room & try to do the cat introduction process..... Though I would try that after you get the spraying under control. If I was guessing I would say it sounds like you waited to late to neuter him & he is feeling like his territory is being threatened.

I agree, this sounds like a territory thing. Even my neutered, very friendly 9-year-old cat got territorial about outdoor cats. We have a big window downstairs looking out onto the patio and the outdoor cats would often hang out on there, and my indoor male cat began peeing on the couches right in front of the window. We ended up having to get thick curtains and professionally clean the couches. Even if he's cuddly, the peeing seems like a sign of stress. You might want to stop letting in the male cats for a while until the peeing is under control -- clean the affected areas with an enzyme cleaner and put your litter boxes there instead.

We neutered him about one and a half, maybe two months ago. The spraying started around the time (maybe couple of weeks later) we started letting in the house the other kitty so yeah it could be it. We have two litter boxes on the house, one close to the places he pees on but he only goes there for his number two. We will probably leave the kitty out for a while and see how it goes. How much time do you think will he need to adjust and stop peeing on the couches? Assuming we stop letting other cats in.

And thanks for the replies!

Edit: Couple of more questions. Should I let my cat out or stop that? And what if I let the kitty in, but sort of "lock" one of them while they sleep so they don't have any contact. Will that help?

 

[danteshuman]

I would use an enzyme cleaner on the couches & cover your couches with a blue plastic tarp ... and then maybe a sheet. That way accidents are easier to clean. You can also put a litter box by or on the couch TEMPORARILY. You put a extra/new litter box on the couch or by where ever he pees. Get him to use the litter box for a couple of weeks. Then slowly move his litter box where you want it. (For example: 2-4 weeks litter box on couch. 2-4 weeks litter box right by the couch. 2-6 weeks inching the litter box where you want it in the living room. HURRAY litter box finally where you want it in the living room. )

I think the outside cat needs to stay out for 3 months or so (I'm guessing here.) Then after 2-4 months of no accidents you can decide to bring the outdoor cat in permanently, doing the introduction process. Or I wouldn't let the outside cat in, ever again.

No I wouldn't let him out. Let him claim your house as his territory. If he goes outside, he will be around the other outside cat, get stressed & spray. If eventually you bring the outside cat in permanently, maybe you can harness train both of them? I would be looking for ways to keep cats out of my yard & make the outside cat an indoor cat. (Does your outside cat have a warm enough shelter to get him through the winter? Can you install a kitty door for him in your garage if he is going to stay outside?)

*Your vet may be able to prescribe anti anxiety meds for your cat for 2-6 months so you can bring your outside cat inside into a spare bedroom as you do the introduction process & work on his spraying issues? Then hopefully make both cats indoor cats while making your yard feral/stray cat proof. .... personally though I would only want to work on one thing at a time. Did I mention that cats hate change?

 

[vyger]

Jackson Galaxy commented about this with a cat that was doing pretty much the same thing.
We think of houses as being indoor and outside with the walls dividing the worlds. But we don't take into account that scent goes right through walls so to a cat they are more transparent. A cat can smell everything a cat on the outside is doing. Every time a cat sprays the wall the cat on the other side can tell. Many times they will respond in kind by marking inside, sometimes close to where the outside is marked. Your cat can identify every single cat outside just by scent. he wants to be identified too to the others so he marks places. To them this is a form of communication. Isn't it nice that people don't do things like that. Well, lets say most people. I had a cat that for 7 years never did anything like that. Then this big male showed up outside and mine started peeing everywhere inside. I finally had to let him stay outside. Once he started I was never able to get him to stop even long after the other cat disappeared.

 

[Marsha222]

We neutered him about one and a half, maybe two months ago. The spraying started around the time (maybe couple of weeks later) we started letting in the house the other kitty so yeah it could be it. We have two litter boxes on the house, one close to the places he pees on but he only goes there for his number two. We will probably leave the kitty out for a while and see how it goes. How much time do you think will he need to adjust and stop peeing on the couches? Assuming we stop letting other cats in.

And thanks for the replies!

Edit: Couple of more questions. Should I let my cat out or stop that? And what if I let the kitty in, but sort of "lock" one of them while they sleep so they don't have any contact. Will that help?

 

[Marsha222]

I can tell you something that worked for me. My cat started peeing on the floor (missing his litter box) and I had heard that a mixture of hydrogen peroxide (about 4cups), and one tablespoon blue dawn dish soap, and a tablespoon of baking soda scrubbed on the pee spot would get everything out and it completely worked! I didn’t try it on the carpet but would probably get the same results. Also, I heard that any pet spray solution with an orange oil base will do the trick and keep the cat from coming back to that spot because cats don’t like the smell of citrus.
I hope this helps you and your kitty and good luck!!!

 

[Marasha]

I would use an enzyme cleaner on the couches & cover your couches with a blue plastic tarp ... and then maybe a sheet. That way accidents are easier to clean. You can also put a litter box by or on the couch TEMPORARILY. You put a extra/new litter box on the couch or by where ever he pees. Get him to use the litter box for a couple of weeks. Then slowly move his litter box where you want it. (For example: 2-4 weeks litter box on couch. 2-4 weeks litter box right by the couch. 2-6 weeks inching the litter box where you want it in the living room. HURRAY litter box finally where you want it in the living room. )

I think the outside cat needs to stay out for 3 months or so (I'm guessing here.) Then after 2-4 months of no accidents you can decide to bring the outdoor cat in permanently, doing the introduction process. Or I wouldn't let the outside cat in, ever again.

No I wouldn't let him out. Let him claim your house as his territory. If he goes outside, he will be around the other outside cat, get stressed & spray. If eventually you bring the outside cat in permanently, maybe you can harness train both of them? I would be looking for ways to keep cats out of my yard & make the outside cat an indoor cat. (Does your outside cat have a warm enough shelter to get him through the winter? Can you install a kitty door for him in your garage if he is going to stay outside?)

*Your vet may be able to prescribe anti anxiety meds for your cat for 2-6 months so you can bring your outside cat inside into a spare bedroom as you do the introduction process & work on his spraying issues? Then hopefully make both cats indoor cats while making your yard feral/stray cat proof. .... personally though I would only want to work on one thing at a time. Did I mention that cats hate change?

Yeah I guess our only option is to not let the kitty inside anymore. He should be fine for the winter so that's not a problem. The real problem is that there is a lot of traffic outside my house so it is a dangerous place for cats. And the kitty is very nice so we try to protect him as much as possible. And sadly we don't have a huge house so three cats is a bit much to just bring him in permanently. And I will also try to cut the habit of letting my cat go out.

Jackson Galaxy commented about this with a cat that was doing pretty much the same thing.
We think of houses as being indoor and outside with the walls dividing the worlds. But we don't take into account that scent goes right through walls so to a cat they are more transparent. A cat can smell everything a cat on the outside is doing. Every time a cat sprays the wall the cat on the other side can tell. Many times they will respond in kind by marking inside, sometimes close to where the outside is marked. Your cat can identify every single cat outside just by scent. he wants to be identified too to the others so he marks places. To them this is a form of communication. Isn't it nice that people don't do things like that. Well, lets say most people. I had a cat that for 7 years never did anything like that. Then this big male showed up outside and mine started peeing everywhere inside. I finally had to let him stay outside. Once he started I was never able to get him to stop even long after the other cat disappeared.

Yeah seems like that's true. Guess we have to separate them for a while and see how it goes. We don't have many options sadly. Either kick em both out, keep doing what we do now, or bring them both in. And all of them are not really good options.

I can tell you something that worked for me. My cat started peeing on the floor (missing his litter box) and I had heard that a mixture of hydrogen peroxide (about 4cups), and one tablespoon blue dawn dish soap, and a tablespoon of baking soda scrubbed on the pee spot would get everything out and it completely worked! I didn’t try it on the carpet but would probably get the same results. Also, I heard that any pet spray solution with an orange oil base will do the trick and keep the cat from coming back to that spot because cats don’t like the smell of citrus.
I hope this helps you and your kitty and good luck!!!

We tried baking soda on the couch but it didn't work. And vinegar on the carpet which seemed like it worked but it is not really an option for the couch since it is smelly. Will try out your recommendation and see how it goes!

 

[danteshuman]

You need an enzyme cleaner to get the smell out so your cat can't smell it. They make products just for that. Why isn't your cat inside all the time? It is safer. Outside cat's lives are tragically short. You might try re-introducing your cats. That extra litter box advice next to the spot he sprays? It works. It takes time. There is no magic over night fix for a cat pee problem. However if you are patient and start thinking cat, it can be solved.