Fed Up With This Cat.

[Bella1999]

As the heading says... I've thrown out 4 dog beds because he has decided to use them as his pee area. I recently bought a new bed and moved it into a colder area for my senior dog. She has very bad arthritis so she always needs a comfy bed. Not even 2 weeks after owning it he has drenched the whole thing with pee. Large dog beds are not cheap and his actions can. Not. Continue. Yes he is neutered, he got neutered around 3 months of age. Just a few mins ago I had smelled something awful in my room. He had peed on all the blankets I had put together for my senior dog to lay on as a bed replacement. I have to lock my room during the day if I cannot supervise him so he MUST have done this while I was in here. The moment he pees in the family room on the carpet or our furniture could very well be the last straw. My mother does not tolerate cat pee. Don't get me wrong here guys. My family and I have bonded to him and love him very much, but there are some days that I wished he was an outside cat like our older kitty.

Suggestions are very much welcome and wanted. He has a litter box that I spray out every week and of course I scoop out the poops when needed. Its secure behind a gate so it doesn't become a doggy candy dispenser. It is practically his own room where his box is because we don't use the room. He is making it hard for me to really become a "cat" person.

 

[Bella1999]

Something else to add. He is a counter surfer. He took a chunk out of our thanksgiving turkey while it was thawing. He ate 4 thin cut steaks n the counter that were thawing. Took some chicken strips etc.... I will "threaten" him with the water bottle, slam a paper or hand on the counter and say no or HEY bad boy! He knows he has done wrong because he always lets out a faint meow and tries to run away as fast as possible. He has the pool table where we allow him to be on since t is covered with the board. He also knows not to get on our kitchen table. Every know and then he tries to sneak on but its not as bad as his counter surfing. So he knows what he shouldn't be doing. I've took to watching my cat from hell to see what i can learn but then it makes me see that he could be worse

 

[talkingpeanut]

Has he been to the vet to check for a uti?

 

[Maria Bayote]

As what talkingpeanut mentioned, can you bring him first to the vet to check for any health issues like UTI? I am sorry this is happening to you, and I am sorry for your dog, too. But normally cats do not pee anywhere it wishes.

 

[KarenKat]

Oh man, inappropriate cat peeing is one of the worst and most destructive things.

As long as he gets a vet visit and he’s cleared of any illness, I recommend checking out Jackson Galaxy’s show My Cat From Hell. There are a lot of episodes centering on this very issue and some of his suggestions might help.

One thing I would start with is adding more litter boxes. It seems like he might be trying to claim these areas of the house - if all of his kitty stuff like the litterbox is in an unused room, he may be trying to own the rest of the space too and this is his way of doing that. Adding more litter boxes on the other areas might help.

Also could there be animals coming by at night that could disturb him? Or does he get along with the dogs ok? These are other things that might cause such extreme peeing behaviors.

First stop is definitely the vet though.

 

[lavishsqualor]

The vet is definitely your first course of action.

 

[Columbine]

Inappropriate peeing is so frustrating. As others have said, a vet check really is the first thing to do. Issues like this are often rooted in pain or stress, and your vet can help you with these issues.
How To Solve Litterbox Problems In Cats: The Ultimate Guide
Litterbox Problems? Here's Why You Should Call Your Vet
Solving Cat Behavior Problems: The Key Ingredient

Its worth knowing that cat logic isn't always logical to us. If it hurts to pee, the cat will connect the pain with the location (the litterbox) rather than the action (peeing). This is why peeing outside the box is often the first and only sign of a urinary tract issue - they think that if they pee elsewhere the pain will go away. Cats will usually choose soft places to pee too, which is why things like blankets and beds are most often used.

I understand the ruined dog bed issue all too well. My old girl had FIC, and tended to pee on my dog's memory foam bed when she had a flare up. We took to putting a layer of puppy pee pads under the top (easily washable) blanket to protect the bed, just in case. It worked really well for us, and saved the bed several times. I know it's not ideal, but it's easy and it works.

As well as veterinary advice and treatment, try adding in extra litterboxes, in different places around the house. Ideally these should be close to your boy's chosen pee areas. You want to make it as easy as possible for him to make the right choice. It's always easier to scoop an extra box or two than clean up cat pee

Counter surfing is harder to deal with. Water bottles or other scare tactics really aren't a great idea. They're much more likely to make your boy scared of you than be a lasting deterrent to the unwanted behaviour.
5 Reasons To Never Spray Water On Your Cat
The best course of action is to make the counters unpleasant for kitty to walk on so he effectively teaches himself not to go up there. And, of course, don't leave meat out on the counter - that's a temptation too far for most cats!
How To Keep Cats Off Counters And Tables

 

[daftcat75]

Besides being another to say “vet first! Rule out medical before behavioral,”...


Are you saying he has to jump a gate to use the bathroom? No wonder he’d rather use a dog bed.

 

[di and bob]

It sounds more like he is trying to claim the bed as his own to me. Cats do not pee in innapropriaet spots for no reason. He is upset about something. Does he have his own bed to claim? You might try giving him his own somewhere up high. Beds can be washed in the large washers at the laundry mat. Use a cat urine destroyer along with the detregent. I have had more trouble with dogs eating things off the counter than cats, so that is not a unique problem. He was hungry, make sure he has kibble or something available to snack on or thaw in the fridge. You are getting to the point where you are actively hating him, and might do something rash. Please try to look at it from his point of view, and figure out what is upsetting him. It CAN be resolved and we will try to help you figure it out. Please keep us posted.

 

[Lisannez]

How long have you had the cat? Has something recently changed in your lives? New child, move, new family members etc? I have a good friend whose cat was perfectly behaved for 10 years and then they adopted a second cat, and suddenly her cat began peeing everywhere in the house. It went on for months and finally they decided to rehome the other cat and it stopped. So yes for sure get to the vet and see if there is anything health wise going on, but if not it would seem to me your cat is trying to communicate something to you in his behavior, we humans just cannot figure out what that is.

 

[daftcat75]

By the way, my well-behaved Krista started peeing the walls when she was having dental issues. I ended up finally taking her to the vet (not before months of trying behavior fixes) because I had to renew her animal registration w/ the city and mentioned the marking. The vet looked in her mouth and said, “she’s crying out for help.” We had the problem teeth removed and she stopped peeing the walls. This is why inappropriate litterbox habits should always start with a vet visit before going through the many behavioral fixes being offered here.

 

[maggiedemi]

It sounds like his litterbox is hard to get to, so he's choosing to go elsewhere.

 

[Etarre]

Just one more vote for getting a health check just in case. There are a bunch of different conditions that can cause a cat to do this. When Gwen's thyroid levels got out of control despite her being on medication, this was what happened.

There are some good waterproof 'pet blankets' available on Amazon that saved our sanity and our couches during this period.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

As the heading says... I've thrown out 4 dog beds because he has decided to use them as his pee area. I recently bought a new bed and ... Not even 2 weeks after owning it he has drenched the whole thing with pee. ... He had peed on all the blankets ...

Suggestions are very much welcome and wanted. He has a litter box that I spray out every week and of course I scoop out the poops when needed. Its secure behind a gate so it doesn't become a doggy candy dispenser. It is practically his own room where his box is because we don't use the room. He is making it hard for me to really become a "cat" person.

Bella1999 - can you tell us exactly where you keep his litter box? Is it inside your house? In a room? I was wondering, as this thread of yours I've linked to below seems to say that you had had his litter box on or in (outdoor but closed off?) porch area?
Running Off And Opinions On Neutering

So lately my new kitten Pharoah has been trying to run off out of our porch after he goes to the bathroom. For example.. I took him to his box outside in our porch. He went to the bathroom and then just bolted off and escaped through the porch gate. ...

Yeah ok. I understand that he would want freedom. We have his litter box outside because of the mess and smell but I guess while he's this young i'll invest in a cleaner box with a hood and keep it inside. Thank you

I'm just curious if you still keep his litter box in a porch area?

In any case, wherever the location of his box is, it seems he may not feel private or safe or comfortable using it in that location? Hence, his trying to pee in "safer" or more comfy locations, possibly. (I agree with others that ruling out any health issues at a vet is a first step.) But have you tried moving his litter box to a place that he might react better to?

 

[daftcat75]

Skip the hood or covered litterbox. Get better litter (Krista and I like World’s Best) or scoop more often. Covered litterboxes trap odors inside. This is preferred by the owner but definitely not the cat. If his litterbox smells like a gas station bathroom, he’ll want to pee elsewhere.

 

[Bella1999]

Besides being another to say “vet first! Rule out medical before behavioral,”...


Are you saying he has to jump a gate to use the bathroom? No wonder he’d rather use a dog bed.

No. The gate is leaned against the wall and he can walk into his box just fine. I did not think of it as a logical thing to do and figured no cat would want to have to climb over something to use the toilet.

 

[Bella1999]

Also his box does not have a box cover

 

[Bella1999]

Bella1999 - can you tell us exactly where you keep his litter box? Is it inside your house? In a room? I was wondering, as this thread of yours I've linked to below seems to say that you had had his litter box on or in (outdoor but closed off?) porch area?
Running Off And Opinions On Neutering

​

I'm just curious if you still keep his litter box in a porch area?

In any case, wherever the location of his box is, it seems he may not feel private or safe or comfortable using it in that location? Hence, his trying to pee in "safer" or more comfy locations, possibly. (I agree with others that ruling out any health issues at a vet is a first step.) But have you tried moving his litter box to a place that he might react better to?

His box is in the house in his own room. I guess i could rearrange the whole room just for him and move it to a different side.

 

[KarenKat]

When you say the gate is leaned against the wall, does he still need to bypass it to get to the room his litterbox is in? I’m not quite understanding the configuration that would allow a cat, disallow a dog but not have him need to jump a gate to access it.

 

[Bella1999]

How long have you had the cat? Has something recently changed in your lives? New child, move, new family members etc? I have a good friend whose cat was perfectly behaved for 10 years and then they adopted a second cat, and suddenly her cat began peeing everywhere in the house. It went on for months and finally they decided to rehome the other cat and it stopped. So yes for sure get to the vet and see if there is anything health wise going on, but if not it would seem to me your cat is trying to communicate something to you in his behavior, we humans just cannot figure out what that is.

I get payed next week so I'll set up an appointment to get him checked out. In july it will be his 1st bday so we will have had him for one year. In terms of changes? Nothing has changed here. No new animals although I do have plans for new puppy in the upcoming months. However that will have to be on hold until we can help him with his problems.