My Cat Keeps Peeing in Weirdly Specific Locations, and I am Baffled

[bunkybookitty]

I've had my cat Scooter for almost 15 years now, and she's always had this issue where she likes to pee in very specific places in the house. When she lived with my mom, it was always on one particular spot in the entryway, which was way in the opposite direction of her litterbox. When my mom got a cow-hide rug, it was in one particular corner on the rug (also incredibly far from her box). Now that she lives with me, I've tried just about everything to try and combat the behavior.

First, she liked to go off to a far corner of the apartment to pee. I moved her litterbox, and that seemed to help for a while. Then, it was always the spot right in front of the litterbox on the debris-catching mat. I wondered if it was because she's getting older and it's harder for her to get into her box (especially because she's disabled), so I tossed the mat and got her a shorter litterbox. That's been a definite help since then.

Now we've moved to another apartment and a whole different set of issues came up. First, it was peeing in my closet. Oh god, it was awful. She would go to sleep under my dresser and for a long time she was fine making the trek from my closet to her box. Then on fateful day she stopped bothering. So I had my closet Rug Doctored, and  barred her from it. Then she would pee on any stacks of clothes left on the floor, so I had to cut her off from most of my room. That’s when the bed wetting began.

Now, no matter where I put her litterbox, she always ends up peeing in her bed. She’s even hijacked the dog’s bed and started peeing in it too!

I’m not sure if the issue is litterbox related. I clean the hell out of her box: anywhere from three times a day, I always put fresh litter or baking soda in it, and every time I buy more litter I scrub the box down top to bottom before filling it. I’ve considered getting a second one, but as you can imagine there’s not quite enough space in our apartment. I’ve tried all of The Cat Site’s tips for a few weeks now, but nothing seems to be working.

I figured if she’s peeing her bed then it’s a sign of other problems (like incontinence), so I took her to the vet about it. The vet said there’s nothing wrong with her as far as her digestive system goes, but now I’m wondering if it’s a stress thing because of her mouth infection. Fortunately I’m getting her surgery on the 26th and I’m hoping her behavior will change. It’s gotten so bad that I’ve had to put her in diapers and take them off when I see her walking toward the litterbox. Funnily enough, if she has a diaper on, she never pees in it! I’ve considered just buying training pee pads and lining all her beds with them because I’m sick of tossing them in the wash.

TL,DR: My cat is peeing the bed, and I have no idea why. I’m wondering if it’s stress from her mouth infection and I’m hoping surgery will help fix the behavior. Has anyone else had such a debacle? How did you fix it? Help is greatly appreciated. I’m at my wits end!

 

[MoochNNoodles]

Do you use an enzyme cleaner to clean where she has gone?  And on the beds? Other cleaners won't remove all of the urine scent to her noses satisfaction.  The places she has gone really need to be saturated and given time to dry.  

 

[foxxycat]

Is the litter unscented? Cats don't like smelly perfumey stuff.

Have you tried Cat Attract litter?

Some cats hate clumping litter. If you use clumping try the nonclumping. you can get a huge bag at wally world for under $4. I had a long hair kitty who hated clumping litter.

Has the cat been to a vet and had a urine sample looked at under the microscope to rule out an infection or other issues?

 

[bunkybookitty]

Yeah I totally soak the spot with enzyme cleaner (Rug Doctor or Nature's Miracle typically) then use my Spot Bot wetvac to suck it up. Her beds I'll typically throw in the wash and use enzyme cleaner plus detergent.

 

[bunkybookitty]

Cat Attract is the litter I buy actually! It's the only litter my mom and I have ever found that she'll actually use. I also love it because I'm allergic to most cat litter. From what we've seen she really doesn't like nonclumping litter. She actually uses the box more now that I started mixing in baking soda. I wonder if it's a smell thing for her.

When I asked the vet about it they took a sample and said the only thing that was odd about it were her amount of white blood cells, which likely had to do with her infection. When they did other tests they didn't find anything.

 

[catlitterguru]

Health check, Cat Attract and thoroughly cleaning the accident spots to remove the smell would be my first suggestions as well.

So this has been going on since she was living with your mom, who lives in a house. You didn't elaborate about her disability or how big the house is but I was wondering if the proximity from her regular living space to the litterbox may have been the factor at the time.

Now that she is living in an apt, I assume proximity to the litter box is not an issue. 

When cats are nervous, the smell of something familiar calms them down. As a result, when they are scared, they hide where they feel most secure. In my case it is my closet or my bed because it smells like me. When I am away for an extended period of time, I often find them sitting and sleeping on my towel (yes I spy on my cat =)).

In your case, she is peeing in your closet, clothing, and bed. These are coincidentally things that smells like you. Assuming you (or the apt) did not house another cat prior to her arrival, I am guessing she wasn't doing it to mark her territory.

From your comment about the dog bed, I am wondering if she is not used to living with the dog until now that she lives with you. How is the relationship? I am wondering if she is somewhat scared of the dog and therefore always hiding at a "safe" spot and refuse to leave, even when she needs to use the bathroom.

Alternatively, is the dog somehow hindering her from using the box? As a result, she may have peed on the dog bed as a way to mark her territory and dominate the dog. 

Have you tried changing the box location? Cats are vulnerable when they use the washroom and may feel that the box location is too exposed to foot traffic and surprises. 

If the situation doesn't improve after the surgery, hopefully this gives you some idea on finding the root cause. Good luck =)