My Poor Mimi!

[frenchie-chic]

I’m an animal lover and have had all sorts of cats and dogs and reptiles my entire life - I feel that I know a lot and care a lot especially about my cats. I have one Balinese cat - Aramis aka Mimi who is a male, sweet, loyal and well-behaved. He’s never done a bad thing except a hair all or two and who can blame him.

Well, I have an issue - he’s 12 btw. I lived in the mountains of NC and had an area and large porch that my cat would hang out on. He used a litter box inside most of the time but would also go outside and roam around my house.

I had to move because of a job - into a condo. Yes, it is not ideal but I had no choice. Aramis is not using his box except to urinate - he wants to poop anywhere and everywhere. He seems a bit sad too.

I’ve never had any problem like this with him before. I bought a huge box and a smaller one for another room, have tried pellet litters, natural pine and it’s still happening after about a month here.
I bought Comfort zone too but he’s still doing this. We have a small balcony and he hangs out but it’s not the same.

Please help! I am not sure what to do.

 

[rubysmama]

Hello and welcome to TCS.

My first suggestion was to recommend putting down a 2nd litter box, but I see you've already done that. You could try getting another larger box to replace the smaller one. He may prefer the larger boxes. And also may be one of those cats that likes to pee in on box and poop in another.

Another idea is when he poops outside of the box, put it in the litter box, and let him see it, and either let him watch you cover it, or gently cover it using his paw.

One other idea that sometimes helps when people are training former feral cats to use the litter box, is to add a bit of non-fertilized potting soil to the top of the litter. Since he's been going outside before the move, he soil may let him know it's ok to poop in the litter box.

There's also a litter called Litter Attract, that might help.

Since you think he may be sad, you'll have to find ways to make him happy in his new home. Do you have a cat condo, or something that he can hang out in to watch out the window.

Here's a couple articles with more suggestions. Good luck.
How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home (I know he's not new, but might be some tips for you)
The Five Golden Rules To Bringing An Outdoor Cat Inside
How To Make Your Home Bigger (at Least For Your Cats)

 

[Mamanyt1953]

rubysmama just told you everything I was thinking of, so I'll simply add, you are no longer alone with this. It may take us a minute, but we're right here!

 

[danteshuman]

I agree with ruby

Cat attract litter in one box might be worth a try.

He may be marking his new territory outside to (?insecure? Threatened by other animal smells?)

That said can you help him see more of the outdoors with a high hanging bird feeder near the balcony? That way he can sit and watch the outside.

 

[catsknowme]

Welcome to TCS!!
How are your cat's stools? Any sign of constipation, such as hard & dry or, conversely, very runny? Sometimes the stress and new environment can cause constipation and he might associate pain during pooping (or in the case of UTIs, pain during peeing) with the litter box. You can try giving him a different litter and a new box to try (cats do better with unscented litter).
I really like Rubysmama's suggestion about using soil because he might be confused about pooping inside. If you want to try a novel substance, you can use chicken feed such as laying mash or crackettes/crumbles for cat litter - you can add some clumping litter to it to help with clumping.