New behavior problem

[homemommy]

I have Azrael, my 4 year old girl and two new boy kitties, Charlie and Linus--(Linus was Lola until we found out yesterday during the "spay" that Lola was really a boy...LOL) The kittens have been home a month and Azrael has been really good so far. She evens tries to play with them some.

But...today I found a HUGE mess on my bed. I had taken the sheets and blankets off my bed to wash them and came back and Azrael (I think) pooped on MY side of the bed and peed all over the bed. The reason I think it was her is because of the sheer size of the "mess". The kitties have never pooped that much at one time.

She had a problem with this when she first came home, she used to pee and poo all over our pool table. I sprayed bitter apple on it and she quit. I don't want to spray bitter apple on our bed 'cause it stinks!!

There has been no changes except the kitties were neutered yesterday and I changed litter over a week ago from clay to Feline Pine. But she has been using the new litter with no problem until today.

 

[erinroro]

How long was it from the time you took off the sheets and blankets before you went back into the room? Is it possible that the kittens were both on the bed and used the same spot to urinate?

Another thought - are the kittens big enough to jump on to the bed?

Perhaps it has to do with the fact that the kitties still have the vet 'smell' on them.

I am just tossing out some ideas..... It seems odd that jealousy would rear its ugly head after a month.

I have a cat who orginally was called Pita's sister, who had her/his name changed to Pita-Butter after I picked him/her up from the vet after being 'spayed'!!!!

 

[rad65]

I think she was upset at the strange smell coming from thekittens after the vet. My cats will attack each other after a vet visit, so I imagine a less dominant cat would eliminate improperly instead. Did she act any different toward the kittens? Try a dab of pure vanilla extract or talcum powder by their chins and between anus and tail so they all smell the same (this will calm them all down since the vet smell is scary to most, and another cat that smells the same isn't seen as a threat usually)

 

[homemommy]

Originally Posted by erinroro

How long was it from the time you took off the sheets and blankets before you went back into the room? Is it possible that the kittens were both on the bed and used the same spot to urinate?

Another thought - are the kittens big enough to jump on to the bed?

Perhaps it has to do with the fact that the kitties still have the vet 'smell' on them.

I am just tossing out some ideas..... It seems odd that jealousy would rear its ugly head after a month.

I have a cat who orginally was called Pita's sister, who had her/his name changed to Pita-Butter after I picked him/her up from the vet after being 'spayed'!!!!

I was gone for about 10 minutes. But I didn't wash the electric blanket that was on there too...it is her favorite and she constantly rubs herself on it whenever the kittens are on the bed. She peed on it too.

I don't think it was the kittens, they were on the other side of the house at the time. And since their surgeries yesterday, I haven't seen them attempt to jump on the bed yet..it is pretty high.

I forgot to mention that the vet suggested the bitter apple spray for the kitties bottoms to keep them from licking. Maybe she smells the spray on them or the "vet" smell??

As I am writing this, she is is following Charlie around smelling his butt. And she just hissed at him. She had pretty much stopped the hissing at them until today. I am now thinking it is smell related. Can I give the kittens a bath or will this hurt their surgical sites?

 

[rad65]

Originally Posted by Homemommy

I am now thinking it is smell related. Can I give the kittens a bath or will this hurt their surgical sites?

If they got neutered yesterday, I would wait a couple more days before trying a bath. You don't want them to be sitting in a pool of warm water; the temp the bath would need to be at is a prime breeding ground for bacteria, especially with fresh incisions. Also, you would need to give a bath to all three, not just the kittens. The quickest way for Azrael to go back to normal is for all of the cats to smell the same. Bathing the kittens will just make them smell weird in a different way to Azrael, but making them all smell the same will calm her down. That's why rubbing something like vanilla or talcum powder on all three is the most recommended post-vet treatment for that vet smell. I do it every time I have to take one of the guys to the vet, even before I see them acting strangely. The two times I've forgotten are the only two times they fought at all, and I put talcum powder on them both and they immediately stopped fighting. It was pretty amazing, they were in the middle of a row when I spritzed them, and they were like two different cats afterward.

 

[carolina]

Originally Posted by Homemommy

There has been no changes except the kitties were neutered yesterday and I changed litter over a week ago from clay to Feline Pine. But she has been using the new litter with no problem until today.

Change the litter back to that you were using ASAP... Better yet, get Cat Attract Litter...
The only problem I ever had with improper use of litterbox was with Feline Pine... Great concept... until Lucky started peeing on the living room. It took me a while to correct the issue! A lot of cats have issues with Feline Pine, it is more common than you'd think... It might have to do with the scent or with the texture, but it happens a whole lot.
Specially when there is poop involved, that is usually an indication that the kitty is not happy with the box or the litter...
I strongly advise you changing it back...

Also, make sure to clean the blankets, bed, etc with a good enzyme cleaner...

 

[feralvr]

Yes, go back asap to your old litter. And, I have never heard of anyone putting bitter apple on the rear end of a cat to stop licking??? Sounds like that would burn and irritate, and the smell might be upseting to the cat itself, and your other cats too.

Bitter apple also won't cover pee smells. You need an enzyme cleaner, like Stink-Free, or NOK out.

 

[my4llma]

Try going back to your old litter.

 

[homemommy]

Originally Posted by rad65

If they got neutered yesterday, I would wait a couple more days before trying a bath. You don't want them to be sitting in a pool of warm water; the temp the bath would need to be at is a prime breeding ground for bacteria, especially with fresh incisions. Also, you would need to give a bath to all three, not just the kittens. The quickest way for Azrael to go back to normal is for all of the cats to smell the same. Bathing the kittens will just make them smell weird in a different way to Azrael, but making them all smell the same will calm her down. That's why rubbing something like vanilla or talcum powder on all three is the most recommended post-vet treatment for that vet smell. I do it every time I have to take one of the guys to the vet, even before I see them acting strangely. The two times I've forgotten are the only two times they fought at all, and I put talcum powder on them both and they immediately stopped fighting. It was pretty amazing, they were in the middle of a row when I spritzed them, and they were like two different cats afterward.

I don't have any talcum, but i will try the vanilla today....thanks.

 

[homemommy]

Originally Posted by Feralvr

Yes, go back asap to your old litter. And, I have never heard of anyone putting bitter apple on the rear end of a cat to stop licking??? Sounds like that would burn and irritate, and the smell might be upseting to the cat itself, and your other cats too.

Bitter apple also won't cover pee smells. You need an enzyme cleaner, like Stink-Free, or NOK out.

You don't put the bitter apple directly on the incision sites only around the area..cause, yes, it would burn. It is made especially for cats to discourage fur biting and hair chewing.

i wasn't suggesting I clean with the bitter apple, only that I used it as a deterent in the past when she pooed on the pool table. It worked for that, but of course, I don't have to sleep on the pool table...LOL. I wouldn't be able to stand the smell on my bed. I cleaned the bed and bedding with Simple Soultions enzyme cleaner and luckily it didn't soak through to the mattress, only the mattress cover....whew!!

 

[homemommy]

She did it again!! I changed her litter back to Breeze and she peed on my bed again. This time I had the mattress topper off and the pee got down in the underfoam. I ordered replacement foam to the tune of $200 and a new mattress topper to the tune of $600. We have a Select Comfort bed so replacements cost a arm and a leg.

AHH. I am so frustrated. I don't know what has got into her. I can't say that she has been purrfectly happy with the new kittens, but she hasn't show any behavior up til now and it's very confusing that she would start a month after they came home. She keeps following them around and smelling their butts.

Do you think they are maturing and she is smelling "boy" smells and dosen't like it?

I have locked her out of our bedroom, which is sad since it is where she hangs out and she sleeps with me every night. I am at a loss...I guess a vet trip is our next step.

 

[erinroro]

Wow - poor kitty - she must be angry/confused by something! Did you try the talcum/vanilla tactic?

Maybe she just needs a little reassurance....I know it sounds mean, but perhaps put the two kitties in a room by themselves, and let Azreal roam the house? I don't know if that will make it any better....

It is tough to try and figure out what they are thinking! I

 

[carolina]

Homemommy, get a large litterbox and fill with Cat attract litter... I didn't realize you used the Breeze system... Cat attract works wonders... You want to go unscented, plain litter. You can get cat attract at Petco, Pet Supplies Plus, and major pet supply stores - it really really helps.
The problem with the Breeze system, is that it is Pellets too, and if she has a problem with the texture of it, she will have a problem with Feline Pine, with the Breeze system, or any other pellet system you provide her with.

I would recommend taking her to the vet for sure... Make sure to ask for a urinalysis... What cleaner are you using? I only trust 2: Nok Out and Anti-icky poo. Make sure to soak it really well and let it air dry. It will take a while, but the enzymes need to eat through the urine to work...

 

[feralvr]

Yes, I agree. Pelleted litter is tricky and some cats will hate the feel under their paws. My neighbor switched to a pelleted litter, I think some kind of corn based pellets. And her one cat used the box and the other one, well, went elsewhere. Get the largest litter pan you can find and fill it with the Cat Attract litter. That is terrible about your mattress ARGH

and I would keep the cat out of the bedroom for awhile. Good luck and keep updating!

 

[homemommy]

Thanks for all the suggestions. Just venting about it helps. Azrael has used the Breeze system for over a year and we never had a problem. She seems to actually prefer the pellets over anything else. She hates anything on her fur and the clay litter got in her long fur and she was constantly picking it out. I changed to the Feline Pine because the number of pads we were using with the Breeze system and with 3 cats now, it was getting expensive. We have three litter boxes, the Breeze box in the bathroom, a box in my closet (the kittens safe room) and a box downstairs, although they rarely use it. The majority of the time they all use the Breeze bathroom box and the kittens are the only ones who use the box in the closet/safe room...Azrael won't even go in the closet, even to look around.

I honestly don't think this is a litter issue. We had changed to the Feline Pine for over a week before she peed on the bed, and the pellets of the Breeze and Feline Pine are almost identical. When they came home from the vet after being neutered, something changed. But I don't get what is upsetting her about it. I am really thinking this is "smell" related. She keeps smelling them like something has changed about them. As soon as it's safe, everyone is getting a bath...hopefully that will help. I'll keep you posted.

Thanks everybody.