My cat is all of a sudden urinating on my furniture...at 6 years old! What could be the problem?

Answer 1

I would be making an appointment at the vet, your cat is trying to tell you that something is wrong. It could be caused by emotional stress, and if your cat does not have an infection you will have to figure out what happened before this urination started, what things changed in your lives which may have caused this behavior. Cats can become very stressed and are very sensitive to even the smallest changes, new food or litter, new living quarters, different people in or out of their lives. Best of luck to you and your fur baby. Have a good night!!

Answer 2

There are a few main reasons why this could be happening:

Firstly, as many have already mentioned, it could be a urinary tract infection. If you notice the cat trying to urinate but having trouble, or if only a little comes out, you can be fairly sure this is your problem.

If your cat does not have any kitty-litter in the house (as it is usually good with going out), putting a tray inside might stop it from peeing on your furniture, but you will still need to take it to a vet. If you cannot afford to take it immediately, you can use the human medication "Ural" (this is what it is called in Australia, and I would not recommend anything else if you cannot get it. This is all I have used). I have been told by several vets that this is a suitable short-term treatment for your cat, but you must be sure only to give the cat a fraction of the human dose (say 1/12 of the suggested amount). I have used it before, and it seems to be safe and effective.

If your cat is an active Tom-Cat (IE not de-sexed), it may be that another cat has come in to the area and threatened his position or territory, or that there is a cat on-heat nearby. The best way to address this would be to have him de-sexed.

Even if it is desexed, it could be a territorial problem of a different kind. This is particularly likely if you have new furniture, or have moved furniture around, if you have bought a new pet, if you have someone new living with you or staying with you. If your routine has changed significantly, (say a new job or new partner) the cat could also react this way - it's a basic reaction to insecurity or change which affects many cats. It would be especially likely if you have got this cat when it was very young, and/or it was not completely tame when you got it, or lived in a "wild" situation at some point.

The easiest way to work out if this is your problem is to wait it out and see if it settles, but even if you think territorial issues are most likely the cause, you should get a vet to check the cat out. A vet can rule out a urinary tract infection, which can be quite severe, but could not necessarily confirm if this is a behaviour problem.

Em

Answer 3

take the cat in to the vets .It probably has a bladder or kidney infection. if male they can get calcium stones in the bladder.watch the cat food you buy,if neutered or spayed do not buy cat food high in ash or fish. your cat is now a senior. gradually change the food over to a good senior brand, slowly mix the old with a little new until tummy can digest the new food, also does your cat go outside the litter box? another sign. also are you keeping the litter clean? get a good scooping kind and scoop every day and every 2 weeks dump it all and clean the pan and refill. find a litter that works best as they sometimes do not like different litters and they will let you know by peeing in other places. do not punish this cat. get him to the vets to be checked and treated

Answer 4

Any problem with improper urination in a cat needs veterinary diagnosis first thing. Don't delay and let your furniture be ruined and get odors that can't be erased and will cause the behavior to continue.

This behavior gets our immediate attention, right? Cats know this and they are calling for help in the only way they can.

When the physical is ruled out or treated continuation means it is a behavioral problem and you have to look at the reasons for this.

Answer 5

Most cats are so sensitive to the smell of their own feces / urine that they try to do it somewhere else if their litter box smells or isn’t kept clean enough. Make sure you always keep your cat’s kitty litter clean and fresh as much as possible (or try adding another litter box just for her to pee in).You may also need to break your cat’s bad habit of urinating on your furniture by moving it and removing the smell of urine.

Answer 6

I would also like to know why this could be becase my cat did this.I had to end up throwing my couch away because my cat kept peeing on the same spot on the couch and my cat is 6 also. My cat just had Kidney stones removed about 2 months ago.

Answer 7

Have you aquired any new pets or a new baby or a partner move in?
If so, this could be territorial marking for attention.
Also, there is the possibility of a kidney infection.
Your litter box needs to be changed about every 3-4 days at the least.

Answer 8

Has there been a recent change in the house? A new pet, new baby, family member moving out? Sometimes a sudden change can upset a cat and cause odd behavior.

Answer 9

If the cat is a male it is probably scenting "marking" his territory, it smells worse than urine? Older Tomcats do this. If it is female then you may have a health issue with her. Cats can develop the same issues as humans, and a bladder or track infection wouldn't be uncommon.

Answer 10

Has there been any recent changes in your household?If so your cat could be acting out from the change.Your cat could have kidneys that is trying to fail,my sisters dog did that.I would contact a vet to see what the problem is.It could just be from old age.or even could be the beginning of seizers.