Cat is peeing on stove! Cause?

Question

I know this is disgusting but my female cat, Tilly, has peed on our stove. We turned it on and the smell was awful and probably very unhealthy for us. She has done this atleast 7 times and only when everyone is sleeping or out of the house. Tilly has never done this, she is 12 years old and healthy. She eats and uses her litter except for when she pees on the stove. We don't want to get rid of her (put her to sleep) but I can't have this. I have to clean all four burners almost everyday! I wonder if this could be stress because tilly lives with 4 other younger cats. But she has always been fine with them since we've had them for atleast 3 years. We also recently got a lovebird, but it doesn't annoy her. Does anyone have any idea why tilly would do this or how to stop her?

Answer 1

Hi there...first consider all the possibilities such as:
- changes with litter brands
- location of the litter box isn't private enough
- some cats like to have one box to defecate and another to urinate
- cleanliness (some cats are very finicky and prefer a super clean box)
- as a general rule there should be one litter box for each cat plus one extra as a back up -- some cats are very protective over the litter box and block others from using it which may be affecting Tilly.
- cats are consider seniors around the age of 10/11 years. They will sometimes develop Chronic Renal Failure (CRF) http://www.felinecrf.com/what0.htm or hyperthyroidsim http://www.marvistavet.com/html/thyroid__signs__symptoms_and_d.html which is common among senior cats. Immediate attention is required for these two diseases as they are considered life-threatening.

Consider using burner covers (example: http://www.burnercoverking.com/ ) to protect the burners from being inappropriately soiled. Sometimes by placing loose foil on top of surfaces acts as a deterrent to discourage undesired behaviours.

If all these have been ruled out, there's a chance that your cat may have developed another underlying medical problem which can contribute to accidents outside of the box. Cats will associate pain while using box and change their habits as a result.

Here's an article about why cats inappropriately soil outside their litter box by Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine: http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/brochures/Housesoiling.html

House soiling is the most common behavior problem reported by cat owners. It includes urination and/or defecation outside the litter box, as well as urine spraying.

Why do cats eliminate outside of the litter box?
One common misconception is that cats soil in inappropriate places for revenge. It is tempting to conclude, "He defecated on the living room carpet to punish me for leaving him for the weekend." But this kind of calculation requires sophisticated cognitive abilities that cats aren't believed to possess. Furthermore, this conclusion assumes that cats view their urine and feces as distasteful, when in fact they do not. It is only we humans who view it that way.

Medical Problems
So why do cats urinate or defecate on your bed or carpet? Medical problems are one possibility. Inflammation of the urinary tract may cause painful or frequent urination, inability to urinate, bloody urine, and crying during urination. An affected cat is likely to eliminate outside the litter box if he comes to associate the box with painful urination, or if he has an increased urgency to urinate. In addition, kidney, liver, and thyroid diseases often lead to increased drinking and urination. Inflammation of the colon or rectum, intestinal tract tumors, intestinal parasites, and other gastrointestinal conditions may cause painful defecation, increased frequency or urgency to defecate, and decreased control of defecation. Age-related diseases that interfere with a cat's mobility (for example, arthritis, nervous system disorders, or muscular diseases), or with his cognitive functions can also influence his ability to get to the litter box in time. In short, any medical condition that interferes with a cat's normal elimination behavior can lead to house soiling.

Litter Box Aversions
Behavioral problems, such as litter box aversions, inappropriate site preferences, or urine spraying can also lead to house soiling. An aversion implies that there is something about the litter box that your cat finds unsavory. It could be the box, the litter, the location of the box, or all three.

...please consider visiting the website for further details

Answer 2

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Answer 3

First you need to BLOCK Tilly from getting onto the stove for not only unhealthy but dangerous-if necessary either close door to kitchen when you all go to bed or if open kitchen block the doorway with some obstruction like a babygate or whatever you have handy that she cannot get over and is sure to prevent her from getting on the stove. Perhaps Tilly NEEDS HER OWN Litterbox for cats will not use if it gets too full or too smelly-if you put and KEEP Larage pots on the stove tilly has not enough space on the stove top to use-fill the pots with water-also make then handy humidifiers-takes a long time for the water to evaporate so no danger of it getting too humid-get some cheal pots if you do not have. Think back on what out of the ordinary occurred right before Tilly began doing this for something caused her to act in this abnormal manner-maybe one of the cats bothered her or something else or someone bothered her while she was using litterbox and why she now seeks higher ground(high is same as safe for a cat)Since too much to expect you to stay up and watch for the cat to start getting on the stove and then you squirt with water or bang something making a Very LOUD Noise to scare her-only way to stop her is to scare her from going onto the stove-may be worth it to take a comfy position where you can observe the stove and watch-you may lose some sleep BUT..

Answer 4

First, get some covers for the burners on your stove. Next, plan on not using your stove for a few days. Cover the stove top with saran wrap and put something very greasy (but not edible) all over the stovetop so when she goes to jump up there she will have trouble standing. You may even need to spray the saran wrap with a pet deterrent. Or something like pepper spray so she finds it too disgusting to hang around long enough to pee. Maybe if you can break the habit for a few days and she starts using her litter box, she'll forget about the stove. She may be doing this because she does not like the odor from food cooked on the stove....or if it is a gas stove, maybe there is a minor leak. This is all I can think of for you. Merry Christmas and good luck with Tilly.

Answer 5

There could be a few things going on here.

- your cat is having pain during urination and has associated the litter box with pain. Perhaps she's using the stove instead. Take the cat to the vet immediately.

- she's marking territory because of the other cats (stress reaction). Can be solved by rehoming one or more of the cats.

- the litter box is not clean enough. Perhaps with many cats using the box she doesn't like the "state of affairs" and has chosen a different spot. Since there are five cats in the house, there should be a minimum of two boxes, preferably three, for these cats to use them properly. Clean the boxes daily.

Lovebirds are great but they are extremely loud. Don't discount the possiblity that it IS causing her some stress. When it shreaks watch her reaction to see if she looks it's way or leaves the room.

Keep her off the counter/stove area by laying down aluminum foil which is lightly bent along the surface. If she lands on it, it will crinkle and surprise her and hopefully deter her. You may also use double-sided packing tape along the sides. Most cats don't like getting their feet or fur stuck in tape.

Answer 6

When cats urinate in places other than in their litter boxes there can be many different reasons, rangeing from emergency to just bad behavior. When cat are haveing problems with their bladders, urinary tract, or kidneys they tend to pee where ever and when ever the urge hits. Whether it is because they can't help it or because they are trying to tell us something is for you to figure out. With your cat being the age she is I would get her to the vet and have some blood work done to check her kidney function levels and have a urinalysys done to check for infection in the urinary tract or bladder. If all that comes out good then you are dealing with a behaviorial problem. The rule of thumb is that you should have one more litterbox than you have cats. However with five cats that is not very practical. Have you recently switched litters or started adding something to it? If you have go back to what you were using before. Never use a cleaner with amonia to clean up urine. A 50/50 mixture of white vinegar and water will help neutralize the smell and will discourage futher urinating. Also get a spray bottle and put water in it and every time she gets near the kitchen spray her. Make her fear the water bottle so when you leave you can set it up on the stove and she should avoid it.
Also I would ask your vet if she maybe has arthritis. Maybe she is jumping up there and has to pee before she can endure the pain of jumping down.
Good Luck

Answer 7

Last year my beautiful Manx cat Theodore went out for the evening and never came back. I love cats and the house didn't feel the same without one, so I picked up Lola from a rescue centre. She was very frightened and would pee all over the house. I found Cat Spraying No More� on the internet and the techniques worked almost immediately. I haven't had a problem with Lola since. Amazing!

Can't stop your cat peeing in the house? Then worry no more...

Answer 8

I don't know what could be possibly cause this so suddenly and randomly. Maybe you can cover the stove with something at night or while you are gone. It'd be easier to clean or wash that, than continually clean your burners. Don't put her to sleep if you have to get rid of her. Find a good home for her or take her to a humane society that doesn't put down it's animals if you can't find a solution. Best of luck for you and Tilly!

Answer 9

First, to stop her, put double sided tape on the edge of the stove. She will not like the feel of this and will stop getting on it.

Now as for why she is doing this. Cats are known to use the bathroom on human things when they are mad or upset with them. Tilly is getting older and just like humans, cat's personality can change with age.

I would take your kitty to the vet to make sure there is nothing wrong. Even having a simple bladder infection can change a cat's behavior.

You also brought a new animal into the house. Even though you might not think it is annoying her, it really might be.

Answer 10

Well it might be because of the younger cats peeing on what she thinks HER stove so she must cover their sent she thinks it is HER house because she was there first the advice I can give is get cages for ALL the cats and @ night or when you are out put em up that's what we do with our pet kitten and dog.

Answer 11

Okay...I disagree with the answer that cats don't have the reasoning capacity to get even with you for leaving etc. Our cat did the exact same thing when we had to leave him home for a few days for a vacation. When we came back the cleaning and after effects of the iccindent was gross! And we were great for about 4 years then it happened again...we were out of town again. That is exactly when we bought burner covers. Also we don't leave him home alone anymore. I think finding out what has changed for your cat is important. It may be a medical thing, it may be that he doesn't like the bird, or maybe she's just a freak about the litter box. Good luck!