What can I do to stop my cat from peeing in certain areas of my apt.? He's "fixed" and the litter box is clean

Question

He's 4 years old
Mostly indoor cat, is only out for maybe an hour or two a day

Answer 1

Hi there...please 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
-senior cats over the age of 10 develop age-related disorders/diseases such as chronic renal failure (CRF), hyperthyroidism, diabetes, etc.

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

Feline lower urinary tract disorders (FLUTD): http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_feline_lower_urinary_tract_dis.html

Answer 2

Hi , I also have 6 cats and I have one cat, a young male that began peeing in a corner and we have two litter boxes and change them every other day, and scoop them out as soon as they are dirty. My cats, both females and males are all fixed.
Out cats are allso indoor cats, so our cats have a lot in comon. NOw let me ask some questions.
Do you have any other cats, any new pets? How long has your cat been doing this?Has he recently been neurtered, or neutered a long time ago? If he has just recently been neutered, then Peeing in certain places may just take awhile to unlearn.
It takes awhile for his unlearned behaivor and his hormones to adjust.
When our male began peeing on the carpet away from the litter box where he was not supposed to go, I tryed a couple of things till I found out what worked for him. First, I made sure that the litter box was very clean. cats are clean animals by nature, and if the litter box is even a tiny bit dirty, they don't like to use it. Sometimes you need to try a different litter, some cats don't like a certain litter and let you know it by peeing when they don't like it. ( how else can they tell us?) When he peed where his litter box wasn;'t, I cleaned the area very well with a weak bleach solution, just enough to clean the smell without bleaching the carpet. They also have natural enzyme stain removers that you can buy at most pet stores to remove not only the stain but the smell. It is the smell that makes the pet return again and again.
After cleaning the spot , you can try spraying one of several smells to deter the cat from going back to that spot. One smell that cats DO NOT LIKE IS CITRUS. there are lots of citrus smells , sprays out there, some work better than others. Cats also don't like strong scents like chili-pepper , or you can try one of the products on the market that they sell in the pet stores to deter animals from scratching on couches, staying away from your garden etc. Our cat hates the lemon, citrus smell, it works for him, We also gave him his own cat littter box, and he may use the other one the other cats use, but he knows he has his own litter box, and he uses it primarily. also you can keep the cat from using the same spot that he peed on before by covering it up so he has no access. Move a piece of furniture, etc. on it and he wont have any access.
Cats sometimes just as dogs, use peeing as a way to tell you that they are upset about somethng, it is a behaivor problem, and it may take more work on your part if this is the case to see what else may be bothering him. Sometimes a cat is ill, and this new behaivor is just a sympton of some disease. Diabetes, if with an increase in drinking water can be another sympton. Mayby he has a bladder infection and has to pee where he can. You can rule out these last two items a lot quicker by trying the spraying the area after cleaning it, covering it and getting a new or additional litter box. You may just need to change the litter box more frequently. Does he pee when he wants out and you won't let him go out again? If so he may be rebelling because he wants out, or if he was older when neutered, he is remembering he used to mark his territory. ONe of our male cats still shakes his tail area like he is marking his territory, though nothing comes out, ( thankfully) and it is just a behaivor he is gradually forgetting about.
when we brought a new kitten into the house, one male began peeing and having accidents in the corner of one room, and he made sure we saw him do it, and getting a reaction from us is what he wanted, just like a child. We igored him, and just cleaned the area and covered it, gave him extra attention and made sure the new kitten didn't get into the other cats speical space and they became best buddies. some people spray a cat or dog for peeing , scratching, or some other undesirable behairvor, but I DO NOT APPROVE OF THAT AND IT CAN MAKE THE SITUATION WORSE, THEY WILL BECOME AFRAID OF THE WATER BOTTLE, NEWSPAPER IF YOU USE IT TO MAKE A LOUD NOISE WITH , OR WHATEVER ELSE YOU MAY USE. If none of the above suggestions work, talk to your vet and see what he suggests. Your cat may be bored and jlust needs more stimulation, play, and this is how he knows how to get your attention. Good luck, dont give up and you will figure out what he is trying to tell you. Let me know what happens.
Pat Hawk Smith fluffypurrcat

Answer 3

I suppose it is among the kittens, despite the fact that it would appear like plenty of urine. Our kitten used to be doing whatever equivalent, he might urinate in an discipline and later return to the equal discipline drawn there by way of the scent I suppose. Citronella did not paintings at concerned with us, we used spray and likewise washed the ground with it. The resolution in our condominium used to be getting clay clutter, so far as I might inform our kitty simply did not like his picket pellet one (which he had it appears been educated on). Now he continuously is going in his clutter containers fortunately. If it is not the clutter itself, your drawback would rely on what number of clutter containers you've, perhaps there are not adequate for the entire cats and the infants do not wish to proportion with the ancient individuals.

Answer 4

There is a spray you can buy for it that works with dogs as well. It is a sour apple spray sold in pet stores. No matter what you do, DO NOT clean it with any cleaning solutions. The ammonia and other solvents in there will attract the cat to pee there again.

Answer 5

I didn't notice it mentioned in any of the other answers, but just in case I thought I'd point out. If the food or water bowl are anywhere near the box your cat wont use it. And if that isn't it, then I would recommend the spray as well. It usually works just fine.

Answer 6

Well from personal experience cats love soft feeling textures and it is only in their nature to pee on anything they feel is soothing. My cat did it young and what we did was block it off from whatever it was peeing on and after time it just learned to go in the litter box.. always

Answer 7

There is a product called PISSOFF it is design to clean and to make the area unappealing to the cat so they won't pee there again. You can get it at the pet store and the vets

Answer 8

He probably has a urinary infection. Take kitty to get a urinalysis to check for crystals in the urine. This can be fatal and it is treatable. Urinalysis costs about $30. This will help you know if its medical or behaviour problem.

Answer 9

There is this hormone spray you can buy. It's expensive and it works about half the time.

Answer 10

take him to the vet...could be a urinary tract infection.