I'm at my wit's end with this cat...

[dottyblue]

I have 9 year old male cat who has a history of urinary issues. We had him to the vet 2 weeks ago because he was straining to pee, but he had no blockages, no UTI, nothing. The vet basically thinks he is "stressed" probably because of my pregnancy hormone changes.

Since that vet appointment he has been peeing on my large area rug in the living room. The exact same spot every time. There is nothing wrong with him, he's just not using the box.

We clean with Nature's Miracle (which also includes a repellant that seems to only last for about 24 hours) and then with oxyclean. He continues to pee on the carpet and he's going to ruin my rug!

I don't know what to do. Does anyone have any suggestions? I'm open to trying anything short of putting him down or giving him away.

ETA: I did just order a Feliway diffuser and some repellant spray. We'll see if that works, but if anyone has additional suggestions, I'm open to them!

[norrin]

We've had two cats with similar issues. We never did find a solution other than to make them outdoor cats. We tried Nature's Miracle, different litter, more litter boxes, etc. No luck.

[Seesaw]

It may not only ruin the carpet but the floor underneath if it gets soaked too.

This might work if you don't have other cats pushing him away from the litter boxes, which is what happened to my currently outside kitty.

Try locking him into a small area (like a bathroom or spare bedroom) with the litter box for a few days if not a week. Food, water and bed on extreme opposite side from the litter box. Keep everything fresh and clean. Once you're sure he's using it all the time, he can come out. Visit him lots so he doesn't think he's being punished too.

It worked for my kitty but then my old female cat (who I guess thought he died or something while he was in quarantine) decided to start fighting him all the time, including while he's peeing. He had to go outside after that stupidity. He comes in for inside visits with us, but he can't stay the night inside.

Also, some kitties get allergies to or hate for certain kinds of litter. Are you using the gravel kind? One of mine hates that and associates it with the pain from a past UTI. They get crystals now.

[Kellbell119]

I absolutely would not make him an outside cat if it can be avoided, it is very dangerous. There is an FAQ at the top of the old pets board that has good suggestions. I would start by adding litterboxes, put them in different locations and try different types, maybe one covered and one uncovered. A lot of people swear by cat attract litter. We have one cat who used to be too scared to go in the basement with the boxes and would pee upstairs instead, adding an upstairs box completely resolved it. Feliway is awesome. You can also add rescue remedy to his water. I would make sure he has a cat only place like a cat tree or a babygated room with his favorite blanket that is his place to go when he is stressed and wants to be alone. I would also slowly intro him to all the baby stuff so he can get used to it and put his scent on it (they will rub up against it). As a last ditch resort you can do kitty Prozac, they make it in a transdermal gel you rub in their ears, but you want to do it as a last resort bc it can have side effects.
Also is h by any chance declawed? Pain can make them more reluctant to use the box and they are more susceptible to anxiety in changing situations. Ther are also some medical issues that wouldn't show up in a urinalysis and I'm surprised your vet didnt mention testing for.

[audnicole]

Ditto Kellbell.

There are these calming collars available for about $12, they smell like Lavender. I *think* they are helping my stressed cat, so worth the investment. I got mine at Petsmart.

www.amazon.com/Sentry-Behavior-Pheromone-Collar-Inches/dp/B0026JAKWG

The plug in pheromones take a while to work, so, as a stop-gap, you can also buy the spray.

[dottyblue]

May 30, 2012 6:58:31 GMT -5 audnicole said:

Ditto Kellbell.

There are these calming collars available for about $12, they smell like Lavender. I *think* they are helping my stressed cat, so worth the investment. I got mine at Petsmart.

www.amazon.com/Sentry-Behavior-Pheromone-Collar-Inches/dp/B0026JAKWG

The plug in pheromones take a while to work, so, as a stop-gap, you can also buy the spray.

Thank you! I did get the spray as well as the plug-ins, so we'll see what happens with that. Thankfully this is an area rug, so I have been cleaning the floor beneath the rug as well as the rug itself, so the subfloor shouldn't be a problem.

I will not be making him an outdoor cat. I am debating getting him a leash and harness and taking him for regular walks, but that would be the full extent of it.

He is not declawed, so that shouldn't be the cause.

The vet did run bloodwork as well. We ran so many tests, I don't remember everything, but we did bloodwork, urinalysis and and xray to look for kidney/bladder stones.

I'm headed to Petco tonight to get a third litter box and check into cat attract litter and the calming collars. Thank you so much for the suggestions!

[kellbell191]

I think the next step with the vet would be to do an ultrasound to see if they can find anything. Katiescats has a cat with a weird urinary condition but now I can't remember what it is. Hopefully she will chime in.

[brittmk0922]

I would definitely explore your options for the litterbox. I had a cat that used the same box for like 9 years and decided after going through some urinary issues that she connected the box with that and therefore would no longer use the covered box with the gravel litter. An uncovered box with crystals was put out and she used it no problem.

[SpicedApplePie]

This is completely anecdotal, but we tried to switch my cat to Wellness and she did the exact same thing with no "cause" (no blockage, perfect urinalysis, fine bloodwork, ect). When I switched her back to her old food (Chicken soup for the cat lover's soul) she was fine. The vet said the food might have been too "rich" for her. Not sure what the means exactly, but her problem did seem related to the food. Maybe its time for a food change?

[dottyblue]

May 30, 2012 20:08:22 GMT -5 SpicedApplePie said:

This is completely anecdotal, but we tried to switch my cat to Wellness and she did the exact same thing with no "cause" (no blockage, perfect urinalysis, fine bloodwork, ect). When I switched her back to her old food (Chicken soup for the cat lover's soul) she was fine. The vet said the food might have been too "rich" for her. Not sure what the means exactly, but her problem did seem related to the food. Maybe its time for a food change?

Huh, I'll keep that in mind. We do have him on Wellness, but he has been on it for over 3 years, so I would be skeptical that is what is causing the problem now. If some of the other things I am changing don't work, I'll try that.

I did get the Calming collar last night and he seemed pretty chill last night and this morning. The Feliway comes in the mail today (thank goodness for Amazon Prime!) and I'm renting a carpet cleaner on Saturday to get rid of the last of the urine smell from my carpet (I can't smell it after all the Nature's Miracle we have used, but I'm sure it's still deep in there). Fingers crossed!

[justaname]

My vet recommended kitty Cosequin. Apparently the glucosamine coats the bladder and can calm it down to help with urnary issues. We are going to try it next payday.

[SpicedApplePie]

May 31, 2012 7:54:24 GMT -5 dottyblue said:

May 30, 2012 20:08:22 GMT -5 SpicedApplePie said:

This is completely anecdotal, but we tried to switch my cat to Wellness and she did the exact same thing with no "cause" (no blockage, perfect urinalysis, fine bloodwork, ect). When I switched her back to her old food (Chicken soup for the cat lover's soul) she was fine. The vet said the food might have been too "rich" for her. Not sure what the means exactly, but her problem did seem related to the food. Maybe its time for a food change?

Huh, I'll keep that in mind. We do have him on Wellness, but he has been on it for over 3 years, so I would be skeptical that is what is causing the problem now. If some of the other things I am changing don't work, I'll try that.

I did get the Calming collar last night and he seemed pretty chill last night and this morning. The Feliway comes in the mail today (thank goodness for Amazon Prime!) and I'm renting a carpet cleaner on Saturday to get rid of the last of the urine smell from my carpet (I can't smell it after all the Nature's Miracle we have used, but I'm sure it's still deep in there). Fingers crossed!

Hopefully the Feliway helps!

[blueballoon]

I don't trust Wellness brand food. It's caused nothing but urinary problems for my cat. Especially the core kind, which is missing ingredients that cats do need to keep the ph at the right levels in their urine. Total crap that shouldn't be sold in my opinion.

[dottyblue]

Jun 1, 2012 5:48:32 GMT -5 blueballoon said:

I don't trust Wellness brand food. It's caused nothing but urinary problems for my cat. Especially the core kind, which is missing ingredients that cats do need to keep the ph at the right levels in their urine. Total crap that shouldn't be sold in my opinion.

Can I ask what you feed then?