I am at my wits end, and I need some help.
Right now there are three cats in the household. It started off with just my cat Hydra (black tux), she'll be 12 this year. In late August of 2005 my mother had to go out of state for a few months and she asked that I take care of her elderly cat Brassy, then around 15, and so I took her in as it would be too difficult to run a family, work full time, and make it to her house three times a day to make sure Brassy was fed.
Brassy started having litter box problems nearly immediately. I am certain this was stress of my mom leaving for such a long time, coupled with the fact she had been relocated to my place. Instead of the litter box, she would use any clothes or things found on the floor in my daughters room (she was just 5 then, so you can imagine things always found their way to the floor). Things started to settle down a little and her problem wasn't as bad.
In mid October we picked up a pair of boy kittens for our daughter, Copper (tabby) and Voodoo (black tux). They are litter mates and they did just fine for a while. But then Copper (we've never caught Voodoo, but realize he may be just as much a culprit) started spraying after a few months. We chalked it up to Brassy setting the bad banner of not using the litter box. It had been mostly confined to our daughters room, then in early March of 2006 my mother returned and we promptly returned her cat.
Brassy's litter problems promptly ceased.
However, we continued to catch Copper spraying, and it moved to other areas of the house. We got him fixed, and that has done nothing. We've waited too long for Voodoo (long story and that is being remedied later this month), and Voodoo is highly dominant. We wonder if things might settle down when we get him clipped. In the mean time, Copper sprays on more or less everything that isn't actual flooring. Plastic bags at times fallen to the floor from the counter, he's most bad about clothing and blankets. He's even peed on my bed linens and couch. Keeping the litter boxes clean doesn't even alleviate the situation.
I've tried placing Copper in the litter box when I have caught him. No dice.
I haven't moved, we haven't introduced anything but a pair of hamsters into the household. No one has moved in or out. Both boys are very good animals, save for this one major problem. We don't punish them for peeing, we rarely catch Copper these days in the act, we've never caught Voodoo, and all we are left with is the after effects anyway. The only time they are gotten after for something like that is if they appear to be a little too interested in a place or we think they are acting suspicious. And by 'gotten after' we make a noise that alerts them to our displeasure for their actions. If a spray bottle is handy, then they get a few squirts of water sent their direction. I really can't think of anything at this point.
I am sick of my house smelling of cat urine. I would greatly appreciate it if anyone has some suggestions at this point. Products to help remove cat urine would be highly welcomed. Any vet suggestions that specialize in cats in the Denver area, and any behavioral modification ideas would be very nice. My next step after getting Voodoo neutered, and things haven't solved themselves, then I am taking Copper in for another examination.
Spraying Issues, Suggestions Please.
Re: Spraying Issues, Suggestions Please.
Did either cat get a full urinalysis to rule out urinary tract infection, and were there more than one or two followup urinalyses? If not, urinalysis for both cats pronto.
There is obviously some stress going on in the environment, whatever and wherever it initiates you need to investigate.
Keep at least two litterboxes in the house (preferrably two per cat), placed in different areas, and those areas should be in private areas, away from heavy foot traffic, away from noisy appliances, kept scooped on a daily basis, and thoroughly cleaned and rinsed at least once a week. Don't keep any litterbox in a room where there is lots of activity (your daughter's room).
Be keen to what's going on in the environment, directly before a spraying incident, and after. What is causing the stress that the cat(s) are avoiding the litterbox? Where is the location of the box(s)? Is one cat intimidated by another? Is one cat avoiding the litterbox due to intimidation? Do both cats enjoy each other's company during eating, playing, resting, etc?
Use enzymatic cleaners like Petastic to clean the areas that are marked. Don't use heavy scented household cleaners on these areas, no carpet powders, etc. After using the Petastic, when dry, try placing an object on the area to deter the cat(s) from remarking the area. For wood, ceramic tile, linoleum, etc, use only MILD cleaners, not heavy-scented cleaners.
Don't leave clothes, towels, personal items etc laying on the floor, ALL cats will urinate on these things due to instinct, so keep things off the floor. For your daughter's room, when she is not in the room, keep the door closed so the cats don't have access. For your bedding, try using a waterproof mattress pad directly on the top of the bed when not in use so the cats learn the bed is not for urinating on.
Unfortunately, for carpets, once urine gets on them, it seeps to the subfloor and the only way to resolve this is replacing the carpet (seal the floor first). You can try more than one application of Petastic in some areas, but if the urine is already to the subfloor, there's not much else you can do other than replacing.
These issues can almost always be resolved when the owner is comitted to finding the cause of stress and working toward a solution, without the use of behavioral specialists or a vet's suggestion of drugs. Drugs don't solve the problem and they are not without risks. You have to be keen to each cat's individual needs, keen to their behaviors, find out what stresses are causing them to react, and to make minimal, slow changes so they can adapt more easily.
There is obviously some stress going on in the environment, whatever and wherever it initiates you need to investigate.
Keep at least two litterboxes in the house (preferrably two per cat), placed in different areas, and those areas should be in private areas, away from heavy foot traffic, away from noisy appliances, kept scooped on a daily basis, and thoroughly cleaned and rinsed at least once a week. Don't keep any litterbox in a room where there is lots of activity (your daughter's room).
Be keen to what's going on in the environment, directly before a spraying incident, and after. What is causing the stress that the cat(s) are avoiding the litterbox? Where is the location of the box(s)? Is one cat intimidated by another? Is one cat avoiding the litterbox due to intimidation? Do both cats enjoy each other's company during eating, playing, resting, etc?
Use enzymatic cleaners like Petastic to clean the areas that are marked. Don't use heavy scented household cleaners on these areas, no carpet powders, etc. After using the Petastic, when dry, try placing an object on the area to deter the cat(s) from remarking the area. For wood, ceramic tile, linoleum, etc, use only MILD cleaners, not heavy-scented cleaners.
Don't leave clothes, towels, personal items etc laying on the floor, ALL cats will urinate on these things due to instinct, so keep things off the floor. For your daughter's room, when she is not in the room, keep the door closed so the cats don't have access. For your bedding, try using a waterproof mattress pad directly on the top of the bed when not in use so the cats learn the bed is not for urinating on.
Unfortunately, for carpets, once urine gets on them, it seeps to the subfloor and the only way to resolve this is replacing the carpet (seal the floor first). You can try more than one application of Petastic in some areas, but if the urine is already to the subfloor, there's not much else you can do other than replacing.
These issues can almost always be resolved when the owner is comitted to finding the cause of stress and working toward a solution, without the use of behavioral specialists or a vet's suggestion of drugs. Drugs don't solve the problem and they are not without risks. You have to be keen to each cat's individual needs, keen to their behaviors, find out what stresses are causing them to react, and to make minimal, slow changes so they can adapt more easily.
..........Traci