Ask Your Cat Question. Cat Experts Answer You ASAP.

(Not a Cat Question?)

I am at my wits end with my 2 1/2 year old female cat. She ...
Sent to Cat Experts May 18 01:59 PM

I am at my wits end with my 2 1/2 year old female cat. She has been peeing outside the litter box for almost 2 years now. These are the step I have taken:

1. got another litter box (I have another female, 4 yrs.)
2. Used all the good odor stuff to rid of the smell (the litter box is in the bathroom on tile floor, there is no where else to put it),
3. Got her fixed at about 10 or 11 months, no change
4. Took her to the vet about 1 year ago, small trace of bacteria but nothing bad, treated it with medicine, still no change.
5. I switched litters b/c I was told some cats hate unatural litter, so for about 7 months I've been used feline pine. And I started cleaning the litter box every night. It helped a little.
6. Bought Feliway about 6 months ago, it helped alot for about 4 months (it would only happen 1 every month or so), but the last 2 months it has started happening more and more where now she does it every other day.
-I tried to put down a trash bad to try to save my tile and grout, then I was told that attractes them so I removed it, no change. Then I put down a paper bag right about when I started to use the feliway (it helps the pee not soak into the grout)

I just don't know what else to do!!! I ready to go buy a pee pad and just let pee outside the litte box b/c I am so so tried!! My husband wants to get rid of her but she's may baby and I want to find out what's going on with her but I don't know what else to do??????????? Please help me!?!?!?!?!?!
Frustrated, Tara Williams

 

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Status:  Closed   Value: $8
Info Request
May 18 2:06 PM (7 minutes and 2 seconds later)
         
REPLIED to Info RequestCheck Mark
Has your vet ever done a culture of the urine?
Have any x-rays or ultrasound of the bladder been performed?
Has your vet mentioned Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease to you?
RGK -- Veterinarian100% Positive Feedback on 120 Cat Accepts
6 years experience as small animal vet, 17 years experience in the animal care field
Reply
May 18 3:06 PM (59 minutes and 45 seconds later)
         
Reply to RGK's Post: I think my vet has done a culture of the urine but I they have not performed x-rays or an ultrasound. And no they have never mentioned feline lower urinary tract diease to me. What is that?? Thanks
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Answer
May 19 12:36 AM (9 hours and 29 minutes and 43 seconds later)
         
REPLIEDCheck Mark
If your vet can rule out all of the treatable causes of recurrent inappropriate urination (infection, bladder stones, structural abnormalities, kidney disease, diabetes mellitus), then you are left with 2 options: it's strictly a behavioral problem, or your cat suffers from Feline Lower Urinary Tract disease (FLUTD). I'd recommend having further imaging done, preferably a bladder ultrasound, to rule out the presence of calculi (stones) within the bladder or any structural abnormalities. Bloodwork will rule out things like kidney disease or diabetes (would be unusual since it started so young). If these things are ok, then you need to consider the other options.
1. FLUTD- probably one of the most frustrating diseases affecting cats, owners, and their veterinarians. It is one of the top reasons that cats are relinquished to shelters every year. These cats seem to have periodic sterile (that's why no bacteria are seen on urinalysis) inflammations of the bladder wall. As a result of this, they feel an urgency to urinate and don't always make it to the litterbox. Moreover, cats begin to associate the discomfort of urination with the box itself and so then begin to develop a litter box aversion. They don't understand why they hurt, they just know that they hurt when they're in that darn box. Fortunately in most cases, they will still use the litterbox for defecation. FLUTD has been compared to idiopathic interstitial cystitis in women, idiopathic is a fancy way of saying unknown cause. FLUTD cats typically urinate outside the litter box, and can have any or all of the following: blood in the urine, difficulty urinating, urinating small amounts frequently. Flare-ups seem to last for 7 days or so, and usually resolve without any treatment. They may occur at any time. Stress seems to exacerbate the symptoms of this disease, and it seems to be a little more prevalent in cats that are high strung. Certain breeds like Persians and Himalayans seem to be slightly more predisposed to development of FLUTD but no evidence for a hereditary basis for the disease has been established. FLUTD is managed, not cured and steps include:
-increasing water intake- canned foods and easy access to fresh water (sometimes fountains or leaving the tap dripping).
- minimizing stress
- frequent litterbox cleaning
- sometimes the tricyclic antidepressant, amitriptyline, works because in addition to it's mood altering properties, it's also believed to have anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties.
- Cosequin- a polysulfated glycosaminoglycan, it's believed that since the lining of the bladder wall consists of similar components that supplementing with Cosequin helps the inflamed bladder repair itself. Anecdotally this seems to help, but I've not come across too much really hard evidence that it does.

2. Behavioral issue- whether is started as a urinary tract infection that caused a litterbox aversion, something frightened her while she was in the litterbox urinating, or she has a mild form of FLUTD- there will be at least a partial behavior component to the problem. You have covered a lot of the bases by adding an additional litter box, thorough cleaning of soiled areas and trying Feliway. Some other things to try include:
- cats have a depth preference believe it or not. Most cats like litter to be 2 inches deep.
- unscented litter is best
- uncovered litter boxes because covered ones hold in odor
- some cats prefer to defecate in one box and urinate in another. Adding a third box would be ideal, or cleaning the existing boxes twice a day.
- dump out all litter and wash boxes in mild soap once a week
- some cats have a substrate preference. If she likes the tiles, sometimes lining the box beneath the litter with the same substrate encourages the cat to use the box.
- behavioral altering drugs like amitriptyline or buspirone

I will Private Message you with some handouts by Dr. Ernest Ward, available through the American Animal Hospital Association. These will expand on the suggestions and offer others as well.
I hope this was helpful. Hang in there, this is the toughest challenge for cat owners. I commend you for trying every avenue to help her out.

Edited by Vet help on May 19 2006 at 12:40 AM
RGK -- Veterinarian100% Positive Feedback on 120 Cat Accepts
6 years experience as small animal vet, 17 years experience in the animal care field
Reply
May 19 10:31 AM (9 hours and 55 minutes and 2 seconds later)
         
Reply to RGK's Post: That answer was very helpful. It feels good to know I can maybe help her and get both our stress levels down. I do not know if this is important but, she always does it in the early morning hours and right under one litter box. I mean the pee is under it!... I don't know how she does it!! It's almost like she hates the litter box and pees on it! Also went she does it she hides the whole morning, she won't come out until noon so she knows she's done something wrong. And if you do catch her she cries and tenses up. I will take her to the vet monday...thank you so much. Really, this has been a battle thank you. Tara
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Answer
May 19 2:52 PM (4 hours and 20 minutes and 57 seconds later)
         
ACCEPTEDCheck Mark
I have a couple of thoughts on the peeing underneath the box:
If your cat is very heavy or just big in general, she may be trying to urinate in the litterbox but she simply doesn't fit. So while she tries to position herself to urinate within the box, what she's actually doing is peeing just over the side, so that the urine collects beneath the box. Trying a larger sized litter box may help.
If you tend to scoop the boxes in the morning, then maybe by the following morning, before you scoop again, they may be a little dirtier than she likes it. That may cause her to pee next to the box, or some cats will even perch themselves on the rim of the box to urinate so they don't have to touch the "dirty" litter inside.
RGK -- Veterinarian100% Positive Feedback on 120 Cat Accepts
6 years experience as small animal vet, 17 years experience in the animal care field
Think you can answer this question?
Login or Become an Expert

Related Answers

 

DISCLAIMER: You acknowledge that any information you may obtain from individuals you contact through use of the JustAnswer service comes from those individuals, not from JustAnswer, and that JustAnswer is not in any way responsible for any of the information these third parties may supply. The site and services are provided "as is" with no warranty and no representations are made regarding the qualification of an Expert. Responses and comments on JustAnswer are for general information and are not intended to substitute for informed professional advice (such as medical, legal, investment or accounting) and do not establish a professional-client relationship. JustAnswer is not intended or designed to address EMERGENCY QUESTIONS which should be directed immediately by telephone or in-person to qualified professionals. Please carefully read the Terms of Service.

JustAnswer > Cat Breed Info and Feline Health Care