My Peeing cat

[Rock Mommy]

I have 3 female cats, age 13, 8 and 6.  The older 2 are fine, loving and upstanding (as much as a cat can be) members of our household, but the youngest one is starting to seriously hack me off.  Basically she will pee anywhere (mainly the doormat, but also the fishtank, fruit bowl, any plastic bag, dog bed, post, newspapers, clean washing - in fact, you name it and she's wee'd on it) and poo in the most extraordinary places (in a wine glass in a work top - oh yes!!).  In the past 2 houses we have lived in we had cat flaps and in our new house we have 2 litter trays and are paying a ridiculous �200 to have a cat flap fitted in a double glazed door.  We have had her from 12 weeks, she has pretty much always been like this, she can be good for a day or even a week sometimes, but always returns to this behaviour, she's not bullied, all the cats get on great, she is a kleptomaniac (will bring in all sorts, fag packets, gloves, underwear ...) but apart from that she's pretty normal, except for this random peeing.  She's been checked by the vet, who says she is sound, she is loved and has cat toys etc to play with.  Does anyone have any ideas a) why she's doing it and b) how can I stop her.  It's driving me mad, I have 2 kids under 4 and they are enough to clean up after without washing cat pee out of everything as well!  HELP!!!!! 

[Ouisch]

She is "acting out" and marking territory.  Has she been spayed?  Sometimes that helps.  In any case, she feels inferior to the other cats and is trying to get your attention.  As for peeing in inappropriate places, often dousing it with white vinegar helps - supposedly cats don't like the smell.  We had a cat that had similar habits once, and it took some serious "hands on" therapy to break her.  Luckily, both my husband and I work at home, so we were present when she misbehaved, and were able to squirt her with water (using a spray bottle) whenever we saw her in her "squat" position outside of the litter box.

 

I wish you the best of luck!

[natalie_1982]

My cat used to pee everywhere before he was spayed, that's the only useful thing I have to add I'm afraid. Oh and that he's stopped doing it indoors now - good luck!

[Rock Mommy]

She has been spayed!  To be honest I think that she's not quite all there.  We've tried the spraying water at her method, it worked in the short term, in that she stops and runs off, but that can cause her to go 'undercover' and pee somewhere odd (like her food bowl, which she did last night).  Will try vinegar though, we are currently using tea tree oil, which is sometimes successful sometimes not (I think she must hold her breath!)

 

[Hells Fairy]

Washing the area where cats (or dogs) have peed with a solution of biological washing liquid, then drying and spraying surgical spirit will sometimes stop animals going to the same place to pee. It removes the scent of their pee and they are less likely to go there again.

[little_miss]

I have two cats and a dog and when we moved house my male cat started peeing and pooing off the tray! He used to get on it but then he would move around and his poo used to go on the floor. I tried so many things like spraying water etc but i found if you keep them to one room and give them a comfy bed and some treats. make sure they get some quality time with you too.put them on your lap and stroke them. If that doesn't work, sometimes you have to follow them around when you think they might mess somewhere. We had another cat (female) who used to raise her bum when she pees so the wee eould gfo everywhere! it was horrible. in the end we had to wait for her to get on the tray and hole  her back down so she would stay down. i must tell you all my animals are very good with regards to their toilet habits! i pleased anyway!!!

[Pythoness]

I would suggest trying a different kind of cat box filler.  Cats are very very particular creatures when it comes to their bathrooms, and where some of them are fine with one kind, others object strongly to it.  Most cats would prefer to not have their litter perfumed or scented.. remember that their sense of smell is so much better than ours that what is lightly scented to us is overpowering to them! 

Another thing you could try is a spray called Feliway.

http://www.moggies.co.uk/html/feliway.html

It is a behavior modification spray that very closely mimics the pheromones cats rub on places from the scent glands on the sides of their faces.  These pheromones are generally only applied to places where the cat feels comfortable or safe.  When applied in a room, the cat is less likely to engage in aggressive or territorial marking of that room, because the pheromone helps to calm them down.

These links may also be helpful to you:

http://www.pethealthcare.net/html/body_inappropriate_elimination_diso.html

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=88&S=1&SourceID=18

http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/household_pets/88820