Catfilter: No, kitty, the couch is not a litterbox!!!
October 30, 2014 3:42 PM
My cat is acting really strangely and using both her actual litterbox and our sofa to use the bathroom. Why is she doing this and how can we fix it???
I have a cat situation that is making me pull my hair out. Three weeks ago, my beloved kitty Nora accidentally got shut out of my room (where her litterbox is and she usually sleeps) and spent the night roaming the entire house. Unfortunately, she peed on the sofa while she was out there. I chalked this up to my mistake, cleaned said sofa with Nature’s Miracle, and we continued on with our lives.
Sadly, this has now started a trend. She has peed on the sofa twice more during the intervening weeks, both times in the morning after spending all night in the room with me and her box. She also continues to pee (and poop) in her box regularly, no problem. I took her to the vet and she got a clean bill of health. Nothing seems to be wrong with her, medically speaking.
Now everything has escalated. She peed on the sofa yesterday afternoon, then this morning she pooped on it. (?!?) She has never pooped outside of the box. Now she just peed on the sofa again, in a different spot. The weird thing is that she is STILL continuing to pee and poop in her litterbox as well. I keep the box very clean and we’ve never had problems with her not using it.
She is eating and drinking normally and prancing around just fine. We have multiple water bowls scattered around the house and she also avails herself of the dog bowls sometimes.
Possible complicating factors:
1) We live with two dogs. They are friendly-ish with Nora. She is definitely the boss and gets the prime spot on the couch or in the chair, etc. The dogs have never peed on the sofa that Nora is targeting, though one of them likes to nap on it sometimes.
2) The sofa is by two large windows, in a corner. Could Nora sense some kind of wild animal or feral cat outside and be displeased?
3) Nora is spayed and probably about three years old. I’ve had her for two years, and I found her on the side of the road where some jerk had dumped her.
4) Yesterday evening we plugged in some Feliway near the couch, since that room is Nora's favorite place to hang out.
Nora is currently in the bathroom with her box, her bed, and some toys. She’s pretty irritated by this arrangement, since she usually spends most of the day sitting in my lap while I work. Help me, MetaFilter!!!
I have a cat situation that is making me pull my hair out. Three weeks ago, my beloved kitty Nora accidentally got shut out of my room (where her litterbox is and she usually sleeps) and spent the night roaming the entire house. Unfortunately, she peed on the sofa while she was out there. I chalked this up to my mistake, cleaned said sofa with Nature’s Miracle, and we continued on with our lives.
Sadly, this has now started a trend. She has peed on the sofa twice more during the intervening weeks, both times in the morning after spending all night in the room with me and her box. She also continues to pee (and poop) in her box regularly, no problem. I took her to the vet and she got a clean bill of health. Nothing seems to be wrong with her, medically speaking.
Now everything has escalated. She peed on the sofa yesterday afternoon, then this morning she pooped on it. (?!?) She has never pooped outside of the box. Now she just peed on the sofa again, in a different spot. The weird thing is that she is STILL continuing to pee and poop in her litterbox as well. I keep the box very clean and we’ve never had problems with her not using it.
She is eating and drinking normally and prancing around just fine. We have multiple water bowls scattered around the house and she also avails herself of the dog bowls sometimes.
Possible complicating factors:
1) We live with two dogs. They are friendly-ish with Nora. She is definitely the boss and gets the prime spot on the couch or in the chair, etc. The dogs have never peed on the sofa that Nora is targeting, though one of them likes to nap on it sometimes.
2) The sofa is by two large windows, in a corner. Could Nora sense some kind of wild animal or feral cat outside and be displeased?
3) Nora is spayed and probably about three years old. I’ve had her for two years, and I found her on the side of the road where some jerk had dumped her.
4) Yesterday evening we plugged in some Feliway near the couch, since that room is Nora's favorite place to hang out.
Nora is currently in the bathroom with her box, her bed, and some toys. She’s pretty irritated by this arrangement, since she usually spends most of the day sitting in my lap while I work. Help me, MetaFilter!!!
Get rid of the couch.
posted by Jacqueline at 4:09 PM on October 30, 2014
posted by Jacqueline at 4:09 PM on October 30, 2014
Put the feliway by the litter box, and drench the sofa in enzyme cleaner, and cover it with a bedwetting sheet.
posted by kellyblah at 4:23 PM on October 30, 2014
posted by kellyblah at 4:23 PM on October 30, 2014
Yep, I have a lovely chair that is shrouded in plastic and stacked with boxes. If I try to uncover it, Lily the cat will pee on it. She never does it anywhere else (except her box), but she loves to pee on that chair. So I will uncover the chair when she departs this life.
posted by feste at 4:38 PM on October 30, 2014
posted by feste at 4:38 PM on October 30, 2014
In my previous cat experience, pooping elsewhere than the designated place usually means the cat is trying to communicate displeasure with something. Have you changed the brand of litter you're using?
posted by orrnyereg at 7:08 PM on October 30, 2014
posted by orrnyereg at 7:08 PM on October 30, 2014
Thanks for the suggestions so far, guys.
And no, we haven't changed litter or even moved the litterbox! So weird.
posted by incountrysleep at 7:39 PM on October 30, 2014
And no, we haven't changed litter or even moved the litterbox! So weird.
posted by incountrysleep at 7:39 PM on October 30, 2014
This happened to me with one of my cats, but after I had a baby. His jealousy was unreal and he was trying to get my attention.
I do know from working at a vets office many years ago that cat urine is EXTREMELY sensative. If you don't have your couch professionally cleaned or completely replaces (which is that I ended up doing) then she will continue to use the rest room in inappropriate places.
Try having the couch professionally cleaned first, and treated with some kind of anti urine sprays as well. If that doesn't work, you may need to replace it.
Unfortauntely, for my cat, we ended up having to re-home him. He started urinating on our coach right after our son was born, then stopped when we replaced all the furniture, but started again once my son was starting to pull up on the couch and getting into the cats "space".
I hope it turns out well for you, and good luck!
posted by Sara_NOT_Sarah at 5:25 AM on October 31, 2014
I do know from working at a vets office many years ago that cat urine is EXTREMELY sensative. If you don't have your couch professionally cleaned or completely replaces (which is that I ended up doing) then she will continue to use the rest room in inappropriate places.
Try having the couch professionally cleaned first, and treated with some kind of anti urine sprays as well. If that doesn't work, you may need to replace it.
Unfortauntely, for my cat, we ended up having to re-home him. He started urinating on our coach right after our son was born, then stopped when we replaced all the furniture, but started again once my son was starting to pull up on the couch and getting into the cats "space".
I hope it turns out well for you, and good luck!
posted by Sara_NOT_Sarah at 5:25 AM on October 31, 2014
Do consider taking your kitty to the vet for a checkup. If she's peeing more than normal, yes, it's possible that she's marking her territory or whatever, but she may also have a UT problem.
Of course, her litter box should be scooped at least once daily, if not twice, and thoroughly cleaned (with soap and water) once every few weeks. Assuming she's not sick, then for whatever reason, peeing on the couch is more appealing to her than in her litter box. Consider moving the clean box closer to the couch, removing the lid, and laying aluminum foil on the cushions. Once she starts to use the box again, you can slowly transition it back to your room. Fixing this will definitely be a process, so be patient, and no matter how frustrating it is, be kind to your kitty: she's not cognitively capable of knowing that she's doing anything wrong.
posted by joebakes at 7:04 AM on October 31, 2014
Of course, her litter box should be scooped at least once daily, if not twice, and thoroughly cleaned (with soap and water) once every few weeks. Assuming she's not sick, then for whatever reason, peeing on the couch is more appealing to her than in her litter box. Consider moving the clean box closer to the couch, removing the lid, and laying aluminum foil on the cushions. Once she starts to use the box again, you can slowly transition it back to your room. Fixing this will definitely be a process, so be patient, and no matter how frustrating it is, be kind to your kitty: she's not cognitively capable of knowing that she's doing anything wrong.
posted by joebakes at 7:04 AM on October 31, 2014
My cat had this problem last year. Turned out the culprit was a litter box he felt was too small. With an additional, larger litter box closer to the sofa, the problem was fixed. Cat was more comfortable and returned to in-box-peeing. Had to get rid of the sofa, though. :(
posted by kelegraph at 12:25 PM on October 31, 2014
posted by kelegraph at 12:25 PM on October 31, 2014
You might consider the litter issue even though it's the same as always. I had one cat decide at about 3 years old that she wanted fine-grain unscented litter and no lid on the box. Took some smelly accidents to figure that out.
Two great experts for things like this: Jackson Galaxy's "My Cat from Hell" (we bought Netflix streaming for a month just to watch) and Pam Johnson-Bennet, who addresses inappropriate peeing in "Think Like a Cat" and "Starting from Scratch." Her books were recommended to me by our local humane society. They hate to see cats show up because of this sort of thing. It's almost always solvable by new litter, litter box, litter placement or moving things around.
The stuff about couch cleaning is smart, too.
posted by snoops at 1:17 PM on October 31, 2014
Two great experts for things like this: Jackson Galaxy's "My Cat from Hell" (we bought Netflix streaming for a month just to watch) and Pam Johnson-Bennet, who addresses inappropriate peeing in "Think Like a Cat" and "Starting from Scratch." Her books were recommended to me by our local humane society. They hate to see cats show up because of this sort of thing. It's almost always solvable by new litter, litter box, litter placement or moving things around.
The stuff about couch cleaning is smart, too.
posted by snoops at 1:17 PM on October 31, 2014
This thread is closed to new comments.
My eldest, when she was a kitten, decided the pleather couch was the place to pee, and once she so decided, nothing we did actually stopped her. And that didn't even have fabric to soak into. We abandoned it when we moved, and she's never peed on another piece of furniture in nearly fifteen years.
posted by restless_nomad at 3:48 PM on October 30, 2014