Bad kitty, Part 3: A tale of two litter boxes

Cody and Stewie are great cats, with one major behavioral problem: spraying. This is the story of one cat lover's quest to eliminate this smelly, embarrassing problem once and for all.

I’ve officially decided my cats are out to get me.

After my (mildly successful) experiment with Four Paws Keep Off! Indoor & Outdoor Cat & Kitten Repellent, I hoped to get some sound advice from Unleashed readers.

As it turned out, I heard from someone who knows my oldest boy, Stewie, quite well. Susan described Stewie's predilection for spraying as a "boy thing" based in an impulse to assert his territorial claims. Reader David's suggestion to cover the floor where the cats often spray with aluminum foil -- "They'll hate walking on it," he explained -- sounded like a good kitty deterrent to Susan.

Still, she was quick to warn me, "You may find that you are just forcing them ... to pee elsewhere. Soon your entire apartment could be covered in foil." Instead, she suggested "persistence on your part and a vet visit for moral support if nothing else. ..."

I couldn't embrace the idea of an aluminum foil-covered floor, anyway, no matter how many times I reread David's suggestion. I don’t want my house looking like a giant cookie sheet -- not cute.

But I did have an ingenious idea. Each time I see the rug soiled, it's bunched up, so I took duct tape and taped the bottom of the rug down to the floor. It worked; no more spraying there. But I forgot one thing: My cats are much smarter than I, and to get back at me they soiled my kitchen curtains instead. Curtains that had always been there, unharmed I might add -- and right next to the litter box. Not even five inches away!

Susan could be on to something. After all, she has three cats, including one very dominant boy who terrorized me (and Cody) for a summer. Her advice inspired to try another method. 

That said, I'm not quite ready to take another reader's advice and get kitty Prozac. Reader Patrick said medicating his cat took "the edge off his anxiety so that he didn't feel the need to pee on carpets, rugs, beds, etc., but otherwise had no noticeable effect on his personality," so I haven't ruled it out yet -- especially if it works like a charm.

But again, I'm not quite ready to put the boys on meds, especially a med that I can find in my medicine cabinet. Patrick and a few readers from Part I of my feline-spraying saga suggested multiple litter boxes. I had always been against this only because the boys are like night and day. I know exactly when they will be using the potty, so I never considered it essential to have two litter boxes. Plus, I'd tried the two-litter-box method at a previous home and found that it only caused chaos and confusion for both cats. (Stewie was much younger at the time, and he thought it would be a great idea to poop next to one litter box and pee inside the other one. What was that all about?) After spending more time than I cared to cleaning litter boxes, I decided to go back to using only one -- until this past weekend.

I ventured over to West Hollywood to my favorite Target, grabbed a jumbo litter box and a fresh container of kitty sand (as the stores so demurely refer to it) and decided to give the two-litter-box method another try. I removed the old litter box and cleaned the entire kitchen floor with some Nature's Miracle. Both boxes got fresh sand, and I placed them back in the same location. Within seconds Stewie was there, sniffing around and digging in both boxes. I thought this was a good first step and rewarded him with some treats.

That was a rookie mistake. After coming home from a night out, I smell that stench. The stench of failure and shame.

"Oh, come on!" I yelled before I even got into the kitchen. I looked around: no urine, no slick surfaces.

Maybe I'd been imagining it. And then the disbelief set in. There was urine seeping from the bottom of the new litter box. Had there been a slit I didn't see? I lifted the still-dripping box gingerly and began the process of cleaning and cursing my cats – not that they cared; they were pretending to sleep. A thorough investigation showed that the litter box was intact -- no slit, nothing -- so there went that explanation.

Maybe it's a boy thing? Is it too late to get that Prozac, for the boys and me?

Now what do I do? As always, I'm open to hearing from you. Feel free to share your tips and personal experiences by leaving a comment or shooting me a tweet.

RELATED:
Bad kitty: Stopping feline spraying in its tracks, Part 1
Bad kitty, part 2: Cat repellent offers a quick fix

-- Gerrick D. Kennedy

(Follow me on Twitter @GerrickKennedy)

Photo: Stewie up to no good. Credit: Gerrick D. Kennedy / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Elia]

I used a water bowl in a persistent peeing spot for my dog. Worked rather well, she didn't enjoy soiling near a water source. Though, just as the aluminium thing, you may need to put water bowls all over the house.

[Claire]

Sounds like you need a better quality 2nd litter box!

I think you are misunderstanding the advice on your previous post, where you said people suggested Feliway, and you bought a repellant spray. Feliway is NOT a repellant. It is a synthetic version of the pheromone cats give off when they mark their territory as theirs and safe. It will calm your cats, and they will not spray. For cats, it has an effect similar to Prozac.

Try a plug-in Feliway in your kitchen. The beauty of the plugin is it doesn't wear off. Its like a plug in air freshener, just keep an eye on it as it will eventually need a refill. Also, it sounds like they go when you are not there, is that true? It might be then they are stressed when you are gone - so you can just plug it in before you leave. (If it's random times, keep it plugged in.) Feliway is the only thing I've ever used that has worked for male spraying cats. It works instantly too, but you do have to keep it up.

You also don't mention in any of your 3 posts - have you gotten both cats vet tested for infection, including a urine CULTURE (not just a urinalysis) to check for a bacterial infection?

Hope that helps!

[Jade]

After reading about your heartbreak over the last few weeks, I just wanted to let you know you aren't the only one dealing with this. I worked as a feline shelter manager and problems like this are all too common, even occasionally in my house. (We have more rescued cats than any normal person would ever want.)

The first thing that should always be ruled are health problems. Bladder infections are the most common and they can make a cat uncomfortable and make them go in odd places. I've known of cats who were given up for adoption because they had been urinating around the house for months and the owners couldn't stand it anymore, and the only thing that was wrong with them was a simple bladder infection that was cleared up in a week with antibiotics. Yes, it's uncommon for an infection to cause them to spray, but it does happen! And with two cats, the healthy cat could be spraying because the sick cat's inappropriate urination is setting off the marking behavior. There could be other underlying health problems that can cause a cat to not feel well and therefore steer clear of a litter box, so a check-up is very important!

Another issue could be one cat bullying the other out of the litter box area. Cats do tend to know where they're supposed to go bathroom, and the weaker cat would be trying to find the closest place he could go bathroom to the litter boxes without getting attacked. (Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it's not happening!) Two boxes is the minimum number you should have with two cats. But the dual litter boxes only work their magic when they aren't located in the same place. Placing them close to each other just makes it easier for the bully to guard both at the same time! To see if this is the cause of the spraying you'd have to find a separate location for the second box, like a bathroom. (The urine you found under the box is most likely from one of the cats standing in the box and spray marking, rather than squatting normally.)

It also seems like they only act up when you aren't home, which can be a sign of separation anxiety. It's recognized more in dogs, but cats suffer from it as well, and it's not that uncommon! If one of the boys is upset with you leaving, it could be triggering the same responses as above, but from a behavioral reason and not a health reason.

Feliway is a wonderful product that helps reduce anxiety if it is a behavioral issue. It'll either work, or not, but it shouldn't add to the problem. I've personally had it work on a few cats that had some serious aggression, fear, and urination issues.

[Janet]

Our rescue cat had the same problem. We used the feliway which didn't really do the trick. We made all the soiled spots feeding areas... little bowls of food not much. Just to make a point of don't pee where you eat. We also had Joe Spayed. Within two weeks his problem was fixed.
We also had another cat which did not like the type of litter we were using, she peed throughout the house. We put food in all the spots she peed and changed the type of litter. Immediately the pee problem was resolved. She didn't like the type of litter we were buying. Unbelievable!

Follow me on twitter @moultonj

[Sami Gowen]

Oy, Gerrick, your boys ARE out to get you!! I'm going to reach out to our best cat rescuers and foster groups here in The O.C., to see if they have any tips. I suspect the boys have become so deeply entrenched in that area, you might have to remove them entirely from the kitchen!

Perhaps there's a way to retrain them, box off the kitchen and move the litter boxes to a new zone (bathroom?). Confuse the crap out of them, basically.

I've noticed that my cats love "twitching" their tails like they WANT to spray. I bat the tails down and give them a stern NO. Hopefully, now that my old guy, Mayo, has passed on, they won't remember what fun it was to mark around him ... sigh.

I'll let you know if I hear anything!

[cheryl]

Try cat attract cat litter.Worked for me.
Cheryl

[Winifred Wilson]

Part of me was really encouraged when I read your articles with all the trouble you are having with your cats and the other part of me was so depressed because I am having the same problems and I have tried ALL the recommendations that people have so kindly put forward and NOTHING has worked. I am at my wits' end. Today was a different area that was used because I had blocked off the area round the door into the garage where they have sprayed so they came upstairs and did it by the balcony door, on a mat! Sounds familiar?? We are going overseas soon to live in a company apartment and I just don't know what to do. One cat seems to spray and the other seems to squat. They have been doing this for years in the different homes we have lived in. In one place they used the bath all the time, not in this house though. They are indoors cats here but even when they could go out they still did it. I too am wondering if Prozac is the last resort but I hate hate hate the thought of that. I feel absolutely desperate. I have the urine going down the side of the litter tray but I can cope with that. I can't cope with the spraying round the house and also not exactly sure where they might have done it and I haven't yet found it. Any other ideas for me? Am I going to take them overseas and have this same problem? I feel desperate. These cats are so loved and pampered I just don't know what to do.

[jamesincalifornia]

You need to have your cats altered. That should stop the spraying. If your cats are already altered and still continue to spray, they probably have a medical problem, for which you need to consult a veterinarian.

[Winifred Wilson]

I have been waiting patiently and desperately to see if anyone had any other ideas to help with the spraying/inappropriate urination problem (especially as the time to go overseas looms closer)and was very disappointed to see that the only comment made was that I should have the cats 'altered'. I did not actually mention in my last posting that the cats were already altered - I guess I figured that people would just assume they were. If I have tried all other suggestions that I could find surely it would have been obvious that the cats were already altered?
How I wish this problem were that simple. They have five litter boxes to use.
Any other ideas for me?
Thanks.

[Melanie]

In books on cat care and on various blogs, I have always read that the very FIRST thing one should do when encountering the problem of spraying is to take your kitty to the vet to be certain a medical problem isn't causing the spraying. Even if only one cat has a medical problem causing it to spray, the urine spray of this cat will cause your other cat to spray, as well. Therefore, I would strongly suggest making certain that 1) one or both cats don't have a urinary tract/bladder problem by taking them to the vet and having tests performed; 2) make certain that their litter box is always scooped out and clean (cats HATE going in a dirty box--a friend's cat was going in the bath tub--a behavior that disappeared when she began scooping litter box DAILY; 3) make certain they like BOTH the box AND the type of litter; some cats will not go in a box if they don't like it or the particular type of litter that is in it; 4) purchase Feliway or another calming remedy, as they might suffer separation anxiety or some other sort of stress--especially when you are away. I read some of the other suggestions of readers, and many of them discussed these methods, as well.

If you try all of these things and still have a problem, I would then talk to your vet about other remedies--perhaps medication, etc. Vets can be very helpful resources. Another helpful resource you can turn to is an animal behaviorist. A third--and oftentimes extremely informative and helpful resource--is simply a book or two on cat care that you can purchase at your local Borders or Barnes & Noble. I have found these to be invaluable sources of information on all things cat-related, from A to Z. (In fact, I read a few books prior to adopting my kitties, as I had really no knowledge of how to properly care for them. By reading these books, I saved my kitties [and myself!] much stress and frustration. )

You sound like a wonderfully caring person to your kitties. Good luck and do not dispair; there is almost assuredly something that will work for you and your kitties!