Behavior Problems

Question
Hello.

We have 8 cats.  Six of them are well adjusted and great pets.  However two of them are very skidish.  Lately they have started urinating on our bed, in the livingroom and the bathroom.  They are brother and sister and we had them for 4 years since kittens.  We also have their brother who is well adjusted.  We were told that there was another sibling who was killed by a wild animal before we adpoted them.  They are both fixed, and squat.  They do not spray.

I think the female is at the bottom of the dominance ladder, and the other cats treat her badly.  The male gets along with the other cats.  He is just scared. The male will only be petted on the bed, the female only on the bed and stairway.  All of our other cats will be petted anywhere.

The only change we can think of is that we blocked off under the bed where they would hide.  When they started urinating, we unblocked it, but that was some time ago.

We have 4 litter boxes for the 8 cats which are completely changed twice a week and scooped at least several times a day.

I really don't want to get rid of them.  But we can't keep cats who urinate around the house.  I worry about what will happen to them since any new family may have them put down or just let them run wild.

Thank you.

Bob

Answer
8 cats is too many. 8 seems to be the magic number that things just go wrong. But do get the silliness of putting them down or running wild out of your head. Thats plain stupid. They may just be the kind of cats that it just may be the 2 of them. DO contact a local rescue organization-NOT a shelter. You can also call the Alley Cat Allies (do a google search) and they can steer you in the right direction also.


BUT...

urination-squatting tends to mean an underlying urinary tract infection. DO get a product called FELIWAY to help with the stress in the house AND get them to the vet to get checked out and MAKE sure they run a urine sample!

4 litter boxes is still not enough. The rule with cats is one litter box per cat PLUS one extra. Yes its ALOT of boxes but this works!

good luck!