my snow spotted bangel

Question
my husband and i just purchased a snow spotted bangel. we have had her about 2 months now and all she does is pee everywhere. she knows where her litterbox is. so i am confused. she peed on my sons sweatshirt while it was on the couch. she also has numerous times peed in my dogs crate and it is awful i have had to throw away so many blankets. she also has peed on the carpets. i am wondering why is she doing this. i am getting very fusterated please help.

luckless in ct

bethany

Answer
Hi Bethany,

The first thing to do is definitely to have this kitty checked out by a vet to rule out medical problems. Most of the time, urinating outside the litter box is an indication of bladder pain. This can be caused by a urinary tract infection, bladder stones or urinary crystals, or an inflammatory condition known as interstitial cystitis. Once these have been ruled out, you can assume the problem is behavioral.

Your kitty might know where her litter box is but feel uncomfortable with its location. This could be because of the amount of traffic that passes by the box, or if there's something noisy next to it (such as a laundry dryer, telephone or even electric air freshener that makes startling noises), or if it's too far out of reach (up or downstairs, for example). Or, she might prefer two boxes - one to defecate in and one to urinate in. I would try adding another box in a different location to see if that helps. Also, some cats are very picky about the type of litter they'll use. In these cases, the best choice is USUALLY unscented clumping litter. Since you're having problems, I would recommend that you try a training litter called Cat Attract, which uses an herbal attractant to get cats to use the box 100% of the time. It's money-back guaranteed. Visit www.preciouscat.com to find a retailer. If you can't find one near you, you can order the herbal additive to put in your own unscented clumping litter and have it shipped to you. See http://www.entirelypets.com/catattract.html I have also found that, maybe just by coincidence, my Bengals are very meticulous and won't use a box if it's the least bit dirty. So be sure to scoop the boxes at least twice daily.

If the kitty is still a baby, she may not have been litter trained well, and confining her to a small area such as a bathroom or even a dog crate for a few weeks may be necessary. Leave her enough room for a litter box, food and water and some flat newspaper to rest on. If she does well, allow her a small bed, but I wouldn't put this in right away, as it may confuse her as a place to urinate.

If the kitty has reached maturity, some anxiety or territorial issues could be to blame, especially if she's not yet spayed. Certainly have her spayed right away if this hasn't been done. If, after a month or so, the problem hasn't started to resolve, you may want to start treating for territorial/anxiety marking. One good product is Feliway, and I recommend the plug-in diffusers. You can learn more about how this works at www.feliway.com. In cases where this doesn't work, antidepressants used for a few months will usually correct the problem.