urinating after neuter

Question
I got my 11 month old male cat neutered this week, and have been having problems since he came home.  My 2 year old female cat that he has always gotten along with avoids him, hisses when he comes near her, swipes her paws at him, and is generally being mean.  The cats were separated for 3 days while he was at the vet (declaw as well).  However, the main problem I am having is that the neutered cat has taken to urinating all over my apartment, and once defecated on the carpet.  The only other time he has urinated outside his litter box was the first night I got him.  Is he just trying to mark his territory after coming home since the other cat is being mean?  He doesn't seem to want to use the litter box, I'm thinking about getting a second one in case the smell of the other cat is bothering him.  Any thoughts or advice as to what to do would be great. Thank you.

Answer
Candice,

Sadly litter box issues can be quite common after declawing a cat. I'm not sure if your vet explained exactly what this surgery means. Declawing a cat is a major surgery that involves amputating the cat's digits at the first joint - sort of like cutting off our fingers at the first knuckle. This surgery is exceptionally painful and can have long term complications. Infection is a risk after declawing. Some cats will have difficulty walking properly because they will change the way that they would normally walk choosing to try and reduce their pain by walking on the backs of their paws rather than up on their toes like they were made to. Sometimes cats can develop serious problems that can require additional surgery to fix, moderate to severe arthritis is also a possibility and unfortunately some cats will suffer with permanent chronic pain in their paws. Many declawed cats will avoid using their first lines of defense (hissing/swatting) and go straight to biting which can lead to serious injuries for other pets in the home as well as pet parents. In the event that your cat does bite you and break the skin at any point in the future I'd highly recommend that you seek medical attention because bites tend to get badly infected without treatment.

The declawing surgery is exceptionally painful and it's possible that your cat hasn't been getting enough pain relief. This could account for why he's recently had issues with house soiling, after all it would stand to reason that he would want to try and avoid scratching around in any litter box to do or bury his business with his painful paws. Unfortunately 11 months of age is a bit late to neuter a cat and it's possible that the house soiling is a sign that your cat's testosterone levels are still a bit high. When a male cat is neutered relatively late in life it can take several weeks for the sex hormones to drop off in his system. I would guess that your female cat is being snippy because her brother smells different and is acting differently. It might be wise to separate the newly neutered male from your other cat by putting him up in a room of his own with all of the usual kitty amenities. I would recommend that you provide your little guy with two litter pans, this will allow him to urinate in one and defecate in the other if he wishes. I normally recommend having one litter box per cat plus one in situations where house soiling isn't an issue.

I'd like to start off by saying that the cat isn't urinating around your house to frustrate you or make you angry. Cats do not house soil without a reason, litter box issues may be caused by medical or behavioral issues. I always recommend that pet parents treat inappropriate elimination as a medical issue until a vet says otherwise. Cats who have infections in their bladder or kidneys, crystals in their bladder or urinary tract or anything else which causes painful toilet duties will often look for alternative sites to urinate in an effort to get away from the pain. Bladder infections are exceptionally painful and crystals often have sharp edges that rub against the sensitive walls of the bladder and urinary tract causing burning when a cat urinates. A good first step would be to have the cat completely reassessed by your veterinarian, this may include prescribing pain medication to alleviate your cat's post surgical pain resulting from his declaw as well as blood work in addition to a urine test as well as any required treatment. Blood tests are often performed to give the vet an overall picture of how the cat's major organs are functioning, this is typically achieved by performing a complete pre-anesthetic profile. Urine tests include looking for the presence of blood in the urine as well as any signs of infection, your vet may need to send the urine to an outside lab in order to have it cultured and tested for the presence of bacteria. Different medical issues require different treatment plans, if your cat has stones or crystals feeding a special prescription diet or a high quality holistic diet with cranberries may be recommended in addition to whichever method your vet chooses to remove the crystals.

If there's no medical reason that would explain why this issue developed it's quite possible that the inappropriate elimination is behavioral. In most cases when inappropriate elimination is behavioral your cat is probably trying to tell you something, unfortunately cats can't tell us what's happening, if they're sick, afraid or angry so as distasteful as it is; house soiling is kind of like leaving a note for their human caregivers, often it's a cat's only means of getting a point across. Unfortunately in this case I suspect that if the house soiling is behavioral it's happening as a result of his recent declaw surgery. It's quite possible that your kitty will settle down within the next few weeks if his litter box issues are related to the need to mark his territory due to the fact that he was neutered relatively late - most practitioners recommend spay/neuter surgery be done as early as possible, some vets will do the surgery on 2-3 month old kittens while others prefer to wait until a cat is 5+ months old. It's probably a good idea to confine your male cat in a room of his own, this will allow him to rest and recover from his surgery without being picked on or bothered by his sister. I think that confining him to an easy to clean room such as the bathroom would be best for this type of confinement. In the event that your cat urinates outside of the litter box in a bathroom it can be easily cleaned away with an enzymatic cleaner. I will explain the reason for using an enzymatic cleaner rather than a standard household cleaner later in this answer, however it's worth noting that most household cleaners contain ammonia which smells like urine to a cat.

It has been my experience that there are a few consistent reasons why cats begin urinating or defecating outside of the litter box  aside from health problems. Cats are very fastidious animals and some are so picky that they won't urinate or defecate in their litter box once they have used it to go to the toilet that day. In many cats inappropriate elimination is the result of inappropriate litter box maintenance or not having enough litter boxes to go around for the number of cats in your home. I usually recommend that cat caregivers have a minimum of one litter box per cat plus one in their home to prevent issues related to litter boxes being the cause of inappropriate elimination. I can certainly say from experience that one can never have too many litter boxes in their home from a cat's point of view. In your case, provided that there are only two fur children in your household, that means that you would need at minimum three litter boxes. Some cats prefer to use one litter box to urinate in and the other to defecate in, you may find that your cat will use both litter pans if they are placed in the same room.

Cats can be quite finicky about the litter that's used to fill their litter boxes. Some cats will begin soiling outside of the litter box if you've recently changed litter brands (most vets recommend a special litter after declawing to prevent dust and other substances found in most kitty litters from creating an infection in the cat's paws) and your cat isn't comfortable with the texture of the litter. If your kitty litter has any fragrances or dyes added to it your cat may be trying to tell you that he's sensitive to the perfumes or dyes commonly found in any number of kitty litter brands. For example my oldest resident cat is clean to the extreme when it comes to her litter box habits, it's just not her style to go to the toilet outside of the litter box, however if we make a mistake when we purchase our kitty litter and we accidentally purchase the scented kind she will urinate on the floor beside the litter box because she is sensitive to scents and dyes commonly found in these products. This type of reaction and sensitivity to perfumes and dyes in kitty litter (or air fresheners used in the area where the litter boxes are kept) isn't uncommon, however cats have an extremely sensitive sense of smell compared to people, a litter that seems lightly scented to the human nose can be downright offensive to a cat's sense of smell, besides if the litter boxes are properly maintained there shouldn't be any smell emanating from the litter pans, except of course in the event of a recently deposited, partially buried bowel movement. If the kitty litter that you use is the basic non-clumping clay litter or any version of the silica litters it might be worth trying clumping kitty litters made from clay or different materials such as wheat or corn. The wheat or corn clumping litters clump at least as well and in some cases better than the traditional clay based litters. Many litters made from alternatives like wheat or corn are also more environmentally friendly because many of them have the added bonus of being flushable when broken up into small pieces, some are even safe to flush if you have a septic system. With litters made from wheat and corn there are usually some natural enzymes within the litter minimize any odor that could potentially be offending your cat. Your cat may also be sensitive to dust or chemicals commonly found in standard clumping kitty litters which would cause your kitty to look for alternative places to go to the toilet that don't cause discomfort. Since cats don't tend to exhibit similar allergy/sensitivity symptoms to humans this possibility is often overlooked by pet parents.

Some cats prefer specific types of litter boxes. There are so many different designs and types of litter boxes available on the market. Sometimes the size of the litter box that you are using may be playing a role when it comes to a kitty peeing outside of the box. A litter box should comfortably allow your cat to enter, turn around, dig a hole, squat in an upright position and bury their business, if you are using a litter box that's not large enough or tall enough that may explain the house soiling. There could be a number of different things causing the cat to urinate outside of the litter box. It's very important that your cats can easily get into and out of the litter box on their own and they should be able to do their duty in a clean, private and comfortable environment. If litter box hygiene is being left to children in your home it may not be adequate. If the litter boxes aren't being cleaned and maintained often enough it's not uncommon for sensitive cats can opt out of using a dirty box and go off in search of a cleaner place to go to the toilet. Think of it this way - nobody likes to use a dirty, disgusting public bathroom, it's kind of the same idea for cats. If a cat must go to the toilet in an area where there is no privacy they may try to hold it until they find a clean, private place to relieve themselves, urinating in different places around the house may just be that the cat was waiting for a cleaner place to use the toilet and she simply couldn't hold on any longer. If the area where the litter boxes are kept is somewhat hotter or colder than the rest of the house or the area vastly different in comparison to the rest of the house it's possible that the cats just aren't comfortable enough to use the toilet where the litter boxes are being kept. If you use a self cleaning litter box your cats may be frightened by the motion and noise commonly associated with these high tech kitty toilets. If you use open litter boxes you could try using a covered litter pan to see if this makes a difference. Some cats need more room to dig, use the toilet and bury their waste than other cats. There should be plenty of room for a cat to stand up, turn around, dig and squat to urinate or prop themselves up on their hindquarters to defecate without feeling squished or crowded. I have cared for a few cats that have been uncomfortable using the litter box if the area is dark. Contrary to popular belief cats can't see in pitch black conditions, their pupils will dilate to allow them to make the best possible use of limited lighting which would allow the average cat to see better in a more dimly lit environment than the average person. It's not unheard of for a cat to be afraid of the dark, especially if something like thunder scared them and the power went out. It certainly wouldn't hurt to consider installing a small battery operated light with a motion sensor or even a night light that automatically switches on once the room is dimly lit in the area where the litter pans are to see if having a bit more light in the general area helps with the house soiling issue.  

The fact that the cat is urinating outside of the litter box may mean that he's trying to communicate that something is upsetting him or possibly that there's a medical issue of some sort. For the moment I'd recommend that you treat the situation as though the cat is sick or in pain due to his declaw until you have had him assessed by your vet and had his blood and urine tested so that the vet can give him a clean bill of health. Based on your description of how the accidents happen I'm inclined to agree with your assessment that a lack of control may be the issue. In terms of behavior it's possible that your kitty is trying to communicate something directly to you by urinating outside of the litter box in your presence, there could be any number of reasons he's doing this if he's trying to get a message across. I realize that it can be very frustrating to have a cat urinating outside of the litter box, but I think that it's worth mentioning that cats don't use the toilet outside of the litter pan to deliberately upset their human caregivers, there's always a reason and once the reason is addressed the problem usually disappears completely. Most cats try their best to communicate with human guardians, unfortunately we don't usually recognize inappropriate elimination as a means of communication because while scent is very important in a cat's world human beings no longer consciously communicate by scent marking and territorial displays. It's important to remember that cats tend to be geared towards communicating by leaving behind their personal scents, smelling other scents left within their territory and of course body language is quite high up on the list when it comes to a cat's communication skills. As a small piece of trivia it's worth noting that some scientists still believe that human beings are susceptible to pheromones and although we can't smell these chemicals they may play more of a role than we realize in terms of things like the way we socialize and even who we socialize with.

Some cats have been known to house soil in response to loud noises, changes in pace and types of activities within a household, changes in status/attention that major life changes like adding a dog or other new pet, a death in the family, the addition or loss of a pet or person in a given household, marriage, divorce, having a baby or any number of other common occurrences. The changes I've mentioned are some of the more common triggers that could cause a sensitive cat to begin soiling areas outside of the litter box. If you live in a communal living situation your cat may be experiencing difficulty with one or more roommates or boarders in your apartment or home. Basic changes like having less time off than usual, different days off than a family member did previously can also affect a cat. It's very important to think back to when this behavior started and what was happening at that point in time in your life. Since your cat most recently went into hospital to be neutered and declawed my first guess as to what's causing your cat to house soil would be that it's something related to his recent experiences, however medical and other common behavioral problems need to be ruled out which is why I've included so much information in this answer.

If you live in an apartment building the cat may not be getting much in the way of stimulation, especially when you and other members of the household are away from home. I have found providing different forms of stimulation helps to ease boredom and can sometimes stop house soiling. Cats and kittens are quite intelligent. Contrary to popular belief cats just aren't designed to lounge around sleep all day and night. Cats are predators by nature, providing different outlets to help house or apartment dwelling cats and kittens fulfill their natural instincts is very important for a number of reasons including preventing health issues like obesity, neurotic behaviors linked to boredom or anxiety and to take a cat's mind off of a less than desirable behavior like soiling outside of the litter pan. Most cats really enjoy having a range of toys designed for independent or interactive play, I usually buy my cats' toys on sale once they're marked down after special occasions like Christmas and other holidays. It's a win, win situation, I get to splurge on the cats and they get to see new toys throughout the year. It's a great idea to consider picking up a few interactive toys like a few kitty teases, a kitten mitten, laser lights (do be careful to keep them out of anyone's eyes they can cause damage) and other toys that encourage playing games and bonding with human family members. It's also important for cats to have a variety of toys that they can bat around and play with on their own, after all, cats are predators and they would normally stalk, hunt, play with and eventually kill small prey animals and this is an instinctive behavior that needs to have an appropriate outlet. I seriously recommend that you consider what any given toy you're thinking of picking up for your cat will sound like at 3 am. Toys that make noises on their own or have bells inside of them are best avoided. Toys made of hard plastic are good to avoid because they can make an awful amount of noise when batted across wood or tile floors or bounced off of walls in the middle of the night. I can tell you from personal experience cats can be incredibly good at hiding toys that are noisy enough to wake their humans during the wee hours of the morning and I can honestly say that after having a night of sleep interrupted you won't be overly impressed with your kitty's hunting and hiding prowess. In our household the cats have several large grocery bags worth of toys which we simply rotate so that the cats don't become bored with their toys. I recommend small mice that can be held in their mouths, if they are made of softer materials that's usually best. Most cats also enjoy playing with small ping pong ball shaped foam balls which can be found in just about any pet store, they bounce wildly when thrown for the cats and they have the added advantage of being a quiet toy. There certainly isn't any shortage of cat toys out there and manufacturers are becoming more inventive every year. In my opinion a good quality, sturdy floor to ceiling cat tree with platforms your cats can climb up to and hang out on to watch the world go by cubbies where they can sleep high up and hidden from view is a good investment. A decent quality sturdy floor to ceiling post with several perches and cubbies can run $300+ CAN.

You could also try entertaining your cats using the Cat Sitter DVD series. These dvds are movies geared towards cats. As far as I'm aware there are three videos in this series. In my experience these videos can occupy a cat for quite awhile, they are designed to entertain a cat when their human caregiver is away from home. The footage in these videos is set up to be played on a loop so that once the entire movie has been viewed it will automatically restart. The first two volumes feature some great footage of birds, mice and other small animals. The second and third volumes of the series include scenes that the production company refers to as "digital catnip" which is essentially a computer generated bug that flits back and forth across the screen in the fast and unpredictable fashion that appeals to most cats. The third DVD in the series focuses on aquariums and there are some phenomenal shots of fresh and saltwater fish. You can often find these videos in pet supply stores for around $14-25 CAN (depending on where you shop). With the Cat Sitter DVDs the cats will have plenty of visual stimulation and entertainment that will help to occupy their time. If you do opt to purchase these videos I would strongly suggest that every time you set the cat up to watch their movie you make sure that the top of the television is free of photos and fragile figurines. It's a good idea to have a chair or small sturdy scratch post with a platform parked in front of the television because most cats like to bat at the prey animals and fish and in some cases these animals disappear from the screen in one direction or which prompts most cats to try and find out where the animal or computer generated bug has disappeared to.

If your home or apartment is at ground level it's possible that your cats spend a fair amount of time looking out the window and watching the world go by. If this is the case your cats may have heard or seen something that frightened or frustrated them. Since cats have sensitive hearing and they are territorial animals by nature there are a number of possible situations that may cause inappropriate behavior. If neighborhood cats spend a significant amount of time walking through your yard and marking their territory with urine or feces your cat may be responding to the threat to his territory in the only way that he can - by marking his territory outside of the litter box in different locations around the house. It's not a bad idea to check around your property to see whether free roaming outdoor cats have been using the area as a litter box. It's not uncommon for cats can become upset if noisy household renovations are happening or there are more repair or tradespeople in your home than there normally would be. Sometimes outdoor repairs or renovations can upset cats because strange people are outside of their home making noise and disrupting their regular routine. Some cats become anxious or fearful when loud sounds like a car backfiring or road crews using a jackhammer nearby. The bottom line is that cats are territorial animals and they really aren't fond of change so making necessary household renovations and repairs as easy as possible for your cat is important. You can do this by confining the cat to an easy to clean room in the home such as the bathroom with food, water, toys, litter, a comfy place to sleep and possibly even a small radio left on at a low volume.

If your cat is sensitive to loud noises it may be worth consulting a holistic veterinarian to see if s/he is able to offer a non-pharmaceutical approach to minimize anxiety and stress that can be caused by seeing other animals within your cat's territory. A holistic veterinarian is trained in conventional medicine as well as one or more alternative therapies such as homeopathy, massage or acupuncture. My family vet is a holistic practitioner and she has given my pets homeopathic remedies on several occasions. I must admit that in my experience cats respond very well to homeopathy and I have seen some pretty amazing things happen with cats when the right remedies are administered. Cats can also benefit from acupuncture, massage and other alternative therapies if these tools are properly used by a knowledgeable and experienced holistic vet. Your family vet could prescribe an anti-anxiety/anti-depressant drug that would treat the house soiling issue and reduce any anxiety that the cat may be experiencing which could potentially stop the accidents that are showing up around the house. The reason that I typically recommend that a pharmaceutical approach be used as a last resort is because many of the drugs commonly prescribed by vets to control anxiety, house soiling and depression are small doses of human anti-anxiety/anti-depressant drugs. The use of powerful psychotropic drugs isn't without risk or side effects in cats, so it is extremely important to do your research and make an informed decision prior to agreeing to administer powerful mood altering drugs to your cat. Cats are very sensitive to these drugs so I highly suggest that you exercise caution if you opt to treat your cat with these medicines. Any drug that alters a cat's brain chemistry isn't something to be used lightly - some cats can have serious reactions to these and other medicines so I do believe that it's to your cat's benefit if you try exhaust all of the less invasive and risky options first.

In situations where a cat is house soiling or suffering from a high level of anxiety I often recommend that their caregivers try out a homeopathic remedy called Bach's Rescue Remedy which contains a blend of flower essences that help to calm and reassure. In this case Rescue Remedy would also be helpful to calm your female cat down and get her to respond more favorably to your male cat once you allow him full access to your home again. I would suggest that you try out the Rescue Remedy by adding 4-5 drops to each bowl of fresh water each morning. You may notice a difference in the behavior and demeanor of your cat quite quickly. Rescue Remedy can usually be found in health food/natural health stores and it usually costs around $15 CAN. Bach flower remedies are very safe and they are used by many pet parents and veterinarians around the world use Bach remedies to treat different causes of anxiety or fear in pets. Rescue Remedy is particularly well known and in my experience it's well worth trying in a case where a cat is timid or anxious.

Sometimes repeated urination and/or defecation in the same place may mean that a cat is repeating the mistake based on scent alone. Most household cleaners and detergents remove the scent of urine as far as our noses are concerned and they often remove any resulting stains permanently. Even though you may not be able to smell the minute amounts of urine left over after cleaning up accidents around the house it's important to realize that if there are any traces left over the cat will still be able to smell urine or feces because their sense of smell is significantly more sensitive than ours is. The best way to deal with removing the odor of urine (or other organic substances like feces, blood, vomit) permanently from your sheets, bedding, and other items that become soiled is to use an enzymatic cleaner. Cleaners like Petzyme use beneficial bacteria (enzymes) to permanently break down and remove the organic components of substances such as urine, feces, blood and vomit that cause odor and stains. I have found that Petzyme works well to remove stains and odors and this product has so far proven to be safe on the furniture, upholstery, and carpet throughout my home. The manufacturer even provides instructions on the label that allow you to use Petzyme in the washing machine in addition to your regular laundry detergent if necessary. Petzyme is available at Petsmart - I recommend that you purchase it from the dog section because you can purchase a gallon for roughly $20 CAN (the spray bottle of the same product sold in the cat section costs about $15 and only contains 750 ml). A good sized jug of enzymatic cleaner is a smart thing to have on hand especially when you have pets and one or more children, the gallon jug will last awhile and allow you to see whether the cat is simply having accidents because she can smell previous mistakes. I simply fill a spray bottle (the type used for misting plants, I usually get mine from the dollar store) using the gallon sized jug of Petzyme so that it's ready to use when I need it. If your local pet supply store doesn't carry a good selection of enzymatic cleaners in the cat section it's worth checking out the dog section as these cleaners are often marketed for use during puppy potty training and they're just as effective on cat odors and stains. In the event that you aren't able to find Petzyme in your area you can try checking with your local janitorial supply store because enzymatic cleaners are often used in institutions or rental properties where body fluids must be cleaned. It's important to know that dried urine can leave an invisible stain that fluoresces brightly under black light. Using a small black light to find any visible signs of urine stains throughout the house will help you to ensure that any mistakes are effectively and permanently remove urine odors. Small handheld black lights can be purchased at some pet supply stores, however you may only be able to find them in the dog section. If you aren't able to find a handheld black light you can certainly pick up a black light bulb at any hardware or home supply store and simply use it in a lamp to accomplish the same thing as the handheld light. It's very important to double check throughout the house to make sure that no urine stains remain because leftover urine odors could potentially cause further house soiling.

Cats are very clean animals and they don't like to eliminate where they eat. You could try placing a dish of the cat's regular cat food in the areas where the accidents are happening. I have had people tell me that their cats have simply opted out of eating or urinated in the same area at the furthest point from the food. If this happens with your cat you may find that using partially crumpled aluminum foil will work well. Most cats don't like the sharp feeling of partially crumpled tin foil on their sensitive pads. The trick is to loosely crumple the foil and then gently uncrumple it slightly so that it's about half of the size of the original piece of foil. The more sharp edges the better, if you simply place tin foil that hasn't been crumpled around your home there's always a chance that the cat will simply urinate on the flat foil. If the cat decides to remove the foil from the area so that s/he can urinate below it you can try a couple of different things.

There is a great product called Sticky Paws available in most pet supply stores. This is a medical grade double sided tape that is safe for most fabrics and surfaces. Cats don't like to have anything stick to their paws so applying a layer of double sided tape will certainly mean that the cat will most likely avoid the areas where you apply this tape while it's there. In this case it's not a bad idea to apply Sticky Paws to areas that the cat usually urinates in. If you want to deter your feline friends from going to certain rooms or places in your home you can use motion activated tools to get the message across. There are products such as Ssscat which is a motion activated behavioral modification tool which sends off a burst of compressed air from a can when the motion sensor is tripped. The majority of cats will find the hissing sound very offensive, respond to it immediately and you may only need to use this type of product for a short period of time to correct the problem. You can also find a product called Scat Mat which is a pressure sensitive mat that administers a mild static electric shock when stepped on - this will certainly convince your cat that s/he doesn't want to go to areas where s/he's urinated outside of the litter box. I have heard mixed comments about using an indoor cat repellant or pheromone based products, the general consensus is that the cat repellents typically repel more people than they do cats while the pheromone sprays and plug ins just aren't that effective in terms of stopping house soiling. You can however place dried hot peppers or citrus peels in areas where your cat has urinated - for many cats these two natural substances will be offensive enough to keep them away from places that you don't want them to be. Hopefully this answer has given you an idea just how complex a medical or behavioral issue like inappropriate urination is and provides you with the basics so that you can ask your vet detailed questions that you've thought out before going to have your cats assessed since vet appointments are often time limited.