12 week kitten

Question
I have had my kitten for about a month. he is 12 weeks old today. he is potty trained and uses his box well. but there is one problem. his box is downstairs and he is upstairs almost all day because that's where everyone is during the day. lately he has been going into our baby room, into a corner behind a rocking chair and going to the bathroom (# 2) instead of in his box. i don't know if this is a phase he is going through, or he is just to lazy? i don't know what i am supposed to do to make him stop doing this. if anyone can help me out and give me advice on what to do it would be great!!
thanks, Tori.

Answer
Tori,

I would like to start off by saying that cats don't use the toilet outside of the litter box to make their humans angry. There is a reason for what's going on, there may be a medical issue or this could be behavioral. My first recommendation when a cat is house soiling is to take them to the vet to be completely assessed including blood work and a urine test. If the test results all come back in the normal range then you can treat the inappropriate litter box issue as a purely behavioral problem. If the cause of your kitten's inappropriate elimination is behavioral he's probably trying to tell you something, cats can't tell us what's happening, if they're sick, afraid or angry so as distasteful as it is house soiling is their only means of getting a point across.

It has been my experience that there are a few consistent reasons why cats begin urinating or defecating outside of the litter box. 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. I usually recommend that cat guardians have a minimum of one litter box per cat plus one in their home or one litter box per cat plus one per level of your home in a large house or in a household where house soiling has been happening 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 your kitten is an only fur child, that means that he would need at minimum two litter boxes. Some cats prefer to use one litter box to urinate in and the other to defecate in, you may find that your kitten 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 they don't like the texture of the litter. If your kitty litter has any fragrance or dyes added to it your kitten may be trying to tell you that he is sensitive to the perfumes or dyes commonly found in certain brands of kitty litter. My oldest resident cat is extremely clean and doesn't generally go to the toilet outside of the litter box, however she will urinate on the floor if the litter contains scents or perfumes. If the kitty litter that you use is made from clay or silica it might be worth trying clumping kitty litters made from different materials such as wheat or corn. These kitty litters clump just as well or better than clay based litters and 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 sometimes natural enzymes within the litter minimize any odor that could potentially be offending your cat. This kitty may be sensitive to dust or chemicals commonly found in standard clumping kitty litters, however since they don't tend to exhibit similar allergy/sensitivity symptoms to humans this possibility is often overlooked.

Some cats prefer specific types of litter boxes. There are 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. There could be a number of different things causing this kitten to urinate outside of the litter box. It's very important that your little boy can easily get into and out of the litter box on his own and that he is able to do his duty in a clean, private and comfortable environment. If litter box hygiene is being left to children to maintain or not being performed often enough cats can opt out of using a dirty box and go off in search of a cleaner place to go to the toilet - after all, nobody likes to use a dirty public toilet, it's kind of the same idea for cats and dirty litter boxes. If a cat must go to the toilet in an area where there is no privacy he may try to hold it until he has some privacy and the house soiling may just be that he couldn't hold it any longer, however in your case I'm wondering if the issue is that your kitten is feeling left out of the picture if you recently had your baby. If the litter box area is colder or vastly different in comparison to the rest of the house it's possible that he's just not comfortable enough to use the toilet where his litter boxes are being kept. If you use a self cleaning litter box your kitty 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 your kitten to stand up, turn around, dig and squat to urinate or prop himself up on his 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. It may be worth 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 light on helps with the house soiling issue.  

If family work schedules aren't consistent, your kitten may be feeling lonely or anxious when he is home alone. Cats are creatures of habit and they like to be able to anticipate the comings and goings of their human guardians and they prefer to lead a somewhat consistent and routine life. It's possible that your cat has separation anxiety, especially if he is accustomed to having someone at home and he has recently been spending more time alone due to a change in work and recreational schedules that may be contributing to his toileting accidents. You may want to consider leaving the radio or television on for him to help him feel less anxious in your absence, you could even set up timers for the radio and television so that your kitten doesn't feel that he's all alone.

Another solution that's well worth trying out is to try and provide your kitty with comforting scents while she's home alone. My youngest resident cat (Kizmit) was a rescued stray and she developed a serious case of separation anxiety once she became accustomed to gentle, consistent handling and loads of attention. I found that placing my dirty laundry in an open laundry basket helped to ease her anxiety levels. I often came home from work to see Kizmit sleeping peacefully buried in the dirty clothes. Prior to making the dirty laundry accessible Kizmit would urinate in the middle of my bed and/or cry all day until I came home. Coming home after a long shift to find urine in my bed was less than pleasant and when the neighbors started to complain I realized that Kiz was experiencing anxiety and communicating it in the only way that she knew how to. Due to the fact that this behavioral change is fairly recent it's worth thinking back to when this issue started and looking at changes that happened around that time frame in terms of household routines, work schedules or daily activities. Some cats will develop high levels of anxiety when their humans are away from home. If this kitty is used to being cuddled and pampered while you are at home it's possible that he becomes anxious when you leave home because he doesn't understand why you have to leave him, he may be fearful that you aren't coming back or he could just be worried about how long you will be gone. Separation anxiety doesn't usually happen in cats whose caretakers pay little attention to them - it's a disorder typical of well loved pets.  

If your kitten isn't neutered it's a good idea to discuss spay/neuter surgery with your vet. I would strongly suggest that this kitty be neutered as soon as possible. Spaying and neutering is an ethical choice that saves countless lives either by preventing unwanted litters of kittens or behavioral issues like house soiling or aggression that are preventable by taking the time to sterilize kittens before they mature sexually which generally happens around 4-7 months depending on the cat's health, weight and time of year. Cats that are sexually mature and intact are far more likely to use urine and feces to mark their territory than cats that have been spayed or neutered. There are a number of behavioral and medical benefits to surgically sterilizing pets. Spaying and neutering is important and not just because it reduces the numbers of accidental litters that are born worldwide. Spayed and neutered cats don't have the urge to breed. Surgical sterilization reduces the risks of serious health issues like cancerous tumors of the mammary glands, prostate, testicles, ovaries, and uterus. Male cats can develop infections and tumors in their prostate gland and reproductive systems that can become serious enough to cost them their lives. Cats that are sterilized are less likely to develop behavioral issues such as marking their territory with urine or feces, wandering, fighting or excessive vocalizations in the form of howling and caterwauling to advertise their availability to mate. Cats that get injuries as a result of fighting can develop painful abscesses that must be lanced and drained by a vet under sedation. Cats with abscesses generally need a course of antibiotics to clear up any remaining infection once the pus has been drained. Serious viral infections like feline leukemia and FIV can be transmitted from cat to cat by fighting or coming into contact with an infected cat's saliva or blood.

In my experience the fact that your cat's behavior has changed in a short period of time and he is targeting your baby's room it sounds to me as though this could be either medical or behavioral in origin, the only way to know for sure what's happening is to have this kitty assessed. I would recommend that you treat the situation as though your kitten is sick until you have had his blood and urine tested and the vet gives him a clean bill of health. I know that it can be very frustrating to have a cat defecating outside of the litter box, but I think that it's worth mentioning that cats don't eliminate outside of the litter pan to upset their human caregivers, there's always a reason and once the reason is addressed the problem tends to disappear. Cats try their best to communicate with their human guardians, unfortunately human beings don't usually recognize inappropriate elimination as a means of communication because we no longer consciously communicate by scent marking and territorial displays. It's important to remember that cats haven't become accustomed to verbal communication as we have, they tend to be geared towards communicating by leaving behind and smelling scents and body language is also high up on the list of a cat's communication skills. In the interests of science 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.

I am assuming that your kitten is the only four legged baby in your household. It's quite possible that he is lonely, anxious and bored while you are away from home. One way to remedy this situation would be to adopt a cat companion for him from a local shelter that is approximately the same size and age although you could also adopt a younger kitten. If you do decide to adopt a kitty companion it's very important to introduce them properly because although your kitten is still fairly young problems can surface with aggression and fighting if they aren't properly introduced. I would recommend that you consider your kitten's temperament prior to adopting a new cat or kitten because if your little guy is dominant and you adopt a dominant companion issues may develop between the two cats even if they are properly introduced because they will always be trying to sort out who belongs on the top of the household hierarchy. Your local shelter probably has a fair number of potential "siblings" that will help your kitten feel less lonely and once his new "sibling" has been properly introduced. You may find that your kitten responds very well to having a new feline friend and that the inappropriate elimination fades into the background quite quickly if loneliness and the stress of separation anxiety are the cause. It's important to mention that adopting a new kitty companion may not be the right answer for every cat and it's a decision that ultimately comes down to whether you feel that you have enough time, energy, money, etc to care for another pet at this time, after all a kitten's first year is an expensive one.

If you choose to adopt from a local animal shelter or rescue organization you are literally saving a life. Unfortunately many animal shelters depend solely upon donations and most are forced to operate with minimal resources. Sometimes as a result of the harsh financial realities and the serious pet overpopulation issues resulting from intact pets breeding and unwanted litters being brought into the world many animal shelters and rescue groups face heartbreaking and difficult choices. Animal lovers working in shelter and rescue environments generally want nothing more than to rescue abandoned, abused, neglected or unwanted pets and see them go into loving forever homes. Sadly these caring people are often forced to euthanize perfectly health and adoptable cats and kittens simply because they just don't have the resources to care for them or time and space have run out. It's very important to spay or neuter your kitten and his new companion (if you choose to adopt from your local shelter) - this will ensure that no accidental litters are born. Cats that have been sterilized tend to be less territorial and they usually get along better with one another.

Some cats will house soil in response to the noise, activity, change in status/attention that major life changes like adding a dog or other new pet, a death in the family, loss of another pet or person in the household, marriage, divorce, having a baby or any number of other common occurrences can cause. The changes I've mentioned are some of the more common triggers that could cause a sensitive cat to begin house soiling. If you live in a communal living situation your cat may be experiencing difficulty with one or more roommates in your apartment or home. Basic changes like having less time off than usual, different days off than you or another 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. In your case I would recommend placing a clean litter box in behind the rocking chair temporarily after you've cleaned the area with an enzymatic cleaner. This will encourage your kitten to go back to using the litter box and then you can gradually move the litter pan out of the baby's room once your little guy is using it again consistently.

If you live in an apartment building your kitten 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. Cats and young kittens are quite intelligent. Contrary to popular belief cats just aren't designed to sleep all day and night. Cats are predators by nature, providing several different outlets to help house or apartment dwelling cats and kittens fulfill their natural instincts. The majority of cats enjoy having a range of toys designed for independent or interactive play. I generally suggest that people consider picking up interactive toys like a few kitty teases, a kitten mitten and other toys that encourage appropriate play with their 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. I usually recommend that you consider what a toy will sound like at 3 am before giving it to your cat. Toys that make noises on their own, have bells inside of them or are made of hard plastic are usually best to avoid. I can tell you from personal experience that cats can be incredibly good at hiding toys that are making noises during the wee hours of the morning and after having a night of sleep interrupted you won't be overly impressed with your kitty's hunting prowess. In our household the cats have several large grocery bags worth of toys which we buy on sale and we simply rotate the stock so that the cats don't become bored with the toys. I recommend small mice that can be held in their mouths, if they are made of softer materials that's usually best. I have also found that small ping pong ball shaped foam balls are a hit both with cats that I have fostered and those which I have cared for on a permanent basis. 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 and cubbies your kitty can climb up to and hang out on to watch the world go by or sleep is a good investment. A decent floor to ceiling post with perches and cubbies can run $300+ CAN.

You could also try looking into 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. The Cat Sitter DVDs all feature great video footage of small prey animals and different wildlife. 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 can 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 an 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). If you are able to set your home entertainment center to play the videos at set intervals throughout the workday your kitten may be less anxious. With the Cat Sitter DVDs he will have plenty of visual stimulation to occupy his time. If you do opt to purchase these videos I would strongly suggest that you make sure that the top of the television is kept clear and a chair or small sturdy scratch post with a platform is parked in front of it 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 another most cats will try to 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 kitty spends a fair amount of time looking out the window and watching the world go by. If this is the case your cat may have heard or seen something that frightened or frustrated him. 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 kitten may be responding to the threat to his territory in the only way that he can - by marking his territory indoors. Sometimes cats can become upset if household renovations are happening or there are repair or tradespeople in your home or outside of it 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 him 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 he/she is able to offer a non-pharmaceutical approach to minimize anxiety and stress that can be caused by seeing other animals within your kitten'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 more than one occasion. 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 reduce any anxiety that your kitten may be experiencing which could potentially stop the accidents that he is having 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, inappropriate elimination 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 or kitten is very anxious I sometimes 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. I would suggest that you try out the Rescue Remedy by adding 4-5 drops to your kitty's fresh water each morning. You may notice a difference in her behavior and demeanor 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 people seeking a drug free approach to deal with issues like anxiety or fear, in fact these remedies are just as effective on human beings as they are on pets when they are used appropriately and the right remedy is being used to treat the condition. 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 overly timid or anxious.

Sometimes repeated urination and defecation in the same place may mean that a cat is repeating the mistake based on scent alone. Most household cleaners and detergents appear to remove the scent and stain permanently, sometimes cats will still be able to smell urine or feces because their sense of smell is significantly more sensitive than a person's. The best way to deal with removing the odor of urine (or other organic substances like feces, blood, vomit) permanently from your sheets, bedding, etc 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 upholstery, and carpeting throughout my home. The manufacturer even provides instructions on the label that will allow you to use Petzyme in the washing machine along with regular laundry detergent. 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 costs about $15 and only contains 750 ml). A good sized jug of enzymatic cleaner is a smart thing to have on hand if you have a resident pet, the gallon jug will last awhile and allow you to see whether the kitten is simply having accidents throughout your house because he can smell previous mistakes. I simply fill a spray bottle (the type used for misting plants, 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. 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 where body fluids must be cleaned. It's important to know that dried urine can leave an invisible stain so the use of a black light after you've cleaned up the usual spots that Isabella urinates in you can check throughout the house to make sure that no urine stains remain. Urine will glow under black light.

Cats are very clean animals and they don't usually eliminate where they eat. You could try placing a dish of your kitty's regular cat food on the bed where he usually urinates. I have had people tell me that their cats have simply opted out of eating or defecated on the same surface 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 defecate on the flat foil. If your kitten decides to remove the foil from the bed so that he can defecate 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 this kitty will most likely avoid going behind the rocking chair while the tape is there. If you want to deter your feline friend from going in behind the rocking chair 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 and you may only need to use these types of products for a short period of time to correct the issue. 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 kitty that he doesn't want to get in behind the rocking chair. I have heard mixed comments about using an indoor cat repellant, the general consensus is that the cat repellents typically repel more people than they do cats. You can however place dried hot peppers or citrus peels in areas where your kitten 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 cat assessed since vet appointments are often time limited.