cat suddenly not using catbox

Question
Hi

I have an 11-year-old Norwegian neutered male who has been the best animal possible.  I recently took him to live with me in another city where I was working short term where he was outdoors in the daytime every day for 5 months.  Now back in a high rise apartment, he is still urinating in the box but defecating on the bathroom floor nearby.  How to retrain?  Also I have heard of training cats to use the toilet, is this advisable?

Also, prior to the trip, he was vomiting apparently from hairballs intermittently, but after arriving there and since coming back this has stopped completely.  

Thanks for any help.  

Answer
Steve,

Yes, it is possible to teach a cat to use a human toilet.  You just have to make use no one closes the lid!!!!!!

There are many articles available on the Internet, here is a link to one of them:

http://www.karawynn.net/mishacat/toilet.html


Meanwhile, you can always put newspaper or plastic down on the floor to contain the mess.  I expect, he has forgotten that he needs to defecate in the litter box.  You can try crating him until he gets the hang of it again.

So, I would read the following articles for some other ideas of how to get him back into the groove:

http://www.geocities.com/heartland/pointe/9352/litterboxhelp.html

Best regards... Norm.