Cat urinating in the house

Question
Hello.  I have two cats, brother and sister and they are 3 years old.  They are very affectionate to each other so no problems there.  However, for some time now, the female cat has been urinating in the house.  Usually the bath mat, sometimes my bed and more recently the sofa.  She has been checked by the vet and there are no problems.  I often work unusual shift patterns and sometimes can be away for 2-3 days at a time, work early mornings and late nights.  I have a neighbor who feeds them when away.  I've noticed that she urinates when I come home, sometimes in front of me and then runs away.  What can I do about this?  It's becoming a serious problem.  I've already had to send one sofa to the tip and I just can't carry on like this.  Do you have any advice?

Answer
Hi
as you probably know cats use urination as  form of communication. In this case she is using it to make her environment smell like her as she is feeling insecure. The insecurity sounds like it is based around your working patterns, which may be unnerving her. unfortunately you cannot change your work so the only thing is to try and make her feel more secure in her environment and to encourage her to use her litter box. I have some pages on my website about urination problems and litter box training (links at bottom) it may help if you read through these to see if their is anything you can do that may help her. I'm afraid these sorts of problems need some persistence on your part and may take some time, but are normally fixable. Good luck
Kate
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