Older cat defecating outside of litter box

Question
My 12 year old indoor neutered Maine Coon Stanley has started to defecate
away from the litter box. He has shared a litter box with his twin brother
Oliver since they were 4 weeks old with no problem until about 2 months
ago. He started by urinating on my rug (old in rec room) which I finally
removed. He then started defecating on the bare floor four feet from their
litter box. I installed a second litter box in the same area (downstairs toilet)
and he refuses to use it no matter where I move the box to. He is terrified of
going into the room so I moved the box to the area where he has been going.
They were both to the vet last month for shots, and general tests of blood,
urine, bowel, etc, and were given a clean bill of health although Stanley
weighs 23 lbs., and Oliver is at 18 lbs. It seems that Stanley has stopped
urinating outside of the box but still defecates on the floor. They have a
fenced in yard, and we have lived here with them all their lives. They don't
climb, and are mostly in doors. They like various types of fish (wet Fancy
Feast), and also eat dry Naturals, and drink plenty of fresh water daily. I am
confused by this acting out by Stanley, and I would appreciate any assistance
in solving this problem. I changed the litter today from standard multi-cat to
clumping for Stanley's box but I don't think thats the answer.

Answer
Hi Steven & Elsie,

First I personally don't like giving cats (especially male cats) fishy flavored wet food - something about the fish flavored canned treaties can contibute to urinary tract problems especially in boys (and I know in Maine Coon's).  This may have cleared up by the time the Vet checkup, but we still have the outside the box defecating problem...

I had a cat that began running through the house (from their litter box through the cat door into our closed garage), and would drop poo throughout the house for 2 years  - Several trips to his normal vet and she couldn't find zip - Her suggestions were - Try shaving him - thinking perhaps his long hair was contributing to clogging his intestinal tract, and made it too hard (it may have HURT), to poo.  We fed him lots of natural fish oil with no relief.  After we moved and found another Vet, she listened to what he was doing, what we had tried, and she simply did an x-ray - Finally they found that after jumping from too far high too many times, he had a calcium build up on his spine next to the back end of his bones (near the base where his tail began)... She massaged this and broke it up and TA-DA - No more pooing through the house!

Moral of the story?  Take him back to the Vet - If it isn't related to blood work or urine, have the Vet keep looking - something like 99.9% of cats do NOT pee or poo outside their boxes for no reason : -)  

Your right, I don't think after using the same litter for so long your one guy isn't turning his nose up at the litter, there is something else going on inside him.

I remember some tube of an oil (either the Vet gave us, or we got from a pet store) that helped them break down the hair inside and make it easier for them to "go".  This may be a beginning point, but then back to the Vet to find out what IS making him do this!

Bless you both for keeping your loving 2 boys,

Debbie and her fab four!