Cat urine smell

Question
My cat has started to unrinate on the carpet.  I have tried Fabreeze to remove the odor, but its effect lasts only a few minutes.  Is there anything I can use to effectively take care of the odor and discourage her behavior?

Thank you.

Answer
Mayra,

How old is your cat?  Is she spayed?

If she is not spayed, that is the first thing you need to do is to spay her.  She may be coming into season and this type of behavior is common in females in season.  After she is spayed, the behavior may linger a couple of weeks until her hormone levels drop sufficiently so she is no longer driven!

If she is spayed, I would have her checked out by a vet for a urinary tract, bladder, or kidney problem.  These problems will also cause a cat to urinate wherethe shouldn't whenever the urge hits.

If she is spayed and there is no evidence of a physical problem, then something has changed in her life making her very, very unhappy which can also result in inappropriate urination.

You can check out the below link for an excellent article on inappropriate bathroom behavior in cats.  It was written by a vet who is also a cat breeder:

  http://www.netcat.org/housesoiling.html


Fabreeze is really not effective at removing cat odors.  I would also look at buying an enzyme based pet odor and stain remover, available from your local neighborhood pet supermarket. If the carpet is wall to wall and she has been doing this for a while, it could have gotten into the padding underneath the carpet.  You might need professional steam cleaning, in this case. You also might try a Feliway diffuser for whatever room she is urinating where she should not. Feliway is a pheromone based product that is supposed to relax the cat.  What is most important is to solve the inappropriate behavior problem.


Good luck & best regards... Norm.