cat not using litterbox

Question
my cat is an 8 year old spayed female.  For about the last 4 months she has been peeing in odd places around the house.  She has been peeing in the kitchen near her food, near the front door and near her littlerbox but not in it, even after it has been just clenaed. she seems very healthy.  are there any ideas to make her start using the box again?

Answer
Melissa,

The most common reason for that behavior is a urinary tract infection, urinary crystals, or kidney infection. All are painful when they pee and the cat will associate that pain with the litter box and go elsewhere. Sometimes arthritis makes it painful for a cat to get in and out of the litter box.

Your cats is approximately 48 years old in human years and age related problems may start to occur. It's good to find a vet that specializes in geriatric cat care and their conditions (not all vets do) and have the cat given an "old cat checkup". They need to have the function of their kidneys, thyroid, and liver checked, and blood tests done. As a cat ages it needs to be done about every 6 months.

Being prepared and knowledgeable about elderly cats will make things easier for the cats and for you. For future reference I am including some very good links about elderly cats. Copy and paste, or type, the whole links into your address bar:

http://www.sniksnak.com/resources/geriatric.html

http://www.messybeast.com/towards-end.htm

http://www.2ndchance.info/oldcat.htm

I hope this helps
Tabbi