My Female Cat is peeing outside of the litter box

Question
My female cat is about 9 months old and since she was a baby she has used the litter box.  Then all of a sudden she peed in a firewood bag, which is like on complete opposite ends of the house.  My cat is not de-clawed and she is not spayed, but we are planning to do both them things.  If she keeps doing this we might have to get rid of her, and I really don't want to.  Can you please help me.

Answer
Jessalyn,

First of all she is probably in heat which is one reason she is peeing on things. I would get her spayed right away. At the same time you can tell the vet to check for a urinary tract infection which is another common reason they pee outside the litterbox. It is painful and they associate that pain with the litterbox so they go elsewhere.

Do not declaw her! It can cause more problems than it helps. Just keep her claws trimmed. I am including a link to a article that shows you how with photos:

http://www.cat-world.com.au/catclaws.htm

When you have the cat declawed they cut off their 'fingers' up to the first knuckle so the claw can't grow back. It is very painful and a long painful recovery. And some cats have problems for the rest of their lives. Did you ever try to dig in the dirt (litterbox) with bloody cut off fingers? That is how it is for a cat.

Tabbi