I hate to do it, but...

[Constance]

I am at my wits end! I am fed up and disgusted!

My 9 year old female Siamese has started urinating in my bed again, right by (and even on) my pillows while am sleeping. She doesn't do it anyplace else, so it's not a bladder problem.
I make sure her litter box is clean, and try to give her plenty of attention, but it hasn't worked, and so, unless someone comes up with a better idea, she's going to the animal shelter tomorrow.

It's either her or me!

 

[Bilby]

Is there anything that can be stressing the cat? My cat at the moment is wetting the bed and I know there are several possible causes for him to do this. Have you changed washing powders recently? Are you renovating? Cats are very sensitive to change, some more so than others, and they can do things like this for a reason.

Cats don't like toileting near where they eat. Try feeding her on the bed for a while (where she is urinating) and see if that stops it.

Could you exclude her from the room?

If you are sure it is not a medical reason, how about an animal behaviourist?

Don't give up on her just yet! I know (boy do I know!!) how frustrating this can be. I have put a lot of towels on my bed just under where he sleeps - saves me having to wash the duvet all the time. It doesn't always work but it works often enough to keep on doing it. There is probably a good reason in the cat's eyes that just isn't obvious to you - yet.

 

[pacanis]

I spoke with a cat rescue person about this just the other week, someone's cat I know was failing to use the litterbox all of a sudden. No changes to anything else. She sighed and said it was the biggest reason cats were turned in.... You could sense the disappointment in her tone because she knew it was a real problem that you can't live with, or at least most people.
She said the only thing that might work sometimes (that she has found) is to retrain the cat to use the litterbox. And you do that by confining it to an enclosure, like the ones Petsmart sells. Typically 2 x 3 x 2ft high with a shelf inside. They make larger ones, too. Again, it doesn't work all the time, but sometimes it does. She said once they start not using their litterbox, it is a hard habit to break.

Good luck.

 

[buckytom]

connie, we had a similar problem with one of our cats throughout her whole life.

if we went away for a day or two, she would poop and pee on one of our couches. we assumed it was seperation anxiety, but we still had her checked out by the vet to make sure it wasn't a physical problem. we made sure she had clean litter boxes, lots of food and water, run of he whole house, etc.. we even covered the couch in aluminum foil when we went away because we heard that cats don't like to walk or sit on it. not true. in fact, she kind of liked the crinkle factor, before ripping a hole in it to defecate.

after a few times of trying to clean up the messes, we ended up throwing out the couch.

i agree with bilby that it's a behavioural problem, and before giving up on the cat, try to figure out what's triggering it.

and get a new bed.

 

[Mama]

My cat quit using the litter box once and I asked the vet about it and he suggested the same thing as Pacanis. I didn't have a small cage so I locked her in one of the bathrooms with the litter box and she started using it again so it might just work for you too.

I totally understand your dilema but I would hate to see you have to send her to a shelter, at her age they will more than likely put her to sleep. If "retraining" her doesn't work, maybe you could make her an outside cat?

 

[Bilby]

I've ended up with a couple of cats that don't use litterboxes. I put the boxes on newspaper and they use the newspaper instead. (The newspaper is on one of those plastic carpet protectors, and that in turn sits on a slate floor. I gave up one of my two bathrooms for their toileting area.)

The ones that try to spray in the house, I shout at (they don't like the loud noise) and spray with a water bottle. They normally only do it as a way of registering a complaint and normally run to the kitty litter after that.

How about trying some citrus spray on your pillows? cats don't usually like orange or lemon smells but we generally do like them.

Think I would go to the vet though if the simple tricks don't work, just to rule out any health issues (not necessarily bladder related). The cat could be trying to get your attention.

 

[Bilby]

Oh and invest in a pillow protector! (I put a towel next over my pillow at night as well!)

 

[babetoo]

lock kitty out of your bedroom. problem solved. too old to take to pound, she deserves better. would you take your child to pound if toliet training was diffcult?

 

[suziquzie]

Kirby had the same problem. Started in the exercise room, closed him out. He went to the office room. Closed him out. moved his food, got ridiculously religious with his box... he went in my room. Closed him out.

Kept the kids away from him.... he went in my dining room.
This is all only urine by the way, never the other.
The dining room was the last straw. He went to the shelter.

And yes, if my 6 year old went in my dining room after a year and a half of chances, he would be gone too.

 

[babetoo]

suz, you know that is not true. you would take child to dr. to rule out physical problems. when you have had the pleasure of a pet for that many years , you owe it something.

my daughter does this with cats all the time. disposal pets i call em. no one should take on a pet, if they aren't prepared to keep them for their life time. the pet , not the person.

sit with the pet while they give it a shot to put to sleep. don't think you would do it again unless pet was in pain with incurable illness.

 

[suziquzie]

We didn't take him in knowing we would be too broke to help him 5 years later.
He went to a no-kill shelter.... I could not afford to get him vet care anymore. This was not the case when he got him.
We're not irresponsible people. Things happen.

 

[Fisher's Mom]

This is a tough problem that I've been through before. I understand your point, Babe, and I agree with being committed to any pet you take in. But some cats are very determined to urinate everywhere and I can't live with that long term either. It's not fair to the humans who share the house.

Sometimes with an older cat, it's the beginnings of diabetes. I would check that out first. That can be treated. If there's no changes in the household that the cat is protesting, then you may never find out why kitty is doing it.

My daughter had this problem and she solved it by building a chain link dog run in her back yard and letting the cat outside in the run in the daytime hours. It completely solved the problem.

I have made a couple of cats through the years indoor/outdoor cats because of this problem. It's risky because sometimes something happens to them. But I reasoned that it was better than the pound since no one else would want a cat who pees in the house, either.

Good luck, Constance. It's really tough when this happens and I feel for you.

 

[buckytom]

squzie, i'm guessing that your cat had behavioural problems as well. it was probably objecting to having legos shoved up it's nose...

i think that it's unfair to characterize someone as irresponsible if they're unable to care for a pet. not everyone realizes the commitment involved, and as squzie put it "things happen", or rather people's lives can change to prevent them from being able to give the proper care. hopefully, those people only make that mistake once in their lifetime. or would that be 9 times?

umm, anyway, the shelters near me take a lot of personal info on those who adopt pets, as well as those who abandon them there. if someone does either more then once without a plausible excuse, they are not allowed to adopt again. sadly, some of the sickos used to try to adopt pets for things like animal sacrifice, and for "bait" animals for their attack pets.

 

[Constance]

It's not that Mei Yu is not using the litter box...she does. It's more like she's sending me some kind of message. Sometimes it is because her litter box is overdue, but last night that was not the case.
She's been through spells of doing this ever since we've had her. When we first got her, it made her mad that DH would put her out of the bedroom when we made woopee, so as soon as we opened the door, she went right to my pillow and sprayed.

Point being, I'm sick of it, and I'm not going to put up with it anymore.

I'm going to try something else. I can't catch her to put her out of the bedroom at night because she runs into that little space behind the water bed, so tomorrow, DH is going to staple some cardboard over the openings so she can't get in there. Then I'll run her out and sleep with the door closed. Hopefully, that will do the job.

 

[luvs]

my Parents own a bratty feline who pees on thier new carpet. so they let her roam outside, & take her pee at her litterbox morning & evening.
& ellie, another of thier babies, is very arthritic, so she'll pee by thier basement (she tries) , with her it's woolite & a litterbox in thier linoleum restroom.
my Mom's a pro at kitty pee removal.

 

[QSis]

I'm glad you and DH are trying something else before the last straw, Connie!

Good luck - I hope you are successful and get to keep your cat!

Lee

 

[middie]

squzie, i'm guessing that your cat had behavioural problems as well. it was probably objecting to having legos shoved up it's nose...


roflmao. Leave it to you Bucky.
Anyway, hope things work out for you Constance. Sounds to me like she may be jealous of you ?

 

[Bilby]

This really sounds like a behavioural issue, perhaps even jealousy. If it is jealousy, I am not even going to start on how to deal with it cos I have failed miserably at rectifying that behaviour in my own cat!!! But I will suggest using a time out room for the cat. When it misbehaves and won't accept normal correction (like clapping your hands at it), try putting it in the bathroom/laundry/toilet for a couple of minutes. There is a guide as to how long to do this for. I usually only leave mine in time out for two to three minutes. I often wait until the cat has meowed twice before letting it out, giving it a quick cuddle before I do. You can't reason with the cat but you can break a behaviour cycle. Just doesn't work well for jealousy, only the effect of jealousy such as beating up another cat cos I paid it some attention.

 

[Callisto in NC]

We didn't take him in knowing we would be too broke to help him 5 years later.
He went to a no-kill shelter.... I could not afford to get him vet care anymore. This was not the case when he got him.
We're not irresponsible people. Things happen.

I have to agree with you on this issue. Circumstances change and there is a big difference between a cat and a kid (although I'd have committed my child if at the age of 6 she peed anywhere but the toilet).

 

[GrillingFool]

This won't be a popular opinion, but I do feel strongly about this...

If you absolutely positively decide to get rid of your 9 year old cat, then be
nice to it and take it to the vet to be euthanized.

In my humble opinion, that is a MUCH MORE loving thing to do than to abandon it in
a cold, scary, lonely environment full of strange cats, strange sounds, a cold metal
cage, strange food, no love.....

and eventually the same result.

Course, you could abandon it in a No Kill Shelter... then it gets the great joy of
enduring the confusion and abandonment for YEARS AND YEARS.

Be strong and do the right thing.