Cat started pissing in the house, help!

[gotthearse]

Sorry this is a bit long....I have a 7 year old rescue cat, a neutered ginger tom. He is a lovely cat and in good health.

All was fine until about a year ago. An elderly neighbour was feeding him, and his turf seemed to be ours and the neighbouring garden.

3 other cats appeared all at the same time and my neighbour took to feeding them all and having them all in his house. Cue a big turf war between him and two of the other cats. The third ended up living next door as it's owner was so exasperated that the neighbour had inadvertently nicked he cat - it ended up never going home! That cat disappeared (the one night the neighbour didn't get up at 3 am to feed it, he tells me). The neighbour also feeds another cat out the front of the house, but this one doesn't seem to bother him. the houses are small redbrick terraces - so all very close together, and the gardens are more of a back yard.

Of the other two, he has seen one of them off, but is terrified of the other one, and no longer goes next door. The other one has duffed him up several times (vets trip for eyeball scratches). To begin with he seemed very depressed. He's less miserable now but has started pissing in the house, up against every wall he can. We have tried plug-ins and given him a tray which he has used once, but will piss up the side of it, and go in the hall, landing, lounge, dining room and ute. We have a lot of wooden floors, which has saved us from the worst, but the stairs and landing carpet will have to go.

I don't know what to do to make him stop. I am considering taking him back to the RSPCA as i don't know of he can ever be happy here. We even looked into moving, but affording that is about 2.5 years away.

I can't bear to live in a cat piss house, and DH hates it with a vengeance. I don't really want to have trays either, he managed fine without for the first 6 years that we have had him. He has a cat flap in the back door so can come and go as he pleases.

Is there anything left to try, or does he just need to live somewhere else?

[cozietoesie]

He's scared, poor lad. Is it a chip flap which only he can use? (If not, half the neighbourhood could be coming inside without you knowing.)

And best to get a couple of litter trays inside the house if only for the duration.

[Fluffycloudland77]

If he wees over the side of a tray a covered one would help, the type of litter also matters, the silica ones are really sharp on paws so you have to think how it feels for the cat to tread on it.

If you clean it up what do you use? Disinfectant and bleach can both attract cats to wee so bio powder in hot waters better. I use astonish carpet and upholstery cleaner.

It does sound like he's desperately trying to establish his territory to make himself feel safe. The bully cat might also be coming in and weeing too.

[gotthearse]

I really don't think any others are coming in. On occasion when one has tried there has been a huge commotion by the flap (cue DH splitting them up bollock-naked at 3 am. How he never ended up with a cat swinging from his knacker-sack I'll never know).

The grit in the tray is not too spiky, he's gone in it once but deliberately pisses up the wall next to it, rather than accidentally missing it.

I hate the thought of re-homing him, we'll really miss him if he goes, but he is miserable here. What would be the best way to re home? I don't know anyone who would have him.

[PancakesAndMapleSyrup]

Try feliway its a plug in with pheromones (sp?) Although you generally need a plug in for each room, my DM has been using them for the same problem and after 5 days cat has stopped pissing everywhere now been 3 months! Also rug doctor do a urine carpet shampoo which is ok.

[PancakesAndMapleSyrup]

Amd a bigger tray!

[Jux]

Try a covered tray. I used to have one with carbon filters in the top so no smell at all (apparently). There was no smell, but no idea if the carbon filters were responsible or not.

Poor lad; some neighbours are so irresponsible. I hate it when people feed other people's cats. They have no idea what problems they are causing.

[Fluffycloudland77]

Did you watch that cat documentary where they fitted small cameras and trackers to cats in a village? More than one house was getting visitors but had no idea. The intruding cats had homes of their own but still visited other cats houses and ate the food before squirting wee on the walls.

If he's spraying he's upset. It's not out of laziness or malice.

So the kindest way to deal with it would be a microchip operated cat flap first so he knows his home is safe.

One cat needs two trays, far away from food bowls or water bowls, cleaned out weekly with a plain detergent like washing up liquid. Strong smelling cleaning products can put them off using a tray.

Which ever litter you use try a different one like woodchip, pets at home do one that absorbs odours really well. My cat won't use a smelly tray even if it is debris free.

Zylkene is an over the counter medication for cats that helps reduce anxiety, you can get it from amazon.

If he sprays during the day can you confine him to one room? I lock mine in the utility with a tray, bed etc and he can go out through the cat flap.

[cozietoesie]

Yes - a microchip flap. I think he needs to feel safer.

[MooseyMouse]

Urine Off is available on Amazon and it's great for cleaning where they've sprayed.

[gotthearse]

Thanks everyone. Last ditch effort is: uber strong cat piss smell killing solution from colleague who works for cats protection, two trays and putting some cardboard down round the tray areas, (mainly up on the walls as he seems to like to piss on a vertical surfaces), two plug ins not one, and when I'm paid a flap that tunes into his chip. If that's fails we're beat. Hopefully we can ditch the trays once we break the cycle. Think the neighbour might be losing it tho. It's 2 am and I've just seem him feeding a cat out the front. He hasn't been at all well and really should be resting. It's like a compulsion for him, so it's going to be an uphill struggle, with this many sodding cats about.

[Fluffycloudland77]

Try zylkene capsules, it's not a drug but it really chills them out.

Mine was off his furry little face on it when we moved but he's highly strung most of the time.