To insist the cat goes back to the RSPCA?

[Hellvelyn]

We got a rescue cat from the RSPCA just over two years ago. Much wanted by dd and seemed like a good idea. DS and DD are now 16 and 18 ( years 11 and 13)
Cat is sweet natured and friendly but OMFG she's caused havoc and cost us hundreds of pounds. She just won't reliably pee outside or in the litter tray. She's ruined two carpets. I've spent hours cleaning up after her and we've tried everything to persuade her to wee where she should (multiple vet investigations, different litter and litter trays, products to help her relax, products to deter inappropriate weeing, advice from RSPCA. You name it. We've tried it.) End of last year she was doing better. We then had a long planned downstairs extension. Cat was in a (lovely) local cattery for 10 weeks as we didn't want her upset by all the disruption and for the peeing to get worse. On her return she was so settled and found her spot in the sun in our new conservatory and was weeing reliably in her tray. Suddenly last week I saw her weeing up the wall of our lovely new extension and all over a laptop. Closer inspection and sniffing indicated this wasn't the first time. Today she weed up our bookcase onto precious photo albums. I've just had enough. She's damaged one thing too many now. We had a family talk tonight. DCs are upset at the thought of her going, DS in particular who said " but she's part of our family....." AIBU to just want her to return to the RSPCA? Will my kids ever forgive me? Aaaaagh!

Have you tried a plug in

Oh sorry I see you have, try a camera I did hear about a cat being very stressed as a bully cat kept pacing outside window. Dont want to upset you but cats that inappropriately pee get euthanized

Were the rescue honest with you about her lack of toilet training/spraying?

If they warned you, and you took her anyway, yabu. If (and it wouldn't be the first time a rescue have done it) they lied about her toileting, take her back and explain exactly why.

Something is stressing your cat out causing stress cystitis. This can lead to kidney failure. Maybe another home would be better especially if material items are more important than a pet

Have you tried a different vets for a second opinion? Whereabouts are you? I’ve been having issues with our cat that our usual vets just weren’t 100% invested in, so I sought a second opinion from a cat only clinic and have been fast tracked a referral to a specialist. Could you try something similar, maybe there’s such a thing as a behaviour specialist?

If you haven't cleaned the urine properly, your cat will return. Cats only understand the act... Not the location. The carpet will be been a much comfier place than the litter train on their return from the cattery where it was abandoned. Your cat will have been pinning for you and I really think it was cruel. The stress of that has caused your cat to possibly start scent marking because of this and now you want to get rid of it?

You need to think cat. Ring up the cattery and ask them what type of litter they used. Do not have the litter tray near a busy location. I have rescued cats for years and some cats prefer the hooded trays to feel more secure, I would recommend removing the front door though.

Do not have the cats food or water nearby. These should be on three different locations.
When you see your cat caught in the act, how do you react? If you get cross, your cat will think that the act of urinating isn't allowed and will sneak off into undesirable corners.

Give your cat a chance, your cat.

Now would be the perfect time of year to move the cat outdoors.

@peppermintpat

If not chipped, then drive her a long way away and drop of in a village.

If chipped, keep her outside at ALL times. Food and water in a shelter and let her get on with it.

Did I read this correctly???

I have found the smell of Vicks Vapour Rub deters cats. One of mine took to weeing up the wall and in the corner where our fish tank is. It’s heavy, so it was tough to clean properly there. She had been stressed. Then, because we couldn’t work out where the pong was coming from for a while, it seemed she had just got into the habit of going there. It took months, but it’s finally stopped.

Your cat is definitely stressed about something. It would make life much worse for her if you give her back to the RSPCA. I don’t think your kids would ever forget and you may well regret it yourself. I’d say, stop allowing her the run of the house. If you confine her to the conservatory and little visits outside, the problem will be so much more manageable. If there is an area in there that she sometimes weed on, put puppy pads there, with a cat tray on top. You don’t know what traumas the little soul has suffered. Be kind. You’ll feel better about yourself if you do.

@savagebaggagemaster

I think you did - only serves to make me prefer any other animal over humans.

Please never ever get another pet. You are being vvvvvvvv U and no your kids will not ever forgive you.

Also the rspca won’t take her.

Just limit the cat to certain rooms. Shut doors or put gates on them if it comes down to it let the garden be her home by making her a little house

Don’t be a k uuunnnttt

I have a dog and two rescue cats. There was some problem peeing at first but ok now. Some suggestions are:
Is the cat litter absolutely spotless? Plenty cats won’t walk on dirty litter.
Is your cat fluffy? One of mine is and i put a platform in a huge cat litter that she can perch on to do her business.
Are you using a product like Urine Out to remove the pet enzymes?
I closed off all doors so they only had a certain area to move around in.
I have a cat tree and perches around the living room.
After meals I’d watch like a hawk and as soon as I saw my female cat drifting as if looking somewhere to go I popped in litter tray and treated when she emerged.
I think if I were you I’d put her in large cage with a litter tray and every time she uses the tray give high value treat. The smell of cat pee is horrendous. I agree effort needs to be put into rescue pets but it is unreasonable to allow an animal to ruin the home and you are not evil to consider returning to the centre.

A couple of things come to mind:-
Firstly she could have a physical abnormality that prevents her peeing in a squat position, could she have both male and female “apparatus?” It’s more common than you think.
Secondly recurrent but transient cystitis can make cays per in weird places, they associate the discomfort with the place, not the infection. My cat gets this from time to time and the first sign is inappropriate toileting.
Third thought - something is stressing her out at times. Could another cat be hanging around, maybe trying to get in or hassling her?

Who left the gate to the cunt factor open? You let @peppermintpat out!!!

@Hellvelyn I have no words for how awful you are to even think it. No compassion. No moral compass at all.

Two of my friends parents did similar. One was with a dog the other a horse. Neither speak to their parents. At all.

"peppermintpat"

"If not chipped, then drive her a long way away and drop of in a village."

Can't believe that I just read that.

You’re acting selfish and juvenile. We’ve all had difficult house pets but you’ve just got to get on with it and be grateful that’s the only issue with them. I had a very unfortunate dog years ago who was as miserable as sin, as cranky as an old man, and plagued with health issues. But I kept him out of duty, and loved him to bits. Sure, I couldn’t hug him or play fetch, or walk him in fear that he would suddenly lie down for a kip and refuse to keep moving, but he was a brilliant guard dog, was very tolerant of the other dog doting on him and never failed to say good morning or notice when I bought a new dress. He wasn’t what I signed up for but I gave him my best. When we buy or adopt we sign up for all of the bad stuff too.

Try locking the door to as many rooms as you can while you’re out (bedrooms, sitting rooms, anywhere easily ruined) and switch carpet for other flooring. You could even give her a shed and make her an outdoor cat if you must, just letting her in when you can supervise her.

I had a cat who did this, my house smelt terrible in the entrance lobby where she peed, she was very nervous, only replaced when it was just me and her, it was soul destroying but I loved her and didn't give her up. Was hard though, embarrassing having people over, she would often sit in litter tray but bum sticking over the edge so hit the carpet. When kids came along I think the house was just too busy for her and then she started getting bullied by another cat from a few doors down. I tore my hair out but she was my cat. She just disappeared one day after local bully cat totally freaked her out. I really sympathise, it's very unhygienic and unpleasant, once a cats wees on your floor, in my experience you never get rid of the smell. You either put up with it or try to rehome him/her.

Relaxed not replaced

I really hope the anxiety meds help, OP. If they don’t, one absolute last resort is to try CBD oil for pets (which is really just a different type of anti-anxiety med). The way you explain her lifting her tail and spraying, it sounds like one of a few possibilities (to me).

1. Marking scent, but much less likely since I assume she’s fixed, as you adopted her from RSPCA.

1. She’s part feral. People think of feral cats as completely wild, but very often what it means is that they were separated from their mother too young for whatever reason and didn’t learn how to “cat” correctly and weren’t socialized when they were young correctly. As a result, you can have a partially “feral” cat that has never been outside.

1. You mention she was with a lady who was a hoarder. So she may need a clean litter box constantly to be induced to use it (needs to be cleaned more than once daily) and she had to deal with a dirty litter box before snd just developed some aversion. Or maybe she learned this “wee spraying” behavior because it was a kind of marking to deal with too many other cats in that household. It’s difficult to say.

I hope you find a solution because it does sound so difficult to deal with. In a worst case scenario, is there a room you could confine her to in your house that could be “cat proofed” (could you put tile or hardwood floor in the conservatory; even the cheaper snap together kind for now if cost is an issue)? If she did somewhat well at the cattery, maybe she deals better with less space, as long as she gets plenty of attention. Also, do make sure your children are assisting in cleaning her “accidents.” If they want her to stay, they need to help with the solutions.

If you are not noticing the first time she wees somewhere it is possible that the smell is established before it gets strong enough for you to notice. The black light torches are really helpful for this - when my cat started to pee on the doormat after I had been away I inspected it regularly and used the enzyme cleaner immediately. Which stopped the problem.

I had a cat that did this and was very aggressive to my other cat, I took back to RSPCA. It wasnt nice but I had to keep him in spare bedroom when I went out or he would have killed my older cat. Last straw was when I saw him drag my older cat along the carpet by her throat. Sometimes you have to do things that aren't pleasant but your cat is obviously not happy. Sorry its turned out this way, its heart breaking

@CuteOrangeElephant

We had to return a cat to the RSPCA. She would wee constantly in the house, destroyed countless items and carpets, attacked my other cat to the point he needed an operation. Every time my baby cried the cat got aggressive. We tried a lot things, lot of vet bills. My DH wanted to keep her but as he can't smell it was me who had to endure the stench. The cat couldn't go outside as she was completely blind, which the RSPCA somehow didn't inform us of when we adopted her. Not sure what happened to her and we will never find out. I hope she got a nice house somewhere without any other animals, because underneath it all she was lovely

Well, let's all guess what happened to her shall we? At least own your decision, none of this faux niaevity about wondering what happened to her