AIBU to expect 4 cats to stay in utility room/study?

[notaurewhatusername]

We have 4 cats that are causing major issues. They're constantly pooing and weeing all over the house, including in the bath. I'm 14 weeks pregnant and worried about having a baby crawling around cat mess.

The utility room and study combined are the size of 2 bedrooms and have a cat flap, so they'd still have plenty of space and outdoor access. They've had their jabs to go outside.

DH lets them roam freely 24/7, even when we're not home. I want them confined to that room, maybe let out for a couple hours in the evening under supervision.

DH loves them but they're completely uncontrollable. The mess is disgusting and I'm at my wit's end. AIBU to insist on this compromise? I'm not a cat person but I think it's reasonable. DH won't budge and it's really getting me down.

How would you handle this? Am I being unfair to the cats?

My old cat went outside , only ever used a tray if she was locked in (like if we were taking her to the Vet after work and she knew....so went out !)
She had her own dug over soil patch .

The ones we have now come inside , use the trays and walk out .

Though our boy did use one of my flowerpots once , he perched on it , dug a bit , poohed and eyeballed me "Yesss. What are you going to do about it?"

What a complete and utter bellend. I'd have been furious. It's done now but absolutely no way you get a cat and let it out without getting it neutered first.

Rehome the cats and then the husband.

Totally agree & it’s so utterly sad & depressing😩 it’s to ease their guilt.

My wonderful dog was given away to me because the owner was pregnant & completely lost interest.

Why are you with him? He doesn’t care that you are living in this disgusting environment and now he doesn’t care it could harm his newborn baby. Insanity. Please leave him. Honestly I can’t imagine the rest of your relationship is strong if he walks all over you whilst neglecting his animals.

In normal circumstances yes. But not four who are not housetrained and shitting all over the house.

I’m going to say it again. Get a litter robot. You husband isn’t doing a proper job. Cats are incredibly clean and won’t use a soiled or smelly tray.

get a litter robot.

I would also make them all outdoor cats, for you and for them!

I hope this isn't true.. poor cats 😭

And check the one wee-img the bath for infection. This is cat neglect not a cat problem.

cats can give pregnant women a dangerous virus. You absolutely can't be exposed to this.

Why don't the cats go outside? Why all over the floor? Keep them in the utilty but give them free access outside

Aren't you delightful

Hope your cats were rehomed somewhere they were actually cared about instead of being dumped outside.

Properly cats for cats are not a risk during pregnancy. Putting your cats outside increased the risk! Ignorance like yours is the problem

FFS, the litter trays need to be cleaned multiple times per day, not once every three days.

How would you like to use a toilet that was only flushed once every three days, despite being used by multiple people?

Sounds like these poor animals need to be rehomed.

You are being unreasonable as you can't expect them to be contained all the time it's unfair.
Your husband should have trained them properly, I think you should re home them all.
Your husband is not looking after them properly it's not fair on them.
He has a duty of care and he's not doing it, make him re home them all, if he won't call the rspca and get them to re home them.
He is being a selfish prick, if he can't look after cats what's he going to be like as a father, he sounds very very lazy

Go educate yourself. Properly cared for cats are not a risk.

@notaurewhatusername cats aren't properly cared for though

To clarify he scoops out daily and changes litter fully every 2-3 days

These cats are very unhappy re home them all.

I hope you DH is going to step up with baby the signs are pretty shit if he hasn't got time to change litter trays daily. Even if you can't smell it the cats can....why agree to 4 that's mad if you don't even like them ....even if you do that's more mad cat person

The poster is pregnant. She shouldn’t be cleaning litter trays and it’s her DH that wanted the cats. It would be kinder to rehome them as they’re clearly not having their basic needs met.

So the poor cat has had 3 litters in a short time....he doesn't love cats.....and why didn't you neuter them?

-Your husband is lazy and useless.
-There should be at least one litter tray per cat ( an extra one or two doesnt hurt)
it needs to be changed /cleaned EVERY day - cats are very clean and don't want to poo/wee in a dirty litter box.
-any wee issues need to be checked for illness

This is a husband problem, not a cat problem, cats don't behave like this if cared for.

If this is true then the cats are either ill and need medical attention or very stressed and unhappy. So he needs to take them to a vet to see if they can find out what is wrong, and if there appear to be no medical issues, try diffusers or other strategies for making them feel more comfortable. But he absolutely needs to enzyme clean where they have toileted because they have now learned to go there.

he's VERY stubborn and will not listen to me
He always acts like I'm making a mountain out of a mole hill
He will not listen and just thinks he is right all the time
He's now got angry and said I'm exaggerating it

OP, do the two of you disagree about other things, and if so, is he stubborn and angry about those too?
Putting the cat issue aside for a moment (and it is a big issue), if this is his general attitude towards your opinion, wants and needs, it is very worrying.
It's going to be even worse when the baby comes. What if the two of you disagree about something to do with the baby? Such as what name to choose, your preferences for the birth, whether you breastfeed or bottle feed or both, whether your/his family visit and if so how soon and for how long, decisions about whether to cosleep, sleep train... the list goes on.

The cats are already a big problem but I think they could also be part of a bigger one, sadly.

The litter trays need to be emptied every day! Of course, you'd find somewhere else to poo if your toilet was full of shit! Cats are very clean animals and will use the trays but they need to be scooped almost straight after, it you don't want smells, or the cats pooping elsewhere.

It sounds like you are living in squalor but you really need to get a grip and get it cleaned up before introducing a child into the mix.

Poor cats & poor child!

@jannier no the cat has had two litters

When peppe say litter should be used daily do they mean the whole tray emptied and new litter or scooped out?

I noticed people don't actually answer my follow up questions and I really need clarity here!