Please help... My cat keeps shitting on the kids beds

[AnitaManeater]

As the title says really. My ginger soon to be castrated tom keeps shitting all over the beds. I have already spent almost £80 replacing duvets and bedding this month, we are on our 5th incident and I cannot cope anymore. The children are in my bed after being bathed as the animal shat all over them too while they were asleep. The door must have been ajar as it's normally closed and he's snuck in. He has a clean litter tray and access to the outside. We have a feliway diffuser too which works wonders for my other cat.

I'm facing another night on the sofa with the whir of the washing machine and smell of disinfectant.

What can I do to stop him? I can't go on like this. My partner wants to take him to a shelter and I'm gutted but think it might be the only way forward for us. I suspect it might mean he will end up being PTS if he does it there

I guess the crate would work if the cat was avoiding the litter tray (something mine does if the wrong substrate is in it). Once using the litter tray is established than it should transfer easily to be used without the crate (although I'd probably start with it in the same place as the crate and put extra ones in the place you eventually wanted to site it). Cat's places to poo does become habitual so you almost need to extinguish the one you have and replace it with a more acceptable one & I can see the crate might help in that - hopefully pretty quickly?

I've had behaviour like this. It is has always been due to stress by other cats coming in or having workmen in the house. Stress can also give cats colitis which gives them the runs. It might be worth a trip to the vets just to check him out.

I would make sure he has a clean litter tray and that it's kept away from where your female cat goes to the toilet. The reccomendation is 1 litter tray per cat, plus a spare, if that's at all possible in your situation? Make sure the tray is kept spotless - so keep an eye out for poop and get it rid of it as soon as you see it.

I also second getting him chipped and getting a micro-chip cat-flap. They're not cheap (the op and the cat-flap will probably come to around £90 in total, but it's a one-off payment and it'll be worth it if it means he can get in/out easily, knowing that he can't be followed. Stress makes cats nervous and they can get the rusn.

He'll be hating this as much as you are. Cats are clean animals and he won't like not being able to "control" where he goes, and he'll be picking up on your (understandable) anger and frustration, which might be making the problem worse.

I'd also be wary of just giving dry food unless it's reccomended by the vet. I think it can cause kidney problems, especially if they're not getting enough water. Have you ever tried wet food or cooked chicken etc.?

Am i the only person that locks the cat in the kitchen at night time so she can go out at night if she wants to via the cat flap and she doesn't roam through the house bringing her mouse presents with her and wake us up with her bell.

Is there a reason you just haven't shut her downstairs at night? Seems perfectly obvious to me .

Therighttoshoes maybe they don't want a filthy animal in the house I have 6 cats and not one does that

Lbix - has it really taken you 5 and a half years to respond?