Cat peeing EVERYWHERE

[CattysPyjamas]

Hello
Just looking for some advice. We have a 3 year old rescue cat who has always been very anxious. In the first few months when she was with us she occasionsally peed on duvets but as she got more familiar with us it stopped. She started to venture outside and seemed so much happier. She was still reluctant to let my DH or DCs stroke her though.

Anyway, now she’s started peeing everywhere again but worse than before. We’ve had guests staying for the weekend for the last three weeks - it happened the first time with the first pot of guests (she peed on the carpet by the bed) then nothing the weekend after her, but this weekend when my parents atayed she peed on four duvets and on the carpet downstairs too! My parents have stayed with us a lot before and she’s never been like this. This morning she peed on the bed I was sleeping in whilst I was there and then twice on a chair downstairs. I’m at my wits end (and absolutely fed up of washing...)

I’ve booked her in for an appointment with the vet tomorrow but also wondering if it could be something else? She seems to jump up on to the beds expressly to pee on them - I’ve seen her do it several times.

No new cats or kids in the house, we moved her food and litter tray in Summer with no issues. However she has stopped going outside - I’ve managed to get her outside this morning though...

Any advice gratefully appreciated. Especially on getting the smell out...

Which litter do you use?.

If she has stopped going outside I wonder if she feels under threat from another cat? Do you have a cat flap or has an intruder got into the house before?

This happened to us when we had guests staying. We also have a nervous rescue cat. I know how annoying it is but it sounds like she is just showing her distress in the only way she knows how.

What helped for us was Feliway - it was like magic! That and temporarily restricting access to places where she has peed before, so she forgets they are potential litter trays. Plus having more than one litter tray in the house, all of them kept very clean. Lastly, most importantly, lots of affection and cuddles from you.

It’s a pain and I sympathise!!

Thanks for the messages- litter hasn’t changed at all aside from being moved but we haven’t had any issues afterwards.

It’s possible she may have felt threatened by another cat (we live in the countryside and I have seen one or two about and only one I know she’s been unhappy with but that was back in early summer!) nothing else has come in the car flap - if anything our cat forgets how to use the cat flap maybe I just need to start letting her out by opening the door again? I’ve done it today and she’s been outside the whole day!

Thanks for the sympathy and the Feliway tip - going to get some after work tonight. Fingers crossed it makes a difference- I’m going to confine her to the kitchen tonight - the only room I know she’s not peed in. I feel awful about it but her food and litter tray is there - and at least she won’t be able to ruin anything else. Plenty of cuddles will be given too (if she lets me near her!)

But what type is it? It matters.

Sorry fluffycloudland it’s a non clumping antibacterial litter.

I had this with my rescue. She's outside a lot through and her litter tray and food and bed are in a huge dog crate I got off local eBay. I put her in there at night.

I'm hoping that eventually I can leave her out of it and she will go to the tray to wee. I tried leaving her out of it a few nights ago and she did a wee on the other side of the kitchen. So she's back to sleeping in her 'prison' at night.

The first thing to do is change her litter to ultra clumping. Sanicat gold is excellent, its a very fine litter and more like soil which is what they’d rather use. The non clumping litters can be a bit spiky, wood pellets, those white crystal litters are ouch just to look at.

Then you need a really big tray, fill it about an inch and a half deep. The bbc did a cat behaviour thing and used a 50l plastic storage box. It stopped the cat weeing on the beds though.

Most inappropriate weeing is either infection, wrong litter or not enough trays.

Fluffycloudland thank you so much. I will absolutely change the litter in that case.
Fingers crossed.
Didn’t get to the vet today because she’s gone exploring - I’m hoping she’ll just saunter in for dinner like she did last night and I can take her at the weekend.

Could be a UTI