Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Cat weeing everywhere! Help!

21 replies

WhereAreWeNow · 04/05/2024 21:34

For context, we've got 2 cats (sisters) age 1 year old. One is super friendly and one is super nervy.
The nervy scared one had blood in her wee a couple of weeks ago. Vet diagnosed FIC (a kind of stress induced cystitis) and gave anti-inflammatories. Things got a bit better for a week or so.
Now all of a sudden there's blood in her urine again and she keeps weeing everywhere. On the sofa, in corners of rooms. It's like she's marking territory or something rather than needing to wee. There's a clean litter tray.
I'm going to call vet again on Tuesday but just wondered if any of you have experience of this. How can I stop her soaking the whole house in wee?!

OP posts:
bluetopazlove · 04/05/2024 21:37

Forgive me for knowing nothing about cats , but Tuesday?

marylou25 · 04/05/2024 21:44

My cat is an outdoor cat but I saw her weeing everywhere very often which was unlike her, took her to vet and she had UTI, was given injection of antibiotic to start with and then a week long course of them mixed with her food. Sounds like your cat has a UTI, I felt so sorry for mine when I noticed her as she could have had it a few days being outdoors because most of us know how miserable a UTI is and the constant need to pee! Vet asap

dancemom · 04/05/2024 21:46

Vet before Tuesday but as an aside, if you have 2 cats you should really have three litter trays not just one

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 04/05/2024 22:58

She needs Cystease long term but if it’s infection she’s not territory marking.

WhereAreWeNow · 04/05/2024 23:03

bluetopazlove · 04/05/2024 21:37

Forgive me for knowing nothing about cats , but Tuesday?

I was assuming vet would be shut for bank holiday.

OP posts:
WhereAreWeNow · 04/05/2024 23:04

Sorry, yes we have 2 litter trays.

OP posts:
fieldsofbutterflies · 04/05/2024 23:07

For two cats you need at least three litter trays and plenty of food/sleep resources so there's no fighting or competition,

Blood in the urine is a medical emergency so she needs to be seen this weekend - she'll probably need Metacam and antibiotics and to be on something like Cystease or Cystaid long-term. A supplement like D-Mannose is also really good for cats with urinary issues.

AnnaMagnani · 04/05/2024 23:08

I have many years of experience of nervy cat with bladder issues - have never had antibiotics but there has been a lot of wee and at worst with blood.

One litter tray is not enough. As a minimum you need number of cats + 1. Even if you don't have that many all the time, first hint of trouble the bins come out.

Nervy cat needs to feel less nervous - hopefully she responds to Feliway so stick Feliway everywhere.

We always have a bottle of Metacam ready, as if you are already nervous, and then your bladder hurts, you are just going to be worse. So again, first sign of trouble, start the Metacam.

Wee needs cleaning up with a pet odour cleaner as standard cleaning doesn't eliminate the smell for cats so they keep going back.

Other things you can do to prevent issues are up the fluid content of the cats diet, there are urinary dry foods which are supposed to prevent it and they do seem to work, urinary health capsules (we use Vetpro Urinary) also seem to work.

Lastly just get the cat happier. Lots of play and interaction, stuff for the cat to do like towers and tunnels, more time outside if they go outside. Basically stuff that is exercising their brain rather than sitting at home being scared of their own shadow.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 05/05/2024 07:42

The Bengal had repeated antibiotics for UTI, in the end he had two Cystease a day mixed in with food, no dry food at all and I’d mix a small amount of water with his breakfast.

Cystease is on amazon.

Rainydayze · 05/05/2024 07:49

For our cat who wees we have litter trays in the rooms she commonly wees in, waterproof protectors on every bed and over the sofa cushions (under a throw). It’s so hard to get the smell out of sofas. We’ve soaked spots in simple solution, biological washing powder and water etc but it’s so much of a risk now that she can only go in there when we are in there, so supervision and constant vigilance. With her she has no blood and no infection, so marking, but does increase if routine changed (or someone unfamiliar in house)

ThelmaDinkley · 05/05/2024 08:50

Can you only get Metacam from vets as I would like some in for this issue but was told would have to have vet appointment before issued.

AnnaMagnani · 05/05/2024 08:55

I think you have to get it from the vets, but make sure you get a big bottle so you always have some left!

We now have a well honed routine that kicks in at the first sign of spending too long in the litter bin. Long periods spent digging and sculpting, or weeing over the edge of the bin are the first sign of trouble.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 05/05/2024 10:53

Pets at home vets used to do Sunday appts, I used to take the Bengal when he was ill out of hours and there would be a cohort of sorry looking pets.

ThelmaDinkley · 05/05/2024 11:59

Thanks Anna Magnani. I am always on edge my cat will get ill again or blocked so would like to have done on hand.

AnnaMagnani · 05/05/2024 12:07

Thanks @ThelmaDinkley

Our routine basically goes:
Extra bins
Course of Metacam
Collar of calm (because I'm allergic to Feliway)
Cat goes outside whether she wants to or not rather than winding herself up indoors

This usual stops it in it's tracks

WhereAreWeNow · 05/05/2024 13:42

AnnaMagnani · 05/05/2024 12:07

Thanks @ThelmaDinkley

Our routine basically goes:
Extra bins
Course of Metacam
Collar of calm (because I'm allergic to Feliway)
Cat goes outside whether she wants to or not rather than winding herself up indoors

This usual stops it in it's tracks

@AnnaMagnani@AnnaMagnani I'd love for her to be outdoors but she's terrified of going out. She runs and hides if we open the back door.

OP posts:
WhereAreWeNow · 05/05/2024 13:45

I started a separate thread recently about whether we should separate the cats. The vet seemed to think the stress of living with another cat is the cause.
I don't know if it would stress her out even more moving (or having her sister disappear).

OP posts:
fieldsofbutterflies · 05/05/2024 14:40

WhereAreWeNow · 05/05/2024 13:45

I started a separate thread recently about whether we should separate the cats. The vet seemed to think the stress of living with another cat is the cause.
I don't know if it would stress her out even more moving (or having her sister disappear).

Personally, I would move the more confident cat and keep the stressy one.

AnnaMagnani · 05/05/2024 16:29

@WhereAreWeNow my stressy cat was also not initially impressed with the outdoors.

We used to have to go out with her and stand in the garden like numpties otherwise she was too scared. Meanwhile her sister was off climbing houses and exploring.

She still goes to the patio, a hedge and the front garden only if we are there. However 5 minutes 'catting' - basically standing and sniffing, seems to do wonders for her mental health.

Would a catio work?

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 05/05/2024 16:33

Try separating them if they’re not bonded. Sounds like she’d be delighted if her sister vanished.

We joked our elderly female lived to 17 to be an only cat for once. Then we rescued a male so she ignored him and pretended she was an only.

WhereAreWeNow · 05/05/2024 17:24

@AnnaMagnani I'm hoping I can lure her out as the weather improves and the door is open more and we're spending more time in the garden. I agree it would be really good for her mental health. Her sister loves the garden.

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
Swipe left for the next trending thread