Grrrrr -- frustrations regarding "accidents"

One year ago this week, I adopted a stray kitten that was found under the hood of a car in the parking lot at work. We had more difficulty litter training him than any other cat we've ever owned. He had a spot behind one of my end tables that he liked to use as a litter box.

We have cleaned and cleaned and cleaned that spot. We used enzymatic cleaners and then followed later with a repellant. We doubled the amount of litterboxes and keep them super clean. Finally, after this occurred off and on for several months, he stopped. WOO HOO!!

Well, the little devil started again yesterday and I cannot figure out why. Nothing in his daily routine has changed. Maybe he's having flashbacks to a year ago and wants to repeat history? :rolleyes:

I have run out of ideas. And am gonna cream the little devil who I've grown to love so much but that darned cat is frustrating me!!!!!! :mad:

Am open to all suggestions.

I can relate, Katrina. One of my cats decided log ago that my computer desk at home (specifically the cubby hole behind the printer) made a better litterbox than any of their other litterboxes, and no amount of "reprogramming" seemed to help. The only thing that I've found to be 100% effective is to spray a dishtowel or washcloth each day with a pet repellent product made by Simple Solutions and toss it back there. This isn't a perfect solution when entertaining guests though, since the stuff smells like cilantro's older, meaner brother with a prison record. And even then, the feline in question will often sit for hours staring at the cubby hole...just out of range of the smell...as though she is biding her time and waiting for the offensive scent to dissipate.

He had a spot behind one of my end tables that he liked to use as a litter box.

Am open to all suggestions.


Have you tried putting a real litter box there?

This isn't a perfect solution when entertaining guests though, since the stuff smells like cilantro's older, meaner brother with a prison record.


LMAO Stan! And why do they like to pick hard to reach places? :p

And, no, Charlotte. I really don't want to consider that because (1) I won't want a litterbox in my living room and (2) I am afraid that will only encourage him to continue to use that spot.

I think I'll try Stan's suggestion of the towel sprayed with the repellant. That stuff does stink, but it's generally effective. I will just have to keep at it. Cannot wait until I have enough money saved to pull all my carpet and replace it with laminate flooring. I think that's when it will finally stop.

What might work, too, is to place some bowl with food there (nothing smelly, maybe some dry food).

Or rub it in with some strong lemon scent - cats tend to sniff the area before doing their business and they normally find lemon scent pretty off-putting ... ;)

Cannot wait until I have enough money saved to pull all my carpet and replace it with laminate flooring. I think that's when it will finally stop.

Oh yes... it will stop then, but then MOVE to another location. :eek: At least, it did for us! Now the cats go anywhere there is CARPET. Period!!! All that's left is a tiny swatch of it in the back workroom closet and our BEDROOM, which I now keep OFF LIMITS to cats.

Which stinks, because I love having Hart sleep with us, but the little bugger will pee AND poop on our carpet for the sheer LOVE of carpet!!!

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...

... shoot me, because on the way to work today I saw a sign that said "free kittens" and am antsy waiting to go home tonight, cuz I wanna stop and snag one. :eek: NO NO NO ~ shut UP phossy, NO YOU DON'T... RESCUERESCUEONLY...

~phos

I am familiar with this frustration...

It's not "my" cat but I seem to be in charge of the "kitty box"... LOL Seems our cute little round kitty who has two litter boxes seems to poop about a foot and a half in front of the boxes. I placed an old piece of carpet under her boxes and it sticks out a foot or so, sort of a kitty wipe your feet after going mat. She will go about 6 inches past where the mat ends, on the good carpet. :confused:

My next attempt to stop her from doing this is I have washed out her boxes with soap and water to kill the smell they have. We'll see if she uses the boxes more than the carpet.

My one question to cat owners here is how many have found their loving pet using the carpet as toilet paper ?

More than once I have found "skid marks" on my carpet and actually watched her the one day drag her butt a foot or so across the carpet. :eek: Then proceed to meow at us looking for food.....

Any thoughts ??

More than once I have found "skid marks" on my carpet and actually watched her the one day drag her butt a foot or so across the carpet. :eek: Then proceed to meow at us looking for food.....

Any thoughts ??

Aren't we lucky to share our lives with animals? Especially cats 'cause they are sooooo clean! Sorry, I couldn't resist. I know if a dog does this it is often a sign that they have worms. (Worms make their butt-hole itch.)

Try confining the cat for a day in the bathroom or a utility room with a litterbox and food. Visit him, it's not punishment, but make the consequences for soiling his area more apparent to him. Revert each time he has an accident. Eventually he'll put two and two together :>

Skid marks? :eek: Well, yes, my cat had done that, but not on any carpets since I don't have any, but on my wood floor. The first time I saw him do this, I couldn't help but laugh because he looked hysterically funny. It really wasn't funny! I think the reason he was doing this is that he had some poop stuck and that was his only way of getting it out. I know this is going to sound really gross, but a couple of years ago, I had to literally take some toilet paper and try to pull his stuck poop out. :eek: For some reason, he's had a problem with constipation for several years. On a daily basis, I have to give him some Petromalt. I try to get the fish flavored one for him since he likes that one better. He also doesn't let me forget to give it to him either. Like I said in one of my other posts, he thinks my sole duty is to feed him (AND give him his Petromalt).

He has also started peeing on a couple of my throw rugs or mat at my entrance door. The first time I discovered he was doing this, I immediately tossed the mats and bought new ones. Yep, he did it again! This has become quite frustrating. I tried a few different products to no real success. Then I saw advertised on TV a product called Urine Gone. I finally ordered it. It also comes with a black light in which you darken the room and the black light is supposed to light up any pee spots. I am still experimenting with it and not really sure that it is working. I did catch my cat go and smell the area where he had peed in the past. Not knowing whether he was just sniffing or was actually about to pee there again, I scolded him and made him go to his litter box. He looked at me and gave me a cranky meow. Poor cat is getting old. He will be 16 end of the year. I had also been given a citric spray which does smell nicer than the Urine Gone. Anyhow, tomorrow I have to go out and buy new mats again. :mad:

Hm, never heard of a cat making a "deliberate" mess unless they are sick/in pain or protesting ... You guys got your cats checked out for some intestinal/kidney related problems? Just wondering because I know LOADS of ppl with cats but if anything like this happened it always turned out to be one or the other.... (like being in pain when urinating and associating it with the litter box or so).

So, sorry, can't up with any help, other than what I suggested before :(

http://www.karawynn.net/mishacat/toilet.html

When I divorced, my ex kept the dog and I kept the cat. I had moved into an apartment and the cat was an outdoors cat. She promptly learned not to sit on the furniture but on her pillow, and to use the litterbox, but even if I kept cleaning it, it would make my small apartment smell a bit.

I also observed she got depressed because she was bored, she used to walk around the block before and now she was just laying there on her pillow, so I gave her back to my ex.

Now my ex is moving into an apartment in a few months so I will have to take her back and I was thinking on training her to use the toilet.

Please wish me good luck.

Check out the link for the method I plan to use.

Hey WR,

Sometimes it is a fact that declawed cats can have more litterbox problems. Have you tried changing the litter to a different brand? Some are softer than others and that can be an issue if their paws are feeling sensitive. I hear good things about Cat Attract for one. Another possibility is always a urinary tract infection, so it can be good to get a vet check if he hasn't gone recently. A third thing to try might be a Feliway dispenser. They're kinda expensive, but if he's spraying in that spot because it feels comfortable and he's nervous and stressed about something, then the dispenser (it gives off cat-soothing scents) in that area or near the existing litterbox might possibly help out. But try the one room isolation. Sometimes that really does do the trick.

Well, here's the thing about the little turd (no pun intended), he was doing this before he was declawed. So, I don't think it has to do with the declawing. And, he almost always uses the litterbox. And, I don't think he's urinating in the corner -- it just poop as best I can tell. So, not sure about the UTI, but great suggestion that I'll have to have checked out.

Thanks also for the suggestion for the Cat Attract. I'll have to try and find that and then at the same time will try Stan's suggestion for the repellant on a towel in that area he likes to mark.