Peeing on couch - time to lock him up?

On Wed 18 May 2005 12:31:29p, korey99 wrote in
rec.pets.cats.health+behav
oups.com):

I don't want to isolate him (that was very hard last time, but
worked pretty well). I'll look into the "Cat Attract", but I'm
also afraid of upsetting him by changing the litter, so perhaps
I'll get another box and try it additionally.

I understand your frustration! Once they begin a bad habit (if it
isn't due to illness) its hard to change them! I wish you all the
best, and some of the ideas you were given were good ones.

Here's the stupid question of the day- how big is a cat's
bladder? I know before he use to completely soak the old couch,
clearly emptying his bladder. On the new couch, it seems like a
lot of urine, but the slipcover is different material. I've
never caught him in the act, so I guess, now that I think of it,
I don't really know for sure which behavior we're trying to
solve.

I don't know how big a cats bladder is, but my Shamrock pees like a
racehorse when he has to go! He doesn't go often, but when he does,
he makes it count. I couldn't imagine all that on my couch. Yikes.

--
Cheryl

"The clever cat eats cheese and breathes down rat holes with baited
breath."
- W.C. Fields

Most recent solution of mine:

cheap k-mart plastic table cloths (about $2), then sprayed with citrus
room spray (which used to work all by itself). Got tired of washing
slipcovers every day or so as it started getting worse. If there is
urine (and we're doing ok - keep fingers crossed), it's wiped up - no
extra laundry.


--
Janet B
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com
http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/bestfr...bedience/album

korey99 wrote:
Hey all-

I've read here a suggestion to stop cats from peeing in
inappropriate
places is to lock them in a small room with a litterbox to retrain
them. I'm thinking this is what I have to do, but I wanted to know
whether I should put his kitty friend in there with him. She's not
exhibited any marking or spraying behaviors.


Thanks,
Korey



put something that belongs to the cat over the place where he pees.

like his favorite blanket...or a cushion from his favorite sleeping
chair.

and/or

put his food and water bowl in the place closest to where he peed /
when it's time to eat...show him where his food is. It's not mean, your
sending messages to him, in the same way he's giving them to you.

well im out of ideas.

Don't remember where I read this... but it seems to me I recall something
about NOT use pinesol type cleaners... something in them attracts them...

"korey99" wrote in message
oups.com...
It's rarely sat on (the basement is rarely used) but like I said it's
covered in plastic then we put a cover over it. When it gets sprayed
we launder the cover and treat with enzymatic cleaner, as well as clean
the plastic with pinesol. When guests come we put them upstairs in the
office.

I don't need convincing that I have a problem on my hands, nor do need
to be reminded that this cat I adore is negatively impacting my life
and the lives of my friends/family. I need a lasting solution.

"Chris" wrote in message
ink.net...
Don't remember where I read this... but it seems to me I recall something
about NOT use pinesol type cleaners... something in them attracts them...

Me too. I think they have ammonia? As does urine?



"korey99" wrote in message
oups.com...
It's rarely sat on (the basement is rarely used) but like I said it's
covered in plastic then we put a cover over it. When it gets sprayed
we launder the cover and treat with enzymatic cleaner, as well as clean
the plastic with pinesol. When guests come we put them upstairs in the
office.

I don't need convincing that I have a problem on my hands, nor do need
to be reminded that this cat I adore is negatively impacting my life
and the lives of my friends/family. I need a lasting solution.

korey99 wrote:
Thanks all for the advice. Here are some more details about the
situation. We have essentially a two floor house. On the lower
level
is a small bathroom with a litter box and a family room with a litter
box. This family room is where the couch is located, less than 20 ft
from the litter box. My buddy is about 6 years old and in good
health
(despite being chubby) and active. The elimination problems have
ONLY
occurred downstairs, though we spend all our time upstairs, and the
cats like to lounge around in whatever room we're in. So, I don't
think it's a matter of being lazy or too slow, as the problems would
then happen upstairs.

I don't want to isolate him (that was very hard last time, but worked
pretty well). I'll look into the "Cat Attract", but I'm also afraid
of
upsetting him by changing the litter, so perhaps I'll get another box
and try it additionally.

Please bear with me - I don't have time to read all replies so if some
of this has been covered, I apologize in advance...

I have used and recommended Cat Attract litter dozens of times with
success. But I would also recommend buying new litter boxes first.
Over time, plastics retain smells, no matter how well or frequently
they are cleaned. I recommend replacing boxes yearly (minimally) for
this reason.



Here's the stupid question of the day- how big is a cat's bladder? I
know before he use to completely soak the old couch, clearly emptying
his bladder. On the new couch, it seems like a lot of urine, but the
slipcover is different material. I've never caught him in the act,
so
I guess, now that I think of it, I don't really know for sure which
behavior we're trying to solve.

It sounds to me that he is possibly developing a bladder condition
(infection?) if he is emptying a completely full bladder on the couch,
even periodically. It might be prudent to have him complete a round of
antibiotics to rule out any infection, if you have not done so.

As for cleaning - I do not recommend the enzymatic cleaners as they
simply do not work well enough - the urine scent is retained and the
cat will pee again to cover it up. There are three products I do
recommend (from an old post):

***paste
I recommend ODOKLEEN cleaner to remove any vomit, urine or feces (it
requires lots of rinsing, though - a wet vac works wonders for this),
and then treating the area with ODOKILL or NODOR to remove the odor.
I have yet to find an odor which is not removed using NODOR. ODOKLEEN
and ODOKILL are available through pet supply stores. NODOR is made by
Nu-Scents in Knoxville, TN, USA. They are a very small company and do
not ship outside of NA. Their product can be ordered in the US by
credit card by calling 1*(800)*262*9366. They ship via UPS. They are
very nice people. NODOR will kill male cat spray smell.

***end paste

Do not use Lysol or Pinesol cleaners as they contain phenolics which
are deadly to cats - they cause liver damage.

That being said, if the couch has been peed on multiple times, he may
never quit peeing on it. You may just have to get rid of the couch.

best of luck,

-L.

Another thought...
Have you tried Feliway? If not, buy a Feliway diffuser and plug it into
an outlet as close to the couch as possible. You can read more about
Feliway he

http://www.petsnmore.com/home.asp?di...name =Feliway
Electric Diffuser Kit

Megan



"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do
nothing."

-Edmund Burke

Learn The TRUTH About Declawing
http://www.stopdeclaw.com

Zuzu's Cats Photo Album:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22

"Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one
elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and
splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then
providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision,
raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and
material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his
way."

- W.H. Murray

Sorry, the link broke. Try this for the Feliway Diffuser:
http://tinyurl.com/afmaf


Megan



"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do
nothing."

-Edmund Burke

Learn The TRUTH About Declawing
http://www.stopdeclaw.com

Zuzu's Cats Photo Album:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22

"Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one
elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and
splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then
providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision,
raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and
material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his
way."

- W.H. Murray

Ok, thanks - I saw something about that earlier. I've replaced the
plastic since then, and not used pinesol again, so hopefully we're OK
on that front now.

He peed on it again last night, this time without a cover on the couch
at all - just the plastic. That's another reason why I think he's just
developed a habit. From what I've read they pee somewhere soft and
fluffy when it hurts, but I could be wrong.

Megan -

I did have some feliway before that I used directly on the couch. I
don't think we had too many problems when using it. The couch is about
15-20 feet away from the favorite litterbox. The way I understand (or
remember), Feliway is a pheremone that tells the cat that the area is
already marked. If I put the diffuser in the same room as the
litterbox, will I convince him that the litterbox is to be avoided as
well? I don't really know what that product is doing.

Thanks for the suggestion,
Korey