Cats – Solving Litterbox Issues

WHY DO PEOPLE SURRENDER CATS?
 answer:  DUE TO SPRAYING/LITTERBOX ISSUES 

 

  • Is this cat neutered?  This is THE NUMBER ONE cause of spraying/urinating outside the litterbox for male cats.  If he is not, we have clinics each month and this very well may fix the problem completely.
  • How many cats do you have?  How many litterboxes do you have?  You should definitely have one more litter box than you have cats, ideally.
  •  Also, have you recently changed litter brands?  Had any new things happen in the home?  If so, try confining him to a room with his old litter for a day or so and see how that works.
  • If 1 and 2 are taken care of and he’s still spraying, he needs to see a vet for a complete evaluation.  He may have a urinary tract infection or other medical condition.  Cats are known to do this if they have allergies!
  • If 1, 2 and 3 are taken care of and he’s still spraying…try the feline pheromone collars and/or wall plug-ins – see the info at  http://www.fabcats.org/behaviour/spraying/pheromonatherapy.html  90% of cats in this study QUIT SPRAYING after using the pheromones.  This is a company that uses pheromones – they are called Feliway –  http://www.feliway.com/gb.
  • Is your cat declawed?  There have been studies that are now pointing to declawed cats having litterbox issues….they prefer NOT to use litter (it may actually hurt).  They instead, prefer using something soft, like a rug or blanket to do their business.  http://cats.about.com/od/declawing/tp/reasonsnot.htm