How to stop my cat from marking inside due to neighbor's outdoor cats?

Hi, thanks for using Petcoach! Sometimes underlying medical conditions can become behavioral even after the medical condition is long gone. If Leo hasn't seen a Vet I recommend you take him in for a physical and to have his urine tested. A UTI or crystals in the urine can cause irritation and urgency to urinate. Also, Leo is not neutered. Intact male cats mark and inappropriately urinate more. If there is no underlying medical condition I would ask your Vet to prescribe an antianxiety medication like Prozac. Confine him for 2 weeks and clean the soiled areas well with an enzymatic cleaner like Nature's Miracle. Put Feliway diffusers in his favorite nap places. When you let him out, keep the doors closed to the rooms he previously soiled in, keep clothes and bags off the floor, use shower curtains or aluminum foil (they don't like the feel on their feet) to cover beds or carpeting. Also environmental enrichment can help indoor cats. I've attached a few links below. I hope this helps! https://www.chewy.com/comfort-zone-feliway-cat-diffuser/dp/49006 https://www.chewy.com/natures-miracle-deep-cleaning-carpet/dp/42132 https://indoorpet.osu.edu/cats

Have Meow Meow examined by your veterinarian to diagnose medical causes for the inappropriate urination. A urine sample can be collected and submitted for urinalysis and urine culture to rule out UTI or stones. Once medical causes are ruled out, you can focus on behavioral issues. Provide an additional litterbox in a neutral area of the home. Consider different brands, types and depths of litters. You can also use a litterbox attractant to get him back into the box. Thoroughly clean soiled areas with an enzymatic cleaner such as Nature's Miracle. To decrease any anxiety he may experience when other animals come over, you can try a pheromone product such as Feliway spray or plug in diffuser. A small animal repellant can also be used along the border of your property. You can buy a liquid or powder form in most hardware stores or home improvement stores.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are medical reasons for peeing outside the litter box: urinary tract infection, crystals in the urine, bladder stones or bladder inflammation. Medical causes can become behavioral problems or there is no medical reason and it is just behavioral. Cats really get stressed over each other, they are territorial and when in close contact some cats become stressed or the other cats pick on one cat causing stress. Stressed cats can urinate outside the litter box. My recommendation is to rule out the medical causes. Then I would confine Momo is a room for 2-4 weeks with food/water and a litter box. Discuss starting Prozac with your Vet during the confinement. Clean all soiled areas with an enzymatic cleaner like Nature's Miracle. Then make the areas undesirable: block them, place aluminum foil over it, etc. Get a few Feliway diffusers to put in areas the cats like to sleep and use one in the room Momo is in. Close all blinds/curtains so Momo can't see outside stray cats. I had to go through this with my owner cat, it isn't fun. But it can work. I wish you the best!

Hi there. Cases like this can be very challenging, because of the need to sort out how much of a role continued medical issues might be playing vs. behavioral issues like stress and anxiety. In general, urinary marking issues in cats are very treatable, but it's hard to give much more than basic advice (keep litter boxes clean, make sure they're in convenient locations, reduce stress in the household, etc.) without a more in-depth behavioral history and in-person evaluation. Because of this, I would recommend getting in touch with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate your kitty in person and help you put together a detailed plan to work on this issue. There's a good chance this can be dramatically improved with professional help. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org , or ask for a referral from your regular veterinarian.

Personally, I've never found any benefit in using indoor electric fences to manage urine marking. Be sure that the cleaners that you've used to clean up previous urine spots are enzymatic cleaners (Nature's Miracle is one example). Urine marking/spraying typically occurs on vertical surfaces (such as walls or the sides of furniture), where as inappropriate urination occurs more on horizontal surfaces (the floor, beds, etc.). It is important to differentiate between the two since they are typically caused by different things. Urine marking/spraying occurs most commonly in intact male cats, or those neutered later in life, as a result of behavioral changes from hormonal influences. Inappropriate urination on horizontal surfaces can occur due to behavioral changes (typically stress-based) or medical problems (urinary tract infection, bladder stones, crystals in the urine, etc.). If your cat is an intact male, I recommend having him neutered. It is also a good idea to have a urine sample evaluated for signs of infection or crystals to rule out some medical problems that could be leading to this issue. Otherwise, add at least 1 extra litter box to your house, scoop the litter box 1-2 times per day, change the litter at least weekly, consider adding or removing a hood/cover to the box (depending upon the current set up), and use calming pheromone collars/diffusers (Feliway is one example). I hope this helps and that all goes well!

She may be urinating outside the litter box if she has an infection or bladder stones. I would have your vet take a look at her. Your vet will be able to do a urinalysis to ensure everything is ok. They will be able to start her on antibiotics if needed. If everything is normal, then I would be more concerned with behavioral. I would definitely get of the drapes. As far as cleaning, I would try to use a deodorizer to help hide her scent. See link below. Clean the wall area the best you can. Unfortunately, you may not be able to get deep into those cracks. You can try q-tips although this may be a little tedious. Some things to try for her behavior is adding additional litter boxes throughout the house especially near where the drapes are that she likes to use. I would also add some feliway diffusers. This is a cat pheromone that will sometimes help calm cats.. It doesn't work on every cat though. Finally, if these don't work, I would talk to you vet about adding in an anti-anxiety medicine like amitryptilline. I have had good success with this to help with inappropriate urination. I hope this helps! One example of a deodorizing enzymatic cleaner:

Hello and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Inappropriate elimination (peeing or pooping outside the litter box) in cats can be frustrating and difficult to treat. The first step you should take is scheduling an appointment for Udang to see a veterinarian. A lot of times a cat will start going outside of the litter box due to health problems like urinating tract infections, pain, urinary tract inflammation and digestive problems. Once you have established that there aren't any medical reasons for inappropriate elimination the following may be helpful: 1. Cats will urinate or defecate outside of the litter box for stress related reasons. Therefore it is best to keep the litter boxes in several different, quiet areas of the household. 2. A pheromone diffuser like Feliway can be quite helpful. 3. Ensure you have at least one litter box in the household per cat plus one. For example, if you have 3 cats, then 4 litter boxes are recommended. 4. Feeding an all canned food diet can help if there is inflammation in the bladder. There are also prescription diets available to help with bladder inflammation or digestive issues. Your veterinarian can help you choose the best one for your cat. 5. The litter boxes should be cleaned once to twice daily and completely emptied and washed weekly. Most cats prefer litter to be the clumping type that is kept a few inches deep. Certain litter types like Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract litter may be helpful. 6. You can also place aluminum foil over the areas Udang normally likes to urinate to prevent him from going in that area. If you have done a lot of the above suggestions you may also want to talk to your veterinarian about behavioral medications that may help prevent inappropriate urination. Good luck!