Urinating Here and There

Stop inappropriate elimination by confining the new cat with diffuser and litterbox, then reintroducing to the resident cat.

By J. Veronika Kiklevich, DVM

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Q. Our new, formerly stray cat is about 9 months old. He recently started attacking our other cat. Also about a week ago, my brother was playing with our other cat, and the new cat obviously did not approve. He found a convenient corner behind my brother and urinated. Then, the other day he went behind our Christmas tree and urinated. Please explain the peeing issue and the aggression toward my other cat. 

A. Neutering your new cat may help his unwanted behavior. Confine the kitten in an area with a feline pheromone diffuser and a litterbox. Also, begin a slow reintroduction of your new cat to your home and current feline resident.

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Reader Comments

CatChannel Editor    Irvine, CA

4/2/2013 12:40:03 PM

Tina -- The introduction of a new pet family member can be stressful. You mention that the litterboxes are in isolated places. This might cause your cat some anxiety when she tries to use it. Cats like to have a clear view of their surroundings when they are in a vulnerable position, especially when there is a potential antagonist nearby.

You must also be diligent about cleaning the elimination spots around the house, as the smell will attract your cat to mark it again. Ask your vet for a recommendation for enzymatic cleaners. Good luck

tina    hudson, FL

3/30/2013 6:18:50 PM

How to deal with a 5 yr old shelter adopted cat at birth. No problems with her litter box until we rescued a small boston bull terrier who is quite aggressive. Now our cat will urinate other places in the house while sometimes using the litter box. Our other cat 6yrs old is fine. We are in the proc ess of training the dog. How can we get this cat to continue to only use the litter box (we have two boxes and they are in a quiet isolated place.

CatChannel Editor    Irvine, CA

3/22/2013 9:40:38 AM

Caitlin -- There might be a few things going on here. First, are the kittens all fixed? Two intact males around a female would definitely start a war of territory marking.

Second, you say you've tried three different litterboxes. Have you used them at the same time? The rule of litterboxes is to have one for each cat plus an extra. Please give your cats plenty of options.

Third, this is a viscous cycle. Because the cats smell each others' scent, your constant struggle will be to clean, clean, clean. Fight odors as much as possible to prevent further scent battles.

Vets often recommend enzymatic cleaners. Read this for more information on fighting urine marking. LINK

Caitlin    Lake Wales, FL

3/21/2013 8:03:31 AM

I have 1 momma cat who had a litter at 9 months old. We kept two of her kittens(males). Also got a stray kitten (female)at the same time. They are now about 8 months old. All of them have a problem with urinating on everything. They are litter trained so Im not sure why they started this. They will urinate on a pile of clothes in the hamper or in the dryer, rugs, and my bathtub. I'm not sure what else to do. They aren't aggressive towards eachother. They love and cuddle all the time. I've tried three different litter boxes. I've changed cat litter, and they are all fixed. Does anyone have advice?

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