7 year old cat pees on rugs, clothes and couch!

by Ashley
(Michigan)

My Himalayan cat, Roman, has a urine problem. The back story goes as this:

When he was a kitten and I was training him, also at the time of spaying/declawing him, he would not go in the newspaper so I switched to pellets, no luck.

He then would only go in the tub... so I had to switch to regular litter. He used the litter just fine, however I would find if I left something on the floor, a towel or piece of clothing he would pee on it.

Years forward... I have taken Roman to the vet, no medical problems, except he is now constantly peeing on rugs, couches, and clothes.

He goes in his litter box as well so I don't really understand why he chooses to urinate on other articles?

He does not pee on the carpet or wood floors or the tub... just rugs, clothes and the couch? If there is nothing on the floor, he is fine!

I love him so much and I just want to get him to stop doing this! I had my mom take him for a bit because I thought he was doing it because I was at work for 8 hours a day but he had the same issue at her home.

When I had him there were no other animals and when my mother had him, she had his sister... but the behavior was still the same.

Please help!!!!

My Thoughts: I'm sorry to hear that Roman is having difficulties, Ashley. I'm wondering if your vet mentioned anything about the possibility that he has some form of OCD?

There are a number of behavioral problems in cats that could be considered to be along the lines of obsessive compulsive disorder.

Or, perhaps it may be that he has separation anxiety, specifically from you, and that's why his behavior didn't change when he was with your mother.

For OCD and/or anxiety, the treatment is often medication, but for my own cats, I have always preferred to try less severe methods before medication if possible.

Some cat owners have reported a reduction or elimination of certain behavioral problems, including aggression and litter box problems, when using Feliway.

You can buy a Feliway diffuser and let it run. Other products worth looking at are Bach's Rescue Remedy and HomeoPet Anxiety Relief.

PetWellBeing.com has two products for anxiety in cats, Lesstress and Matricalm and they may be worth trying as well.

There are other anti-anxiety products as well. I can't vouch for the effectiveness of any one of them, but it's a place to start.

There are also some other homeopathic treatments that some integrative/alternative/natural veterinarians recommend. For example, Dr. Shawn Messonier recommends Nutricalm and Composure.

It may be beneficial to seek out an integrative vet and work things from that angle. There's also the pet psychologist/cat behaviorist route.

You might also try getting those rugs that are designed for dogs to urinate on and see if he'll go, at least some of the time, on one of those.

So, other than the standard stuff (good diet, exercise, attention, praise, toys and other distractions, blocking access, etc.) I hope that helps a little to give a different perspective.

If I were you, I would contact your vet and see what the input is, and then go from there. Please keep us updated on his progress.
-Kurt