Percy keeps pooping on my chair and bed

by Eddie Lewis
(Torquay, UK)

We have 2 cats, Percy a 7 year old male Burmese and Kitty a 5 year old female moggie stray. The 2 cats have been neutered and live happily together. We have 2 litter trays and both use them without (territorial) problems.

On the odd occasion, Percy will poo away from the tray but in fairly specific places being my chair, sofa or bed. He is very attached to me and sits on my lap when he can and sleeps either on or in my bed at night, so it is strange that he should pick these same places to "do his business."

This happens infrequently and sometimes follows a stress such as workmen in the house or a change of some sort. BTW Kitty always uses the tray.

In the last week for no apparent reason Percy has pooed on the sofa in the lounge every day with the result that we keep the door closed but given a moments lapse and he is in there making a deposit. He knows it's wrong as he runs away and hides when hears it has been discovered.

Both cats are flea and worm free and are up to date on the injections, any ideas what is wrong and how to fix it?

My thoughts: I'm sorry to hear that Percy is having problems. Assuming that he's been vet checked and is perfectly healthy, it sounds like perhaps he's a bit high strung.

Stress is often a major factor in box problems, but in this case, we seem to have two issues. First, even though the problem was intermittent, it could often be traced back to a stressor, such as some sort of change.

That can be frustrating because there's often no fix for this, except to shield your cat from stress and keep him as calm as possible.

Second, he's now doing the same thing, except there is no obvious stressor. This can be even more frustrating because it's impossible to shield him from the stress if you don't know what the cause is.

It sounds like he has some location preferences, and perhaps a texture preference for soft materials. I can guess that he may be using those areas when he's stressed because those areas and materials give him comfort.

I don't like to read too many people-like motives into a cat's behavior, but some might say that he's using those areas because he knows you'll see that he is in distress.

In extreme cases of high strung cats that get spooked easily, drug therapy can be an option. I would prefer not to go that route, myself, if possible. On that note, I would try any of the various products that are available that claim to reduce stress levels.

Some common options are Feliway, Rescue Remedy, and Jackson Galaxy's herbal products. My hope would be that regular use of one or more of these products may sufficiently reduce the stress and make him less high strung.

I would not make any fuss about his behavior as this will tend to increase the stress and you may end up in an endless loop of bad behavior and reactions to it.

He may know that what he's done is "wrong" but he obviously can't help himself. I suspect, however, that it's more likely that he's responding to the reactions of his humans discovering the "accident" rather than reasoning that what he's done is wrong.

Reacting in any way, except to comfort him in his time of need, only serves to increase the stress. I would clean up the mess without any fanfare, much the way you'd bring your dirty dishes to the sink.

I hope that helps. Please let us know how he comes along.

Kurt