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At witts end with 5 y/o cat who won't stop pooping outside his litter box.
I know that it's behavioral as I recently got a female kitten and he started doing this shortly after. He's been doing this for 6 months now with no end in sight. Here's what I've done to try to correct the issue so far. The cat has a clean bill of health. He has his own kitty litter and food space. I clean kitty litter daily and use a non-scented brand. Used just about every type of over-the-counter medicine to improve disposition. Use sprays that discourage cat from pooping in that place again. Show plenty of attention to him so he doesn't get jealous. Any other advice of what I should do would be much appreciated.
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Maybe give some free advice about: Pets?
Some cats are VERY particular about where they poop and if another cat has used that area before them. This being said, it's usually suggested to have AT LEAST FOUR litter boxes for two cats.
You use the same litter in each of the FOUR litter boxes, but you always "scoop" the urine and poop out as frequently as you can, especially after the young kitten since the older one is having problems with it.
If four doesn't do the trick then you may have to resort to drastic measures--at least one litter box per room in the house (except your kitchen, of course). Some cats will find that more appropriate, but it takes a lot more maintenance since you have to scoop frequently, again especially after the kitten.
Change each litter box every three days. That way the scents won't build up so much but there will be enough scent for them to become accustomed to each other.
Next, if the cat STILL isn't taking a liking to the litter box situation, you may need to have two per each room the cats frequent. This means that if they are rarely in the bathroom then just keep one in there--but if they're usually hanging out in the living room then place TWO in there. If you choose to have two cat litter boxes per room then put them on opposite sides of the room. Still scoop frequently and change the litter every three days or so.
If the cat poops outside of the litter box then remove the poop and place it in a litter box. This puts his scent there so he knows it's a "safe" area that is "his". THEN, go back to the spot he had pooped on and clean it very, very well (method below).
The cat didn't have problems before so go back to the original litter he was used to. The problem is NOT the litter, but the scent of the new cat urinating and defecating in "HIS" litter areas.
Make sure the clean the areas he's pooped/peed on the floor very well with cleaner specially designed for animal urine and scents. We have a really great brand here at home that we've purchased at Wal-mart, it's Out! Stain and odor remover (first one):
[Link](Mouse over link to see full location)
After you treat the area with that product (let it dry, give it time) you may have to put a solution of vinegar and water (put 3 cups of water to 1 cup of vinegar) and rinse the area well and blot up as much as possible after you've cleaned the areas. If you, by chance, have a carpet shampooer then put the 3 cups water to 1 cup vinegar in it and "shampoo" that area of the rug with it.
Using sprays that would cause him to be unhappy about a certain area is something you definately should not be doing right now. Do as I've listed and give him time. If he comes around and starts using the litter area then GOOD! Leave the large amount of litter boxes around the house and after a few months and you can start to remove one at a time (1 each month).
Give your cat plenty of time before getting rid of any of them or doing anything drastic like that. He's scared that another cat is taking over his territory. Sometimes all it takes is plenty of opportunities to potty in the RIGHT areas :)
I hope all goes well with your kitties and they get along well enough that this issue stops. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask me! :)
P.S. ALL of the litter boxes that you end up placing out should be well away from all food and water sources that the cats use or may use. We don't like to poop were we eat and neither do our pets!
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I've tried both scented and non-scented brands with the same results. I've left the cat in the bathroom by himself with food, water and kitty litter per a vet's instructions. The vet said that cats are unlikely to poop and eat in the same area so he would solely use the kitty litter. This of course didn't work. This behavior has been going on now for 6 months and I'm at the point of giving him up for adoption if he doesn't stop. That's why I'm making a last ditch effort to find someone who had the same problem and how they fixed it.
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Have you tried using a scented brand? I think there's something that they put it in it that not only helps with the odor, but attracts cats as well.
(We had a similar problem with my cat, never used her litter box, until my mom bought a scented kitty litter by accident).
Anyways I would try that, good luck! (I know first hand that cleaning up those messes is no fun)
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Is he pooping on the floor around the litter box, or just anywhere? Because when my cats started pooping around instead of in the litter box after one of them had kittens, I just put down newspaper. I put it under and around the box. They don't poop on the floor anymore....I don't know if that will actually work, or if I have freaky cats, but it's worth a shot.
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