Litter Box Accidents

Thinking outside the box is usually a good thing.  A cat going outside the box isn't, and can mean a number of things, including health problems.

Read the following article on cats urinating and defacating outside their boxes to get a handle on this common feline problem.

Feline Inappropriate Elimination

Author: Kenneth M. Martin, DVM and Andrew Luescher, DVM, PhD, DACVB

Feline inappropriate elimination is the most common behavioral problem in cats. Approximately one third of cats house soil, urine spray, or mark. House soiling with urine may be differentiated from urine spraying by the amount of urine that is released, and where the surface of elimination occurs.

House soiling consists of a complete voiding of the cat's bladder on horizontal surfaces resulting in a large puddle. House soiling may be accompanied by defecation in inappropriate locations.

Urine spraying consists of small amounts of urine at a time and is usually on vertical objects.

Urine marking on human smell is the exception to the above, consisting of complete urination usually in areas associated with human body odor, i.e. beds, dirty linens, bath mats, etc. Cats rarely mark with feces.

House Soiling

House soiling may occur for a variety of reasons. House soiling is usually associated with a "litterbox" problem or medical disease. Cats may have developed an aversion to the type of litter, type of box, the location of the litterbox, or litterbox odor.

Some cats develop a surface preference, for example carpet, or a location preference. Medical diseases that increase thirst and increase urination can manifest as house soiling. A medical workup is always indicated in cases of house soiling. Minimum diagnostic workup should include a FeLV/FIV test, CBC, General Chemistry, and UA with culture and sensitivity.

Treatment of House Soiling

Addressing litterbox problems

The goal of addressing litterbox problems is to make the box as attractive and easily accessible as possible:

• The number of litterboxes should be 1 + the number of cats in the household
• Litterboxes should be in easily accessible, high traffic, lived-in areas
• Many cats don't like covered boxes. Try to offer a large, open box
• Litterboxes need to be scooped daily
• Use a premium, unscented clumpable litter. Stick with one brand. Cats tend to prefer fine substrate
• Clean the litterbox with warm water only. Some cats find citrus, pine, or lemon scented detergents aversive. Do this at least monthly
• Do not use litterbox liners
• Do not use any form of punishment if the cat eliminates outside of the box
• Clean soiled areas and make those areas aversive

The smell of soiled areas attracts the cats to eliminate in these areas again. Enzymatic cleaners are the most effective in eliminating odor from soiled areas. Soiled areas should be blotted up, or cleaned with warm water, and then with enzymatic cleaners, paying special attention to both horizontal and vertical surfaces. Equalizer and Anti-icky-poo are two enzymatic cleaners that are recommended.

Most cats find mothball crystals aversive. Make soiled areas aversive by applying a ¼ teaspoon of crushed mothball crystals to soiled areas once to twice weekly. Some cats may find the use of citrus, pine, or lemon scented products aversive. Citronella spray, Pinesol, or Lysol can be applied to hard surfaces. These products should be re-applied twice a week.

Retraining the Cat to the Litterbox

Confinement and supervision is key here. Confinement should consist of a small room (bathroom) with hard floor (no carpet), food, water, litterbox, toys, and bed for 1-2 weeks. If the cat prefers to eliminate on carpet, a litterbox with a carpet remnant and very little litter can be provided. Each day, a small remnant is provided, and gradually increasing the amounts of litter sprinkled on it. Once the cat accepts the box with litter and without carpet, the cat can be let out for very short periods, and increasingly longer periods under close supervision. The cats should not have the opportunity to make a mistake. A bell collar is helpful for supervision.

Removing Stress Factors

Change in the household environment, such as moving furniture, redecorating, etc. is stressful and should be minimized. Changes in the owners' schedule resulting in more or less interaction with the cat are stressful. Owner interaction should be made consistent with a daily set playtime. Cats should be provided with interactive toys that can be rotated daily. Punishment increases fear and anxiety and damages the human-animal bond. It should be avoided. Limited feedings is stressful for cats as they prefer small frequent meals. Whenever possible it is recommended to free feed choice. Water should be changed daily. In multi-cat households there is often stress associated with territoriality or passive aggression. Every cat should have its own feed, water, and litterbox station in their preferred location so that they can avoid confrontation with other cats. It is sometimes not possible to identify and remove the stressor.

The goal here is to reduce stress to below the threshold that can be tolerated by the cat. Pharmacological therapy is sometimes indicated to reduce stress or anxiety.

Urine Spraying, Marking

Urine spraying is often associated with stress or anxiety. Feces marking can occur under the same conditions, but occur rarely. Spraying or marking is a form of territorial communication that occurs twice as often in males. Intact cats tend to spray or mark more often that castrated/spayed cats. Ten percent of castrated males and five percent of spayed females continue to spray after neutering. Medical disease is seldom associated with spraying. Urine marking on areas with concentrated human smell is often associated with conflict related to a person.

Treatment of Spraying/Marking

Castration/spaying If intact, the most effective way to deal with spraying is to neuter the cat. Surgery is thought to be equally effective regardless of age or previous experience. Castration is 90% effective in eliminating spraying behavior. Spaying is 95% effective in eliminating spraying behavior.

Removing Stress Factors

The most common stressor is that associated with exposure to other cats inside or outside of the household. To reduce or eliminate stress associated with exposure to strays outside of the home, one should prevent visual access to windows or keep strays away. One might consider the use of a motion activated sprinkler to keep strays out of their yard. In multi-cat households there is often stress associated with territoriality or passive aggression. Every cat should have its own feed, water, and litterbox station in its preferred location to avoid confrontation with other cats. Limited feedings is stressful for cats as they prefer small frequent meals. Whenever possible it is recommended to free feed choice. Water should be changed daily. Change in the household environment, such as moving furniture, redecorating, etc. is stressful and should be minimized.

Changes in the owners' schedule resulting in more or less interaction with the cat are stressful. Owner interaction should be made consistent with a daily set playtime. Cats should be provided with interactive toys that can be rotated daily. Punishment increases fear and anxiety and damages the human-animal bond. It, therefore, is detrimental to treatment. Problems associated with the litterbox can also contribute to stress, especially the use of covered boxes (with only one escape route) in multi-cat households. Refer to addressing litterbox problems under the treatment of house soiling.

Cleaning sprayed/marked areas and make those areas aversive

The smell of soiled areas attracts the cats to eliminate in these areas again. Enzymatic cleaners are the most effective in eliminating odor. Sprayed/marked areas should be cleaned with warm water, and then with enzymatic cleaners, paying special attention to both horizontal and vertical surfaces. Equalizer and Anti-icky-poo are two enzymatic cleaners that are recommended. Most cats find mothball crystals aversive. Make sprayed/marked areas aversive by applying a ¼ teaspoon of crushed mothball crystals once or twice weekly. Some cats may find the use of citrus, pine, or lemon scented products aversive. Citronella spray, Pinesol, or Lysol can be applied to hard surfaces. These products should be re-applied twice a week.

Pheromone Therapy

Feliway® is a synthetic feline facial pheromone that induces cheek rubbing, a marking behavior that is used instead of spraying in areas where the cat feels most at home. Feliway is sometimes used as an adjunct therapy, and is thought to have anxiety relieving effects.

Prominent areas as well as sprayed/marked areas should be treated twice daily. It should be used after cleaning with an enzymatic cleaner in place of an aversive, i.e. crushed mothball crystals. It has been reported effective in eliminating spraying in one third of cases, and reducing spraying in others. It has no side effects or contraindications.

Pharmacological Therapy

Medications that decrease anxiety or stress can be beneficial if the underlying stressor cannot be identified or removed. All medications and drugs must be metabolized by the body and therefore have potential side effects. A medical workup is indicated before drug therapy should be instituted.

The above is general veterinary information. Do not begin any course of treatment without consulting your regular veterinarian. All animals should be examined at least once every 12 months.

About the author: (Reprinted by permission of Purdue University Animal Behavior Clinic)

Linda Mar Veterinary Hospital and its cat-only affiliate, Coastal Cat Clinic, are small animal practices located in Pacifica, California. To find a veterinarian or to learn more about the vet clinic and our staff, visit: http://lindamarvet.com/

Synonyms:  Cat box, litter pan, litter tray and litter box are used synonymously.

Kitty or cat itter, ltter, litetr, littre, liter, or littef are all common typos for cat or kitty litter.