My cat pees on my couch, same spot all the time

by Anonymous

My cat is neutered, and we have a clean litter box. He is a male cat.

He's four years old, but this last year he continuously pees on the couch. I even bought repellant spray to keep him off the couch.

I've used all of natures miracles products. He is overweight as you can see. I tried to give him cranberry relief for cats to see if it was a urinary tract infection but it didn't stop.

Not sure what to do at this point. If I'm only feeding him dry food could that be the problem or his weight?

My thoughts: I'm assuming he's been examined by your vet with this problem in mind, and your vet can find no physical reason for it. The question is, did your vet dig deep enough?

There are a host of urinary tract problems that can affect cats and cause them to urinate outside the box. It's not just about bladder infections (which often require antibiotics).

I've had readers tell me that their vets could find nothing wrong, only to push harder and find out that it required x-rays or blood work in order to determine the problem.

Sometimes, the cause is a medical problem not related to the urinary tract at all.

I would be concerned about a few things, based on the latest information I've gotten from veterinarians and what I've read on common problems from researchers.

First, his weight. Second, eating dry food is probably contributing to his weight problem. Over time, he may develop diabetes, or he may already have it.

Third, not drinking enough water, combined with a diet of dry food can put the kidneys under stress. Many cats are thought to be chronically dehydrated, which may contribute to kidney disease.

Any of the above could lead to urinating outside the litter box. If all of the above is ruled out, then we'd have to look at behavioral issues.

For example, did anything change in his life around the time this started? Is there anything stressing him?

Whether it's a medical problem or a behavioral one, I find it helpful to look at these problems as though my cat is trying to tell me that something is wrong.

I hope that helps and please let us know how it goes,

Kurt