13 year old Persian Himalayan cat peeing everywhere
by Sally
(Florida)
My 13 year old, indoor, spayed Persian Himalayan cat is consistently peeing everywhere in the house, but the Vet said he is healthy. I am losing my mind.
He has been doing this for some years now and I've tried EVERYTHING under the sun to help him stop. Nothing works.
He is the only animal and not stressed. He does whatever he wants and is totally happy. I give up? Can someone Please help me?
My thoughts: I'm sorry to hear your cat is having problems. Since this has been going on a long time, it may be harder to resolve.
It may or may not be continuing for the same reason it began. If it's not an illness of some sort, we usually want to look at any changes, or perhaps a traumatic event that may have preceded the problem.
Given the length of time that has passed, that's probably difficult to recall.
My first thought is that perhaps he's got some intermittent or low grade infection or urinary tract/kidney problem. This may not be easily detected during standard examinations, but could cause him to stop urinating in the box.
If it's definitely not a medical condition, though...
Some of our readers have reported that the presence of other cats nearby can cause their cats to urinate outside the box in response. You may not ever see these cats as they come and go.
I'm not sure what steps or combination of steps you've taken to diagnose or resolve the problem, but I have some ideas on what I'd try if he were my cat.
For example, here are a few things I'd think about:
Did you thoroughly go over your home with a black light and an odor remover, like
Atmosklear, to completely remove any traces of cat urine?
If not, the scent will attract him (even if you can't smell it), and he'll likely keep revisiting those same spots.
Have you tried confinement/isolation retraining? Using a room or a large cage?
What about products like
Feliway
, or
Rescue Remedy?
Some cats like to pee in one box and poop in a different box. Does he need more boxes or a larger box? Did you try multiple boxes in different locations?
What happened when you tried those things, and for how long did you try them? Perhaps it would be helpful to review your experiences and see if there is something to be learned.
What about drug therapy, like Prozac? Did your vet discuss this option with you?
While not my choice for a first option, some readers have had success with medication and some have only had to use them temporarily to get their cats back on track.
If nothing else works, I believe it's worth discussing with your vet as a back up plan.
Before that, though, if you haven't already, I would do the following:
Set up some
Feliway diffusers where your cat spends most of his time and add a second litter box to the house. Scoop both boxes twice a day.
Get a
black light and go over your entire house from the front stoop to the back patio.
Wherever you find urine traces, treat the area to remove all evidence of cat urine. To remove the residual urine and odor, you can use products like
Atmosklear as I mentioned.
If the second litter box doesn't do it, consider isolation retraining. Choose a room and make sure all residual urine is gone.
Then, put him in there with his litter box and everything he needs. Spend a lot of time in there with him and encourage him. See if you can get him using the box.
If you've already tried Rescue Remedy and Feliway, make sure you've given these products a chance. It can take time for them to work. I hope that helps and please let us know how it goes.
-Kurt
P.S. I have heard of neutered cats where their neutering was not complete. In other words, not all of the tissue was removed, and enough remained to cause spraying or urination problems.