Cat urinates in box and in front of box

by Anonymous

I have a 12 year old calico I adopted about 6 months ago from a neglected home where she was also fully declawed. She has extreme anxiety, and I’ve been giving her prescribed Xanax from the vet.


Since we got her, she has peed inside and right in front of the litter box. I keep it clean and have offered her different locations, different boxes, and different litter types and it still keeps happening.

She urinates more often in front of the box than in the box at this point. What can I do to fix this?

I’m trying everything I can to try and help her with her crippling anxiety. We also have a 20 year old calico, but they remain separated with their own litter boxes away from each other.

They each have their own space in the home still, because the 12 year old keeps trying to attack the 20 year old.

My thoughts: I'm sorry to hear your cat is so stressed. Anxiety and stress are big factors in litter box problems.

Stress can cause a cat to urinate in front of the litter box, or outside the box in general. Declawed cats have added stress and may have problems using the box consistently just due to their situation.

In addition, I've been told by a vet that stress can also increase the possibility a cat will develop feline lower urinary tract disease (FLUTD). This is backed up by what AVMA has to say about it:

Factors such as emotional or environment stress, multi-cat households, and abrupt changes in daily routine may also increase the risk that a cat will develop FLUTD.


FLUTD can cause a cat to stop using the box. If your cat is experiencing intermittent urinary problems, this may be a contributing factor.

If medical conditions aren't a problem, total isolation in a single room can be used to retrain a cat to use the box. You might want to try confining her temporarily to see if that helps.

Please let us know how she comes along.
-Kurt

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Jul 06, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		A couple of things to note
by: Kurt (Admin)

A number of readers over the years have used Prozac for litter box problems successfully. You might want to ask your vet if Prozac might help rather than, or in addition to, Xanax.

Readers in the past with extreme cases have also reported that an underlying medical issue was eventually discovered. In some cases, this required more tests and/or consulting another vet for a second opinion.

I hope you can her, and yourself, some relief from this soon.
Jul 06, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Reply to Kurt
by: Anonymous

Yes, I’ve tried Feliway and one of the Jackson Galaxy products with the Xanax. The only things here I haven’t tried are getting a home visit from an animal behaviorist and rescue remedy. I’ll try rescue remedy before the home visit and I’ll let you know if that helps at all. Thank you.
Jul 06, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Have you tried stacking other anti-anxiety treatments?
by: Kurt (Admin)

Since isolation didn't work for her, maybe combining some other anti-anxiety treatments on top of the Xanax might help. A lot of vets recommend Feliway and many rescuers use Rescue Remedy. There is also the Jackson Galaxy line of products.

Many pet parents try these types of remedies before going the medication route, but if your vet agrees, maybe stacking some of these along with the meds would work.

The next step would be to involve either an animal behaviorist or a veterinarian who deals with behavioral issues, so your cat can be evaluated from that perspective.
Jul 05, 2018
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starstarstarstarstar 		Response to Kurt
by: Anonymous

I’ve tried room isolation with her previously and that only makes her more anxious and she cries out for me and urinates all over the room

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