Petey pooped and pee-ed in his food bowl & their food bowls!

[greenthumbnails]

Came back from our Washington State vacation to find that Petey had pooped and pissed in all the food bistros (large cat food bowls where food falls down when the food at base is eaten up) including his own.     All the food should have been eaten up, but from the looks of what was left because he solied it all, they (the other cats and him) probably hadn't eaten for days because of him.  It has to be him because this is his first time in the house without us around, the other cats have been left alone before and behaved.

This time the place was a wreck.....

I thought cats don't poop where they eat- let alone in what they eat   

[Kittyzee]

I've never used those types of feeders for my cats but cats usually don't poop or pee in their food.  Someone is trying to tell you something (Petey or one of the others that could be upset) and guess what?  You get to figure out what it is!!     Even with those types of feeders and waterers, someone should periodically check on them to see if they are all okay--and to clean out the litter box and to prevent stuff like this from happening. 

It could be that their litter box was too dirty, so they used the only thing that they could dig in--their food bowl.  Sorry for your mess...

[Esther]

That is really wierd!! I usually have a neighbor or son stop in every other day to check on the cat when I leave it.

[greenthumbnails]

We normally have 4 literboxes for 3 cats.  When we went on vacation we doubled the number of boxes (each box is one of those sifter ones that comes with 2 pans).  That makes 8 boxes for 3 cats.  When we went to check on the "load" in each box, the 4 boxes used by the two female cats had reasonable amount of stuff given amount of time.  Petey had 4 boxes all too himself, of which he only used 2 and the other 2 were untouched.  Still pretty sure it was Petey (the 6 month kitten).  I have noticed that he will go to the bathroom in anything that resembles a box (empty or not) or has something that he can dig in like the popcorn in shipping.  I use to leave some of this stuff out for the other cats to play in until I caught him peeing in it...Also use to leave out empty boxes for one of the female cats to sleep in (she prefers it to catbeds or anything else that's comfy).  Had to put those away too because he will pee in it...

Thinking if we go away again next year, we may have to board him only and leave the two female cats in the house (they never have any problems with that).  Its that or gotta take Petey to my parents house, although they do not own cats and have no idea how to pick one up (they are afraid of cats for some reason).  Also afraid that he might get loose at their place and go missing if they leave the door open by accident. 

[Kittyzee]

Greenthumbnails--a question for you.  Has Petey been neutered yet?  This may be the root of his problem.  If he hasn't, I would make an appointment and get him fixed, he's not too young to have it done.  Also, I would probably take him to the vet anyway and have him checked out, he could also have a bladder or kidney infection.  Cats pee in inappropriate places when they have UTI's--they may have pain or pressure and feel the need to go and go in the weirdest places.  Also, male cats sometimes have problems with kidney stones and if they are in pain, may try peeing in weird spots.  He's a little young for that though, I would think.  Just some things for you to consider. 

I know this is aggravating, I love my cats, but sometimes they can be a royal pain in the a$$!!   

[Julles]

My vet calls that the Italian Salute.  It's a way of showing their anger at you leaving them.  My female did it once (on the living room carpet) when I left them alone for the first time at age 6 months or so, right after being spayed, in fact.

She hasn't done it since, maybe having outgrown it, or maybe because I have a great pet sitter whom the cats love and who spends time with them to keep them company.

But peeing in his FOOD is quite different.  That is either a REALLY pissed off cat, or one with a serious problem, medical or mental. When they're mad, they want to get back at YOU, and so ruining his own food, and the other cats' food, that does not make sense.

[Jonna]

I also think fixing him would be the answer.  Peeing and testosterone are all linked together, more so in some species than others but linked in all mammals.

[Esther]

And not just males either. I had a neutered female that sprayed on the entertainment center in the living room right while I was watching TV. I found evidence of it spraying on the closet door in our bedroom, in the corner in the foyer, on the china cabinet in the dining room, and I saw her spray on the wall in the laundry room. There was nothing going on in the house any different, no new pets or people, same clean litter box etc. Took her to the vet and she checked out just fine. She had happily lived with us for 3 years, no problems. But originally she came here because after 2 years living with my son and his family, she had begun to pee. I had told him that if she did it here, I would have her put down. And as much as I hated to do it, I did.

I know, I'm terrible, awful, but I won't have an animal ruining my home. 

[KatFish]

I had something similar, Esther.  My female sprayed, so I had her spayed.  That did not help.  Turns out it was jealousy / territory, so I had to give her to a friend with no other cats.  She stopped peeing and is a happy camper.

[jw]

I have 2 cats that are sisters and one sprays and the other one tried it a couple times but then gave it up. They are both spayed. They have sibling rivalry issues and just put up w/ each other. I bought this stuff in a spray can called Stay Off training aid from Wal-mart to keep pets away from certain areas and it seems to work but you must keep applying it until the cat has run out of area's too spray  . I put her out in the morning and in at night so she gets pretty tired out from being outside all day and she's too tired to pee  . It is a long battle but if I stay on it it will work  ..................or she will be outside all the time and she will have to get real good at hiding from the coyotes  .

[Kittyzee]

Lots of people don't realize that cats are extremely territorial.  And not just the males either, my female cats outside will run a strange female clear off the property!!  And the females in the house are territorial over me, they BOTH hiss and hass at each other if they are both trying to sit on me at the same time.  I have had spayed females that sprayed in the house--I put them outside.  I hated doing it because they just aren't safe outside here.

But as for Petey:  before his behavior becomes ingrained, I would take him to the vet for neutering if he hasn't been already and also make sure he is free of any health issues.  Behavior training in cats is not easy, but if you are determined, it can be done.   

There is a spray (I think it's called Feliway) that calms them.  It's actually a pherome that resembles the same one that cats use to mark their territory with their cheeks.  They do it on the corner of the coffee table, or a chair, etc. and other cats can smell it.  It's not the same as the pee marking, but you spray it where they have peed and then they won't pee there anymore.  You can use it also if they are "claw marking" and they stop. 

[jw]

I have heard of Feliway before and I just never bought any but I hear it works if you keep on it. Here is the web-site info: http://www.feliway.com/us
It does cost more than that can I bought at Wal-mart but if I need to I may give Feliway a try  .
It might help Petey  .

[Esther]

I bought the pheremone stuff too and had been told to clean the area real well and then spray with that stuff. We have a 10 room house and 3 finished rooms in the basement. I just couldn't see waiting for Koko to pee all over the house and then try to find it and treat the area. After spending close to $100 and a week racing around watching her, I gave up after one last pee on the wall that I saw her do. I took her to the vet's office and sat there crying. I was asking what else to do. We didn't have any other cat for it to be jealous of, and no dog. She was not an outside cat at all and had never been loose outside. I couldn't see putting her out in Michigan weather, and where she could be hit by a car or attacked by other wild animals or cats. Noone would want her peeing in their house any more than I did. And it was suggested to take her to a farm. Well I grew up on a farm and couldn't imagine her having to cope with that life either, having never been outside.
I reached for the pillow case I had her in and the vet said, "No, leave her in there." I think he was protecting me from seeing her again. He asked me if I wanted them to dispose of her body and I said, "No, we will bury her in the animal cemetary." It's just an area at the back of our property that has a dog, 2 chameleons, a parakeet, 2 guinea pigs, and a baby opossum. I made her a headstone but it got smashed. I think kids went back there and wrecked it. Anyway, the vet came back and asked me the color of my car and I told him. He said that they would put her in the car for me. She was in a nice little cardboard box specifically for that. So we burried her in that little box.

It was so sad and I hope I never have to make a choice like that again. Putting an animal down to keep them from suffering is different and I didn't like it at all.

[jw]

That's sad Esther...............I'm sorry nothing worked for you  :'(. It must have been so hard for you to do and you are right, no one else wants a problem kitty that pees all over the place . I wouldn't be able to do that.............it would kill me..........I'm not strong in that regards  . I once took a cat we had to the animal shelter in hopes that someone would give her a good home. We had to move and couldn't take her with us. I cried all night and called them back in 3 days to see if she had been adopted. They said she had. I didn't believe them and had to go there and see for myself. She was still there...........I knew it was too good to be true. I told them that I was the one who brought her in and I wanted to bail her out. They looked at me kinda weird and had some behind the scenes conversation and said ok. I had to get a license and pay just like I was adopting her. I just couldn't let them put her down after so many days as I knew they would. I eventually did find a home for her w/ some nice people from our church  .

[greenthumbnails]

Been back for a couple days now...food bistros removed waiting to be bleached.  Regular little bowls are out and so far no incident other than sometimes he'll go over there and pretend to bury it, but we use to have another older male cat who would do the same thing when he was done eating.  I am thinking Petey was extremely ANGRY or mental problem.  He is and has always been very aggressive (we found him only weeks old abandoned by his mother in the bushes in our backyard).  He has not begun spraying yet, and the peeing is limited to his litter box and the carpet in the location of where is litter box use to be in the spare room where we kept him until he was old enough and cleared by the vet to interact with our other cats. 

I do have trouble getting him to stop peeing/defecating in the spare room corner where his box use to be...have used urine gone to remove the smell, and put a carpet tarp there with the pointed prongs up so that if he walked on it, it would not be comfortable.  Yet, he still goes there in spite of it - even when he has 2 clean litterboxes to use in the new location in the garage all to himself as the other cats use 2 other litterboxes between themselves in the patio- Petey hasn't figured out yet that he can use a cat door to go out there to harrass them when they go there to get some peace from him (and he knows where his boxes are and uses them...when he is not being lazy).  He does not pee anywhere else.  I was thinking as a last resort before this all happened that I would put his food bowl in that corner and that would solve it as "cats don't defecate where they eat"...guess that trick won't work with him, so I won't bother.  Guess I'll have to always keep that door closed to that room.

When are we supposed to get them neutered?  And, do they stay there overnight?  (anticipating more mental problems...might think he is abandoned again by his "mother")

[Jonna]

They can be fixed anywhere from 8 weeks to 3 months.  Down here at our clinics we will neuter ferals as young as 8 weeks but for a pet that doesn't go outside then closer to 3 months is safer. 

[Kittyzee]

Actually, it depends on your vet.  But most spay/neuter clinics do it a lot earlier than my vet says to. 

Not all vets keep them overnight (especially males), and some clinics don't even keep the females. 

You could try the elevated food bowl trick, they make them OR I put their food and water bowls on a small step stool once.  I had a cat that barfed after eating as fast as she could and her head was lower than her stomach and she would barf.  But in Petey's case the elevated bowls might keep him from digging and peeing.  You know, maybe he does have some issues, maybe he had a hard time being born and suffered some brain damage at birth.  Maybe that's why he cried all the time, like some babies do when they are autistic.  You may never know.  This has to be frustrating, sometimes I SWEAR not another cat is coming inside to live, then someone has kittens that I have to bottle feed and BANG--here we go again.....    

[Julles]

My vet says 6 months is the age for neutering.  It's a day surgery thing, meaning you take them in in the morning and pick them up in the evening.  My male was sleepy but looked pretty much OK when he got home, but the girl - took her a looong time to come fully out of the anesthesia.  I kept them in their carriers overnight, to keep them from moving around too much.

It's common for cats who are angry with you to do things to "get back at you," and they like to use their urine and pee to do so.  I think that's what your cat was doing.  Neutering will change his harmones, and that may well temper his bad behavior, too.