Expert: Dear Tabbi - 7/18/2008

Question
Our cat urinates in the litter box all the time but sometimes she poops on the floor. At times she poops in the litter box, but not all the time. She does urinate in the litter box all the time and never urinates on the floor.

Answer
Margie,

With behavior like this it could be a number of reasons. Usually when a cat defecates improperly it is telling you that something is stressing them or upsetting them. Sometimes you need to be a detective to figure out the problem causing it.

Are you not playing with her or giving her as much attention as you used to? Have you been leaving her alone for long periods? Has anyone or any pets moved in or out of the home?

Some cats don't like to use the litterbox to defecate because it is too small and they don't like getting their paws 'dirty'. Try a larger litterbox, possibly with deeper litter in it. Sometimes the litterbox is not in a private enough location. Try moving the litterbox to a different location.

It may also be a medical issue and not a behavioral problem. If she has pain from something being wrong when she defecates in the litterbox she may go elsewhere because she would associate that pain with the litterbox. She could be constipated, have bowel or intestinal problems, which can include the common problem of intestinal parasites, or something else. You may want to take her to the vet to rule out a medical problem, especially if she is an older cat, and if the behavior is something new.

Here are some links that should be helpful also regarding improper elimination:
(copy and paste, or type the whole link into your address bar)

http://www.geocities.com/heartland/pointe/9352/litterboxhelp.html

http://cats.about.com/cs/behavioralissues/a/outsidebox_two.htm

I hope this information helps.

Tabbi