Expert: Dear Tabbi - 9/5/2008

Question
My daughter had 4 cats got a new one.  Others are 3 years or older.  New one a male my son in law found a litter in there parking lot at work.  Got the cat fixed and declawed.  Gets along with others.  Everything started out fine.  he nows pee's on the beds.  They put a shower curtain to cover it.  Was fine now he pee's on that.  They clean if off.  It was maybe every 3 weeks.  Get's himself all wet.  Now does it every night and they wipe it off and he will still do it.  They know he goes in the box they have seen and watched him.  So whey would he pee on the bed and sometimes even the quest bedroom bed?

Answer
Jeannette.

It may be a urinary tract infection or urinary crystals. Both are painful and the cat associates that pain with the litterbox and goes elsewhere. If a male cat gets completely blocked it is usually fatal. I would have him checked for a medical issue before treating it as a behavior problem.

If the shower curtain is plastic then that attracts a cat. For some reason cats like to pee on plastic. I would cover the shower curtain with an old bedspread or blanket.

One of the most common feline responses to stress is inappropriate elimination. The bladder is the cat’s stress target.

Declawing can be part of the cat's problem. Getting a cat declawed can have lasting emotional and physical effects. When a cat is declawed they cut off the cat's 'fingers' to the first joint so the claws don't grow back. It is a painful procedure and a painful recovery. A lot of times there are nerve endings that make digging in litter painful. It's like digging in gravel with nubs of fingers. Try using a puppy pee-pad next to the litterbox and see if he uses that.

Tabbi