Expert: Jessica - 12/3/2009

Question
We have a savannah cat male that has been pooping on our couch pillows or on the carpet in the bathroom, or in piles of clothes.  He even pooped a couple of times in his own bed. We clean his litterbox daily.  We tried some of that spray to keep him off of the couch and pillows but that did not work. He acts really weird when he is going to do it by running around and acting weird-sort of skittish.We have had him for almost a year.  He was found roaming around and we adopted him from a vet.  He was very skinny but healthy when we got him.  He has since gained weight and looks good.  We are getting very frustrated with him but do not want to have to get rid of him as the kids really like him. Do you have any suggestion of what we can try to get him to stop.

Answer
Hi Ron.  His dashing about and skittish behavior just before he poops outside the box are actually consistent with a cat who’s in pain.  He could be having cramps, he may have polyps in his colon, or perhaps his stools are a little too hard or soft, or maybe his anal sacs are even giving him problems.  It would be best to start with a physical exam to see if there is anything notable.  Unfortunately, even when it’s very clear that defecation is painful for a cat, it can be difficult to figure out why.  But if you do come up with an answer, solving that problem might resolve the whole issue.

If his health seems fine, you may want to try some other styles of litter boxes as well as another litter.  My cats tend to prefer hooded litter boxes for defecating and uncovered ones for urinating, but they clearly like to use separate ones for each duty.

You also may want to try a special litter that’s created to encourage litter box usage in problem cats.  A vet formulated Cat Attract litter with an herbal attractant to guarantee 100% litter box usage, or your money back.  There is also a Cat Attract additive if you prefer to use your own litter, or you can’t find the litter at a retailer and need to have this item shipped (since the litter is too heavy to ship at a reasonable cost).  The additive must only be used with unscented clumping litter.  See www.preciouscat.com to find a retailer.  The additive can be purchased through various websites.

I see you mentioned you have used a spray on the couch.  Are you referring to a spray deterrent, or to a pheromone spray such as Feliway that is formulated to prevent the recurrence of accidents?  If you only used a deterrent that is supposed to keep cats off of certain areas, you might want to use a pheromone spray and/or diffuser, which won’t keep them away from the areas but is more likely to prevent them from using the area as a litter box.  I use Feliway plug-in diffusers in my own home, and you can also use the spray bottle directly on accidents areas.  See www.feliway.com to learn more about how it works.

The bottom line could potentially be that most Savannahs have some wild blood in them, and wild cats do not behave exactly like domestic cats do.  I have a second generation Savannah myself, and it’s amazing how much that wildness still stands out.  Savannahs with a high wild blood percentage sometimes urinate in their food and water and defecate in their bedding, etc.  If you find you must give up your Savannah, please try not to go the shelter route, as he will be euthanized because of his behavioral problem.  Please contact Savannah Rescue at http://www.svrescue.com/index.html

Best of luck!

Jessica