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Expert: - 4/26/2009


Question
my cat is 10 yrs old. she eats purina cat chow. i has recently started having accidents outside the litterbox. otherwise she uses the box under regular circumstances. should i be worried or is it just age.

Answer
Lindsey,

There are two general causes to litter box problems: Medical or Behavioral. At age 10, I would treat her as a geriatric cat.  Is she just pooping outside the box or doing both outside the box?  Is it right near the box or well away? How long has she been doing this?

In the medical case, it could be something as simple as intestinal parasites or impacted anal glands. A visit to the vet may be warranted to check her out.

In the case of behavioral, these are harder to nail down.  It may be that something has changed.  Is there a new addition to the household (2 legged or 4 legged)?  Did the brand or type of litter change?  You may have to do some detective work to discover the cause.

Here is a link to a series of excellent articles on feline litter box problems that might have further suggestions:

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

Meanwhile, you will need to clean any mess with an enzyme based cleaner specifically for pet stains and pet odors, available from most pet supermarkets or farm stores.

You may also try getting some Cat Attract (also available from most pet supermarkets) to put in the litter to see if she will use the litter pan more often.

Best regards... Norm.  

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Norman Auspitz

Expertise

I can answer most non-veterinary questions about cats. My particular expertise is pedigree cats, breeding and showing. However, I am versed in feline behavior, cat breeds and their characteristics, general feline husbandry, and the like.

Experience

I judged for the Canadian Cat Association from 1975 until 1982. I am currently an approved allbreed judge for the Cat Fanciers'' Association (the world''s largets cat registry), and have been judging for them since 1991. I have been breeding pedigreed cats since 1971 and have been exhibiting pedigreed cats in shows since 1970. I obtained my first pedigreed cat in 1970 and have never looked back. In 1971, I obtained my first Abyssinian which has become my primary breed. In addition, I have bred Manx and Persians. Currently, besides the Abyssinians, I am also breeding Maine Coons.


Organizations
Cat Fanciers'' Association, inc. (CFA) and the Manx, Maine Coon, and Abyssinian breed councils. I am currently Abyssinian breed council secretary.

Publications
Cat Fancy Magazine, The Abyssinian Chapter in The Cat Fanciers'' Association Complete Cat Book, and Articles for various editions of The Cat Fanciers'' Association Yearbook

Education/Credentials
I received a B.S. from Drexel University in 1968, a M.Math from University of Waterloo, in 1970, a Ph.D. from University of Waterloo in 1975, and a MBA from McMaster University in 1980. I received my approved allbreed judging status in the Cat Fanciers'' Association in 1999.

Awards and Honors
We have produced a number of Cat Fanciers'' Association (CFA) National winning Abyssinian and Maine Coons. We have produced a number of Abyssinian and Maine Coon Distinguished Merit females (an award for a top producing cat), including the first Distinguished Merit Abyssinian in the red (sorrel) color. I am the CFA Abyssinian breed council secretary and belong and/or hold office in a number of cat clubs. I am also a member of the CFA Judges Association.

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