My cat has started peeing inside – now what?

Cats peeing outside the litterbox is usually a problem of great annoyance to you as the owner. Usually, the cat chooses places of inconvenience, e.g. the bed, the couch, the shower or your plant as its new preferred toilet. Peeing outside the litterbox can be a matter of territorial marking or another behavioural problem, but can also be caused by an underlying disease, for instance, diabetes, kidney problems or bladder infections/stones.

Another typical cause can be Feline Idiopathic Cystitis (FIC), which is a problem of the urinary tract often seen in cats. All cats can develop FIC, but neutralized, obese cats living only indoors are at a higher risk.

FIC is thought to be caused by a complex interaction between several systems in the body including the nervous system, urinary system and outer factors causing the cat to feel stressed. This complexity of causes makes this condition rather hard to treat. However, several things can be done.

First, it is important to get the cat checked out by a vet, to rule out any other causes of urinary problems. Once the diagnose FIC has been made the vet might recommend a diet change and possibly feed supplements to reduce the risk of stress and relieve the cats’ symptoms.

Once you have seen the vet there are also things you can do at home to minimize the feeling of stress. Make a second litterbox available to the cat, and make sure the litterboxes are not placed in the same room as where the cat eats. Give your cat its space, and if you have small children teach them to leave the cat alone when is goes to lie down. Trying to minimize stress at home will usually help relieve many of the symptoms and often also reduce the risk of recurrence, so try to keep that in mind, and give your cat the best possible life with FIC.

By Therese G. Hosbjerg, DVM and Technical manager at Bacterfield GMBH