Monday, February 23, 2009

The Trouble With Silvio

We are having some more trouble with Silvio. Saturday before last, he peed on the bed while we were in it. That little stunt earned him a visit to the vet last Monday. There was some blood in his urine, but no pus or crystals and he didn't have a fever. They put him on antibiotics. He's been on them for a week. This morning, he was downstairs meowling in protest of the empty food dish. When I didn't jump right up and fill it, he came upstairs and peed right next to my night stand. Needless to say, this is not how I want to start my day, and I am not sure I will be able to get the smell out of the leg of the nightstand, which is an antique with sentimental value to me. The wood is dry and it sucked that urine right up into the fibers. I applied an enzyme formula cleaner to it about half a dozen times and I can still smell the unmistakable odor of cat pee. I don't know what else to do to fix it. NOT HAPPY!

The problem with this type of behavior is that in light of his background of having major urinary issues, I am never certain of the cause when he does some extra-curricular peeing. Today's case was pretty clear - he was sending a message - but what happened last weekend when he peed in the bed? Was he upset about something, or does it hurt when he pees and now he associates the litter box with painful urination? I've noticed that he almost always has a quick licking session after he goes to the box. I think that there might be some irritation. I really hope that we are not heading down the road of having constant inappropriate peeing in the house. We would be forced to turn him into an outside cat, and I don't want to do that.

Any of you cat people care to chime in? Any thoughts?

17 comments:

Natalie said...

We have problems of our own with one of our boys. Not peeing, but biting. Cat behavior and subsequent discipline is so tricky. Is it a lot of pee? Maybe if he has some discomfort he holds it too long and can't get to the box in time. If he associates the litter box with discomfort, you could try cleaning it, disinfecting and it and putting a new brand of litter in to try to "start over" with his associations. Those are my two cents although this seems really complicated - like a mixture of physical and psychological distress. I'll be curious to see what you end up doing and if it works.

LL said...

Can I weigh in? Please???

NYPinTA said...

Ignore LL.
That just stinks. (No pun intended.) My vet told me about this cat pheremone stuff that is supposed to relieve stress in cats and maybe getting some of that would help- if it is a behavior type thing because he associates the box with pain. He might just have to be sort of reprogrammed not to associate the too and the stress relieving stuff might help.
If that makes any sense. (Also, to be extra helpful, I can't remember the name of the pheremone stuff. But they sell it at Petsmart and Petco. It's not a perscription.)

Jenn said...

OK try this - murphy's oil soap on the table (and while your at it.. do the whole starved thing) then use an old english oil to nurish the wood.

Next disassociate the box with pain. Get a new box different color, put it on a vynal table cloth (like you'd put out at a kids' b0day party you can get them at the dollar store for a buck) put that under the new liter box and fill the box with playground sand. Walmarts fifty pound bag around six bucks.

Good luck!

fermicat said...

Natalie - I may try changing the type of litter and see what happens. We are cleaning the boxes very often and that hasn't made much difference.

LL - No.

NYPinTA - I think I've seen that stuff at Petsmart. Maybe I will give it a shot.

fermicat said...

Red - Hmmm. Murphy's might help. It certainly won't hurt! I've had the litter box a long time. I could try switching it out for a new 'un.

dr sardonicus said...

Hate to be a downer, but I think that Silvio is still having issues with painful urination, and will continue to have them for the rest of his life.

Natalie said...

The stuff NYPinTA mentioned is called Feli-way (sp?). Getting a new box altogether might help eliminate the old smell which is the strongest association for them. I sure hope Dr. S is wrong - I wonder if this is common for kitties post surgery and if there is any longer term anti-inflammatory that can help with the discomfort.

fermicat said...

dr s - that would not surprise me.

Natalie - I did some Google research and am going to switch to a different cat food, change box/litter, and try feliway where he has had extra-curricular activity. I might also get a blacklight so I can find any other urine spots and neutralize them. The special cat food and litter are more expensive, but better than dealing with what can happen otherwise. Silvio is lucky I have a good (and relatively safe) job in healthcare!

Jenn said...

science diet used to make a cat food that was low in sodium and for problems associated with UT, Emerson had to have the stuff. That and Cantalope. Don't ask.

BC said...

Good luck with all that. I feel bad for both of you.

My cat doesnt have a problem with peeing, she just likes to tear up the carpet in one area. Ive even tried a scratching post over the spot but she just knocks it away. Ive recently replaced the carpet in that area too and shes still at it. The sprays dont work.

Also my dog has an issue with the litter box. My cat is particular about it being cleaned as soon as she uses it and she lets me know when she did. But the dog is constantly digging in it like its a snack wagon. Ive read where dogs do this but its just gross.

tiff said...

You have my sympathies...is a cat in the neighborhood in heat, perhaps?

ShelliG said...

black lights are cool anyway

TheWriteGirl said...

I know this is human thinking, not cat thinking, but I can't help feeling that cats knowingly take advantage of situations like this. It's like they know we're going to give them the benefit of the doubt because of past "medical issues." Yes, they were real issues, but it's like they know it gives them license to act out. I love cats in every way possible, but this...this is the one thing that really pisses me off.

fakies said...

If you find a solution to the smell, let me know. I bought SCOE10X off the internet cuz it was supposed to be miraculous, and it didn't do any good. My cat went directly back to the same spot and peed again. My basement now smells like an animal toilet.

Kathleen said...

White vinegar.

When Zapata was going through her peeing issues (lasted four years - I was ready to shoot myself), I got really good at getting pee out of washable items - Febreze the crap out of the stain, then stain remover on top of that (Shout, Spray 'n Wash, or whichever you prefer), wash as you normally would, but add a cup of vinegar to the cycle (right at the beginning). I can only hope that the nightstand leg is still thirsty and sucks up the vinegar as well.

Kathleen said...

I never had much luck with the supposed Nature's Way Enzyme crap.

Oh, and not to be a downer, but just in case you were going to ask...I finally couldn't take it anymore and had Zapata put to sleep. Broke my freaking heart, but I just couldn't deal with it anymore. And neither could my friends, she'd pee in their suitcase when they'd visit.