# Cat or Cats suddenly peeing in hallway?



## Littlemisstwinkle (Jul 30, 2015)

Hi all
I have 2 cats, Oscar who is male 11yrs and Elmo female 10yrs. We've had them since Oscar was 1 and Elmo 6mths. They are not related but we're bought into the rescue place together so we thought we would rehome them together. They are both outdoor cats and only had litter trays at the beginning and when we moved house in 2008. In the last 2 months we have noticed peeing in the house, only in the kitchen on the floor (not in their beds) and in the hallway, sometimes in the mat, up the skirting board or just a puddle. It has increased recently. We went away Friday-Monday, a neighbour came in and fed them. We came home and I noticed a Dried sticky pool under a unit in the kitchen. Then Tuesday morning I came down and one of them had peed on my Dyson left in the kitchen overnight. Again a puddle in the hall last night about 7.45pm and again in the hall this morning, a puddle near and on their scratch post. They both get fed at the same time in the morning and again at night, I don't leave food down but they know that and clear their bowls. Been to vet to check for uti, nothing, sprinkling powder on on both bowls now called Cystease Advanced for 28 days. Going away again for 10 days at the end of August, neighbour feeding again, worried that I will have to keep them in the kitchen the whole time. All downstairs has floor tiles so easy to clean and they have a cat flap. Oscar is my baby and I hate to do this but we really have no idea which cat it is?? Any help gratefully received. We had new carpet on both sets of stairs and landing in May due to their scratching. I'll go mad if they pee on that. Should I try Feliway?? HELP


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

Hi there and welcome to Pet Forums 

First of all, are you providing cat litter trays indoors for your cats? If so, how many? At least 2 trays for outdoor cats would be advisable.

Sometimes as cats get older, [into their 'middle age' as yours are], they start preferring to have litter trays indoors, even though they have access to outdoors through a cat flap. They may start to feel a bit vulnerable toiletting outdoors, (maybe there are other cats around) or simply don't want to go outside for the loo when it's raining, cold or windy.

I am assuming the cat flap is a microchip one so there is no chance of a strange cat getting in your house and spraying, or causing your cats to scent-mark with urine in response to the invasion of their territory.

Whatever the reason for the soiling it is advisable to provide litter trays now for your two, as a backup, even if they are rarely used. If you use a good quality litter such as Oko Plus and scoop the soiled bits every day, no reason for the trays to smell. You may need to start off with open trays and can perhaps have hooded trays later on. (Though please take the flaps off any hooded trays, as it is not good for cats to be completely shut in and inhaling litter dust)

Having trays indoors gives you a valuable opportunity to monitor your cats' toilet habits, which is very useful as they get older, operating as an early warning system on their health.

Possibly one of your cats peed in the hall one day when he/she didn't want to go outdoors to toilet for whatever reason, and then it became a habit. Perhaps the other cat then copied (as cats do!) and also peed in the hall.

It's important to use an enzyme based cleaner to clean up urine or the cat will keep going back to the same spot to pee, or nearby. Use Simple Solution or Urine Off, but my favourite is to make
a solution of water and Bio Tex laundry stain remover (sold by supermarkets), which is enzyme based. It is the most effective cleaner I've ever used for cleaning up cat pee. You may need to throw out any soiled mats, unless they are machine washable. Soiled carpet needs rolling back so the underlay and floor can be cleaned well. Sometimes a section of underlay may need removing and replacing.

I hate to be a kill-joy but I do fear for your new carpets! If it were me I would not be replacing carpets whilst there is a house soiling issue. New carpets have a particular chemical smell that often attracts cats to scent-mark them with urine! Sorry  Also by scratching your old carpets your cats had put their scent marks all over them, to mark the home as their territory, and now the old carpets are gone the chances are the cats will want to scent-mark the new carpets at least by scratching, if nothing else. Have you provided lots of alternative scratchers for the cats all over the house and spent some time training the cats to use them instead of your carpets?

It could be that one of the cats has cystitis, perhaps stress related. Have there been any changes or upheavals lately in the home? House guests, work being done, etc? If so it may be the cause. The Cystease supplement is a good idea.

Also, very important, feed your cats a wet food diet only. No cat who has bladder problems (which includes soiling) should be on dry food. There is the risk the cat is not getting enough moisture in their diet (in spite of drinking water) which can lead to bladder and kidney problems.
Cats are designed by nature to get their fluids in their food (prey).

A wet food diet will ensure the cats' urine is more dilute, encouraging them to pee more often, so there is less chance of grit or sludge in the bladder developing to cause irritation, and less chance of a cat starting to soil around the house.

Finally, when you are cleaning, I advise covering all possibilities by also cleaning the outside of your front door and the step, just in case your cats are responding to a strange cat scent-marking your door with urine. It can sometimes be the case when cats soil near an outer door they are scent-marking in response to a challenge to their territory.

Please let us know how things go, thanks


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## Littlemisstwinkle (Jul 30, 2015)

Thanks so much for your really helpful & informative reply. I will endeavour to try your suggestions ASAP


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