# My cat keeps going to the bathroom on my bed whenever I leave town...



## AzaleaJaxx (May 9, 2012)

Hi there,
Two or three months ago my 3 year old kitty Jaxx came to live with me. I absolutely love him to pieces. I also have a 7 month old kitten, Azalea. He's a very good boy however, last month, I was out of town for a couple days, had a neighbor come in and feed and play with the kitties. I got home and Jaxx had gone to the bathroom in the basket full of my clothes and on my bed. It didn't smell like he had peed anywhere thankfully. I cleaned it up and wasn't sure what to do about it, there wasn't really much I could do. I just hoped it was a one time thing. Then, last week, I was gone for a week, and again had my neighbor come in and feed them, play with them and keep up on their litter box. I came home and I'm pretty sure he had pooped on my bed, but I think my neighbor cleaned it up because I could only see a tiny bit. He *definitely* peed on my bed. 

He *only* does this when I leave town. I'm not sure why? My neighbor is great with my cats and their litter box is always kept clean. The only thing I can think of is that he gets upset or anxious when I'm out of town because he isn't used to spending a large portion of the day alone without a human around. I'm not sure what to do about this problem... I can't have him doing that every time I leave town for a bit. What can I do about this? Obviously rehoming would *never* be an option, he's my boy now and he will always be but I'm really at a loss as to how to address this problem? Any advice??

Thank you!

PS: I should probably mention that he has long been neutered, so it's nothing like that.


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## Lunabuma (Dec 12, 2011)

Poor little mite is probably a bit stressed while you are away. You could plug in feliway diffusers to help keep him conent and this may help. 

I keep my two in one room when I go away. It feels a bit mean but it means that they can't get up to as much mischief.


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

It sounds as though Jaxx is feeling insecure and lonely when you are away. If you are normally home with them a lot, it is a big adjustment for them to make, to just a neighbour coming in twice a day to feed them and empty the litter tray. Jaxx's inappropriate toiletting is his way of telling you he is unhappy with you going away.

For a start I would suggest you don't allow your cats any access to your bedroom whilst you are away, nor leave any baskets of laundry around elsewhere in the house for them to use as a toilet.

If possible restrict the cats to areas where there are no soft furnishings whilst you are away, (e.g. hall, stairs, bathroom, kitchen ) so if they do toilet in the wrong place, it will not do a lot of damage and will be easy for the carer to clean up. You could always have some cosy beds for them in the kitchen -- but introduce these well before you next go away, so they are used to them. 

I don't know how many litter trays you have, but for 2 cats it should be 2 large litter trays, preferably 3. 

If you feel for some reason it is impractical to shut them out of the bedroom in your absence, then protect your bed whilst you are away by covering it completely with a waterproof sheet (such as a plastic mattress cover) and put an old sheet right over the top of the plastic, so the cats can still sleep on your bed if that is what they are used to doing. 

Do you have any other cat-loving neighbours or friends, (apart from the kind neighbour who feeds them) who you might be able to ask to go in your house for half an hour twice a day simply to give your cats some human companionship and make a fuss of them, or play with them? 

My neighbour, who goes away at regular intervals, has 3 of us going in to see her cats on a rota basis at different times every day in her absence, to cuddle the cats and play with them. The cats really benefit from this attention, and have been much more relaxed since she started this system a few years ago. So I highly recommend it.


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