Cat pissing everywhere, Please help

[Jacob Sweets]

Making my cat use the litter box has been a serious issue since he was a kitten. My first method was to lock him in a cage or small area with nothing but food, water and a litter box and not let him leave until he used it. This worked however I would have to relock him in the area after an hour or so to make sure he doesn't piss on anything else. Whenever I let him freely roam the house he happens to just keeping pissing on stuff. So I decided to physically discipline him for pissing anywhere but his litter box. I hit him on the nose or near the face whenever I saw some cat piss somewhere in the house and I force him to smell it (by forcing his face into the piss spot) I say in a manly voice "NO" then bring him up to his litter box and force him to stand in it for about 30 seconds. Many piss spots later it still hasn't worked. So then in addition to the previous I decided to also spray him with stuff then lock him in a small area with his litter box until he uses it.

I also feel like I'm hitting him too hard, I just get so angry when I see my brand new $300 dollar suit with a cat piss stain on it and I can't help myself but even with that I feel as if he should get the message and start pissing in his litter box more often. Could there be something wrong with the litter box or is my cat just retarded? Or am I doing something wrong here? Please help.

P.S this has been going on for about 2 months now and I got him when he was 2 months so I feel the cat is old enough to learn to stop pissing on random shit around the house.

[Evalonne]

Is he fixed? Males mark their territory when they aren't fixed.

Edit: Also, hitting a cat teaches them nothing. He'll start peeing on your stuff just because he'll develop a bad relationship with you. Might be time for a trip to a vet to fix the cat AND get advice on cat behavior. If you can't keep yourself from hitting an animal, that animal doesn't deserve you.

[Pickynerd]

He's not a dog, you ain't going to teach him like a dog. Get his balls cut off, or get a dog.. Having no pet is also an option.

[solvexx]

I can not fathom why someone would ever rub an animal's nose in urine, what were you hoping to achieve?
Would you ever rub a human baby's nose in their underwear when they have an accident? If you can not look after your animal correctly, do not have one.
All you are doing is teaching the animal to fear you, if it already has anxiety, you could potentially compounding the problem, and making it worse.

Shame on you.

A 4 month old kitten is a baby in human terms, they are considered kittens until well over 1 year.
If you are not in to for the long run, give the kitten to someone who is.

Seriously, I do not understand why people who do not understand animals, purchase one.

[Nemah]

Is he fixed? Males mark their territory when they aren't fixed.

That would be the first thing.

The second thing is you shouldn't hit your pet(s). Other than labeling yourself as a jackass, physical discipline doesn't really do much with cats. You aren't going to teach a cat in particular anything by hitting it or spraying it with stuff other than to be afraid of you and then do what it wants when you're not around.

The third thing is have you taken it to / talked to a vet? It could have an infection, or be sick, or any number of other things.

The fourth thing is the loss of a $300 suit isn't anything to be sad about.

[DarkTZeratul]

You were going about this in absolutely the wrong way in every possible respect.

First of all, do not hit your cat. Ever, period. I cannot stress that enough. If you can't agree to this, then you shouldn't have a cat.

Secondly, disciplining your cat for failing to use the litter box isn't going to help. The cat will have no idea why you're reprimanding him, and will be more inclined to pee somewhere hidden (like, say, that suit in your closet) to avoid a reprimand. Moreover, reprimanding your cat immediately before placing the litter box is going to create a negative association between the reprimand and the box, and will just enforce in the cat's mind that the box is the wrong place to go.

What you SHOULD do is pick up the cat and put him in the litter box after he eats or drinks, or after he plays, or after a nap, or pretty much any time you think he needs to go. When he does use the litter box, reward him for it. This will create a positive association with the litter box.

Remember, in general, when training any animal, positive reinforcement ALWAYS works better than negative reinforcement.

[Deleted]

I feel sorry for your cat. You can't just hit him after the fact and expect him to make the connection. Physical correction doesn't work on cats. In your mind, you're just hitting him for no reason so he's going to be scared of you and associate smacking with his litter box. All you're going to accomplish is making him find "hidden" spots to pee in that he hopes you'll never find. Hitting him in the face might also damage something, so I have no words to describe how retarded you'd have to be to inflict damage on a cat's nose (y'know, their most important tool).

By your account he's 4 months old (2months + the 2 you've had him) and it sounds like you don't know what you're doing. Give him to a shelter or somebody you know who already has cats so he doesn't live a life of being tortured by an idiot.

[solvexx]

You're essentially torturing your kitten.
If you don't know how to look after it, why did you get one?

Give it up to a shelter, at least then it won't be abused.

[Romanesca]

Here's an idea: don't ever have pets because you have no clue what you're doing.

[Bhanshee]

This is the first thing I see when coming to MMO-Champion...

I'm sorry but I just pissed myself laughing. Please don't rub my face in it. =/

I know it wasn't your intention, but this was just the funniest thing I've read in a while. Coming to a massively multiplayer online gaming site and seeing the title "Cat pissing everywhere - please help." really struck my funny bone. I'm sorry, can't ... breathe ... tears ...

Yes I know I'm weird.

[Isnot]

You shouldn't beat the poor thing , maybe its best to find him a new home. Pets aren't prefect.

[Deleted]

First you cannot teach a cat like you would a dog (the nose in piss thing).

Usually when a cat does not use its litter, it's because he does not like it ie. not clean enough or not in the right place. Or he's angry or sick.

What you can do is pour a few drops of bleach (not much don't go poisonning it) inside the litter, or bury a small piece of paper coat in bleach, cats "love" the odor and since they piss where they previously piss, hopefully it will do it in the litter.
Of course if you use bleach for cleaning inside the house, the problem is obvious.

[Eleventyten]

Christ almighty you shouldn't be physically hurting the cat - he could very well be doing it in protest at this point. They tend to piss all over your stuff if you're treating them badly. Overall it sounds like you don't really know what you're doing. Get the cat fixed or at least looked at by the Vet. Saving that, give it to someone who will take better care of it.

Also, why would you leave your expensive suit in a place the cat can piss all over it, hang the darn thing up man.

[Endus]

Cats don't have "accidents" unless they're seriously sick. And they're born know how to use a litter box. He clearly doesn't like the litterbox arrangement you have. He may not like the litter. He may not like the box itself, or its location. One cat I owned hated any box with one of those covers on it; he wouldn't use it, but take the cover off, and he had no more problems.

Also, if you make your relationship antagonistic, as you're doing with the hitting, he's going to keep pissing on things out of fear and anger. So you're making things worse, not better.

Never hit the cat. It isn't going to help. There's a problem with the litterbox, and rather than solve it, you're hitting the animal.

[MiLLeR]

Find a good home for the cat and get yourself a goldfish.

[Kowloon]

I have two cats. If your cat is having problems with urination there are several things you can do to help it. First, do not physically harm the animal nor try to discipline it as you have stated. It's a cat. It will NOT understand it's doing something wrong. It just won't. You need to be smarter than the animal, not physically stronger.

What you need to do is leave the cat alone in a room for it to piss in. Keep it in the bathroom with a liter box, food, water. Check on it, if it's urinated, let it roam free. If the cat begins to pee, grab it gently and place it in the liter box in the room. Some feral cats are not liter trained. This might mean that you have to keep the cat in the room for several days without letting him out. Just check on him several times a day to make sure he is eating, drinking water, and doing normal bowel movements in the litter box. The cat may be having an issue with establishing territory as well. Get the cat fixed if you haven't already. If it's a male cat, even after you fix them, they will 'fake' spray things just because it's something that cats do. My one male cat does this still though nothing comes out it is pretty funny to watch him gyrate his booty

On items that you do not want the cat to go near, use a spray bottle with water to squirt water on it or get a citrus-based product that will keep that smell in the area. One thing I know for certain is that most cats do not like water and do not like citrus.

[manypillars]

So I decided to physically discipline him for pissing anywhere but his litter box. I hit him on the nose or near the face whenever I saw some cat piss somewhere in the house and I force him to smell it (by forcing his face into the piss spot) I say in a manly voice "NO" then bring him up to his litter box and force him to stand in it for about 30 seconds. Many piss spots later it still hasn't worked. So then in addition to the previous I decided to also spray him with stuff then lock him in a small area with his litter box until he uses it.

Stop doing that. As you've found out it doesn't work and it will never work, ever for any cat you might own now or in the future. It will not even work if you do it seconds after it does the deed. The cat does not understand what you want because it cannot understand what you want. It only learns that you are a scary, untrustworthy creature that freaks out and attacks it. All you're doing is making the issue worse by creating a scared, insecure cat.

Talk to your vet about retraining your cat or have it rehomed.

And keep your closet doors shut and your bags and shoes off the floor while you're retraining it.

[Deleted]

Find a good home for the cat and get yourself a goldfish.

I don't think he should be responsible for any animal's well-being. What if he starts depriving the fish of water to punish it for pooping?

[Lucetia]

Is he fixed? Males mark their territory when they aren't fixed.

Edit: Also, hitting a cat teaches them nothing. He'll start peeing on your stuff just because he'll develop a bad relationship with you. Might be time for a trip to a vet to fix the cat AND get advice on cat behavior. If you can't keep yourself from hitting an animal, that animal doesn't deserve you.

He's not a dog, you ain't going to teach him like a dog. Get his balls cut off, or get a dog.. Having no pet is also an option.

Doing that does not solve the problem at all. We had cats that did the same thing and knew of friends as well. They were all fixed when they 6-8 months old and they still did it. Not sure why I keep seeing that as a solution (not only here, but in other places), but it doesn't really fix the issue. They still spray to mark territory and they still piss as well.

If it's a male cat, even after you fix them, they will 'fake' spray things just because it's something that cats do. My one male cat does this still though nothing comes out it is pretty funny to watch him gyrate his booty

Be careful as they still do spray and not just fake spray. You can tell by seeing the stream shoot out and the smell. I wish it was fake spray, but it isn't and yes it is definitely fixed as all our male cats are. Females aren't, but they just make noises every month. I can't bring myself to take them in as the whole thought of being cut open and things being maneuvered just creeps me out (and yes this is one reason why I won't do an operaton) just too many things I can feel go wrong. Though I am coming around on it for their health, but still.

So I decided to physically discipline him for pissing anywhere but his litter box. I hit him on the nose or near the face whenever I saw some cat piss somewhere in the house and I force him to smell it (by forcing his face into the piss spot) I say in a manly voice "NO" then bring him up to his litter box and force him to stand in it for about 30 seconds. Many piss spots later it still hasn't worked. So then in addition to the previous I decided to also spray him with stuff then lock him in a small area with his litter box until he uses it.

Omg, nothing irritates me off more than this right here. I had a roomate who did that stuff and would always get mad when I went to console the poor guy after he did that. I refused to speak to them for days because they thought it was alright and made them understand.

[Belloc]

Cats don't have "accidents" unless they're seriously sick. And they're born know how to use a litter box. He clearly doesn't like the litterbox arrangement you have. He may not like the litter. He may not like the box itself, or its location. One cat I owned hated any box with one of those covers on it; he wouldn't use it, but take the cover off, and he had no more problems.

Also, if you make your relationship antagonistic, as you're doing with the hitting, he's going to keep pissing on things out of fear and anger. So you're making things worse, not better.

Never hit the cat. It isn't going to help. There's a problem with the litterbox, and rather than solve it, you're hitting the animal.

I was under the impression that cats aren't born knowing how to use the litter box but that, instead, their mothers teach it to them if they, themselves, know how to use a litter box.