Refuses litter box

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Morgan Williams

Morgan Williams

Member Since 2020
Arizona has refused her litter box for awhile now. I had her using it mostly , but she stopped. Turns out her body started adjusting to the insulin and her sugar was a little on the lower side. Not dangerous, but left unchecked it get there. The vet went down a unit and she feels great. She still refuses the box. She wants to pee in the floor or stove and poop on the counter. She is completely cleared of any medical reasons why she's doing this and the vet is at a loss. Any help ?
 
When my girl was first diagnosed, she occasionally did this & no medical reason. I switched to Dr. Elseys cat attracts litter, advised by someone here. It did the trick! I purchased a new larger litter box at the same time & filled it fresh. I don’t know if it will work for you but I was sold! Good luck to you
 
Sorry I'm late getting back after posting. It's been a crazy few days. I had 4 pans for two cats. I have my other cat's two boxes where he prefers them, but he'll use any box as long as it has litter. She has her two boxes in the kitchen where she seems to try to go to the most and his two are in the dinning room where she also tries to go right beside the back door next to the air vent so the dogs have a chance if stepping in it on their way in and out. She's peed in the vent before a couple times now! I have used so many litters for her. I've even tried sand, news paper, dirt, litter, and then a couple combinations on each. Yesterday I got her a really deep box and filled it with her favorite litter. I think she may have pooped in it, but it could've been the other cat. I'm thinking it was her, but the fact that it was covered makes me think it was the other cat. I just caught her trying to poop on the counter 10 minutes ago. I tried to set her in the new box, favorite litter and an attractant added in, and she growled at me (normal) and took off running. I found her in the bathroom trying to poop in a hard to reach spot so I pulled her out. it was a huge ordeal which lead to pooping as she ran and leaving a trail to clean up plus the bit on the counter. I'm at my wits end. I can't keep a clean house because of her. I will clean my counters and try to block them off with everything known to deter cats and boom, she's up there anyway making them coated in something I have no clue what it is. It's like a brown film that eventually covers wherever she sits. Eventually she tries to poop on the counter and pee on the stove. The vet has no more solutions to try and told us to accept she's a difficult cat. She shows no pain while relieving herself so I can't see any medical reason . I was using pads on the floor because she'd pee on them every time, but she pees so much it just runs off and under the pads. I have different litters for each cat so she has options. If I notice she's going into same spot over and over again I'll place a box over the spot. She will still go beside the box. I had a small hiccup in finding her litter when the pandemic started and it's like since then she will have nothing to do with the box. I've since found her litter and she still wants nothing to do with it. I'm honestly so tired of this. I'm supposed to be working towards buying a house with my partner within the year and I can't expect him to still be willing to do it with her being like this. He is very understanding, but I can't ask him to move in a house that can have pee and poo around any corner. I thinking maybe the other cat stresses her to the point of maybe being scared of the box? Anytime she's near the boxes I give her her favorite treats to do positive reinforcement, but she's still running from the box. I'm so stressed out over this I'm in tears tonight .
 
Wow it seems you have tried everything! Could you confine her to one room for awhile? Maybe some time away from the other cat and dogs will help calm her if it’s nerves. If you try that, be sure to spend time with her though. Here is a site that may have some other ideas
http://www.thehappylitterbox.com/category/cat-pooping-outside-litterbox/

Morgan Williams said:
I will clean my counters and try to block them off with everything known to deter cats and boom, she's up there anyway making them coated in something I have no clue what it is. It's like a brown film that eventually covers wherever she sits.
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This is odd. Can you get a picture?
 
A brown film? I wonder if her anal glands need expressing? maybe a UTI in the making? Shes equating that litter box with something...pain?
 
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jt and trouble (GA) said:
A brown film? I wonder if her anal glands need expressing? nay a UTI in the making? She equating that litter box with something...pain?
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You might be right, just googled and found this

Anal gland discharge – there are two anal glands located on each side of the rectum. ... On a tissue – this discharge can be yellow to brown and has a very foul odor. A couple articles that might be helpful to you are Vaginitis in cats, Feline Urinary Tract Disease, Diarrhea in Cats and Anal Glands in Cats.Mar 2, 2015
 
This is the best picture I could get of it. If it is her anal glands, maybe that is why she scoots her butt after each poop. Its like the poop wants to stick to her. She's been wormed. Her vet has no idea why she scoots. She's never been the best at grooming and when she got sick she stopped grooming herself all together. The film like stuff is never wet that I can see. she's always had a little bit of it, but not like this.

She shows no pain when. She does use the box. I saw her pee in it a couple weeks ago. I made sure no one went in there and I didn't make a sound. As soon as she stepped out I praised her and gave her favorite treats. During her time at the vet, I'm not sure if it was being in a smaller cage, but she used the box with the occasional accident on the towels. They offered litter some days and paper on others. I've been considering cleaning out my spare room for her to stay in during the day and letting her come out while I'm home. I've also tried aroma therapy! Forgot to add that. Her vet suggested it to see if it was her stress levels making her not use the box. For the first two weeks back home she stayed in the spare room with the door closed to give her time to recover, aroma therapy seemed to help for a week or so, but it didn't after that. I've seen a collar that is supposed to be calming for cats who wear it ? Has anyone tried that ?
Also, has anyone used Scoon litter or the pine needle pellet litter? It's the next step is she's decided to hate her litter.
 

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I'll have to read up on that ! It was feliway that I used before. I used two of the bottles before I gave up. I let her play in catnip whenever she seems interested in the catnip play areas in the house. I'm going in search a live catnip plant tomorrow to see if that helps more.


As far as I know her claws are fine. She never messes with her feet. Just occasionally cleans them. She'll let me mess with them, but is annoyed I'm messing with her. I have one box filled with a lot of litter and then the other two with lower levels to see if that helped. It didn't. Today I came home to a poop and pee on the counter and then it looks like she had a small throw up from eating a plant. I try to keep them out fo her reach and have almost all on my porch, but I have one on the counter she had eaten down to the soil. I guess she got the one leaf that popped up this week. She's fine and feeling good so I know it didn't make her actually sick.
 
Morgan Williams said:
I'll have to read up on that ! It was feliway that I used before. I used two of the bottles before I gave up. I let her play in catnip whenever she seems interested in the catnip play areas in the house. I'm going in search a live catnip plant tomorrow to see if that helps more.


As far as I know her claws are fine. She never messes with her feet. Just occasionally cleans them. She'll let me mess with them, but is annoyed I'm messing with her. I have one box filled with a lot of litter and then the other two with lower levels to see if that helped. It didn't. Today I came home to a poop and pee on the counter and then it looks like she had a small throw up from eating a plant. I try to keep them out fo her reach and have almost all on my porch, but I have one on the counter she had eaten down to the soil. I guess she got the one leaf that popped up this week. She's fine and feeling good so I know it didn't make her actually sick.
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Well the claws was a last ditch idea. I learned about litter level from a member here finding out his "out of the box" kitty preferred a very shallow amount of litter. That took care of his problem. I had hoped there would be more usable ideas for you. :(
 
I'm going to read up on it tonight ! This week has been insanely busy with a broken down car. I have spoken to her vet tech over the phone. She has an appointment for a sugar test coming up and I asked them to make sure to look at her anal glands. Looking at that seems like it is a HUGE possibility after reading some about it, but I'm going to clean out the spare room for her to be in when I'm not home
 
Try Feliway diffusers. I have one who rarely pees in a box. Fortunately we found a compromise and she will pee on puppy pads outside the box. If there are stray cats around the area that could trigger a response of wanting to mark territory.
 
JanetNJ, that is what I've used before. She isn't marking territory. She's been fixed for years now and has never done anything like that except her first and only time going into heat. She just hates the box? Last weekend I cleared out my spare room and yesterday I finished up mopping and moving the bigger storage items in the corner. I let her in there when the floors were dry and she was very happy. She peed in the box, but has pooped outside of the box twice since 3 p.m yesterday, but I haven't found any pee outside the box. I'm letting her hang out in the spare room now with her dinner and she has calmed down. She just walked around meowing. She honestly could've wanted out ir just liked how she sounded since it echos some. She had an appointment Friday for a sugar check and I asked them to check her anal glands while she's there. My mother will be taking her since I work.
 
Morgan Williams said:
I'll have to read up on that ! It was feliway that I used before. I used two of the bottles before I gave up. I let her play in catnip whenever she seems interested in the catnip play areas in the house. I'm going in search a live catnip plant tomorrow to see if that helps more.


As far as I know her claws are fine. She never messes with her feet. Just occasionally cleans them. She'll let me mess with them, but is annoyed I'm messing with her. I have one box filled with a lot of litter and then the other two with lower levels to see if that helped. It didn't. Today I came home to a poop and pee on the counter and then it looks like she had a small throw up from eating a plant. I try to keep them out fo her reach and have almost all on my porch, but I have one on the counter she had eaten down to the soil. I guess she got the one leaf that popped up this week. She's fine and feeling good so I know it didn't make her actually sick.
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I have not found feliway sprays as effective as the diffusers. I have three diffusers in my house and can always tell when one has run out.

Do you have a spreadsheet of numbers you could share? Would you like help setting one up?
 
JanetJT, It is the diffusers I've used with her. I went through two bottles worth and wasn't seeing any difference in her behavior. I am considering trying them again for her. I've also seen some Calming collars at Walmart? I'm not sure how well it works.

Judy and Freckles, she was just lowered to 10 units twice a day now. Her vet told me because of the weird situation of how she became diabetic that she'll be this dose with small fluctuations as her body adjusts . On a previous post I did, someone else had commented a high dose was normal for her situation , too. We haven't tested for anything else because I've based all I know off of what the vet has informed me. This site is the only place I am anke to get real information and suggestions from people who experience diabetic cats.


I did want to update everyone, yesterday Arizona spent my work hours in the spare room set up for her. She was calm most of the day. I have a doggie camera I set up to keep an eye on her and throw treats when she got rowdy. I only saw twice she scratched at the door, BUT SHE USED THE LITTER BOX 4 TIMES with no known accidents outside the box. She still has her appointment Friday and I have asked them to check her anal glands just in case. I'm hoping for an equally successful day for her today.
 
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She's been laying in a box in the window almost all day. I think she's now in the catnip box under the camera ! I don't see any evidence of accidents so far ! If this proves to work for her, it's a good thing my partner and I have already discussed making sure she has her own room when we buy a house haha
 
Morgan Williams said:
Sorry I'm late getting back after posting. It's been a crazy few days. I had 4 pans for two cats. I have my other cat's two boxes where he prefers them, but he'll use any box as long as it has litter. She has her two boxes in the kitchen where she seems to try to go to the most and his two are in the dinning room where she also tries to go right beside the back door next to the air vent so the dogs have a chance if stepping in it on their way in and out. She's peed in the vent before a couple times now! I have used so many litters for her. I've even tried sand, news paper, dirt, litter, and then a couple combinations on each. Yesterday I got her a really deep box and filled it with her favorite litter. I think she may have pooped in it, but it could've been the other cat. I'm thinking it was her, but the fact that it was covered makes me think it was the other cat. I just caught her trying to poop on the counter 10 minutes ago. I tried to set her in the new box, favorite litter and an attractant added in, and she growled at me (normal) and took off running. I found her in the bathroom trying to poop in a hard to reach spot so I pulled her out. it was a huge ordeal which lead to pooping as she ran and leaving a trail to clean up plus the bit on the counter. I'm at my wits end. I can't keep a clean house because of her. I will clean my counters and try to block them off with everything known to deter cats and boom, she's up there anyway making them coated in something I have no clue what it is. It's like a brown film that eventually covers wherever she sits. Eventually she tries to poop on the counter and pee on the stove. The vet has no more solutions to try and told us to accept she's a difficult cat. She shows no pain while relieving herself so I can't see any medical reason . I was using pads on the floor because she'd pee on them every time, but she pees so much it just runs off and under the pads. I have different litters for each cat so she has options. If I notice she's going into same spot over and over again I'll place a box over the spot. She will still go beside the box. I had a small hiccup in finding her litter when the pandemic started and it's like since then she will have nothing to do with the box. I've since found her litter and she still wants nothing to do with it. I'm honestly so tired of this. I'm supposed to be working towards buying a house with my partner within the year and I can't expect him to still be willing to do it with her being like this. He is very understanding, but I can't ask him to move in a house that can have pee and poo around any corner. I thinking maybe the other cat stresses her to the point of maybe being scared of the box? Anytime she's near the boxes I give her her favorite treats to do positive reinforcement, but she's still running from the box. I'm so stressed out over this I'm in tears tonight .
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Morgan, I'm so sorry you and she are going through this. It is so hard and you wish they could just "use their words" to tell you what is wrong. I have 2 thoughts, 1 is anal glands. My diabetes cat (also has thyroid issues) has sometimes had to have her anal glands expressed. Taking her to the vet to do this will be the best $35 you ever spend. It's basically impossible for me to do myself, and if you do it wrong you can really hurt them. If you rear hurts and you associate the toilet with the pain, you might try to go elsewhere too!

The other thought is medication. Years ago I had a cat that drove me mad because we could find no reason for her to urinate on the bed, but she would at really random times. Sometimes 6 months, no issue. Other times, 3 times a week. Once ON ME WHILE I SLEPT! What a way to wake up. We put her on a small dose of amitriptyline and that solved the issue.

BEST!
 
She seems to still be doing well today. Just napping away. I plan to set up a bird feeder outside the window so she can watch them throughout the day. It is her favorite hobby besides eating.

Renee, she has an appointment this Friday for a sugar check and I asked them to check her anal glands. Someone suggested it here and it makes sense. Thankfully when she refuses the box she seems to go in the same spots outside if the box each time. It is mostly right beside the box. She hadshad a history of thinking she's in the box and her butt hanging out, but I mostly think she's using those spots on purpose. What is amitriptyline and what is it for ?
 
Morgan Williams said:
She seems to still be doing well today. Just napping away. I plan to set up a bird feeder outside the window so she can watch them throughout the day. It is her favorite hobby besides eating.

Renee, she has an appointment this Friday for a sugar check and I asked them to check her anal glands. Someone suggested it here and it makes sense. Thankfully when she refuses the box she seems to go in the same spots outside if the box each time. It is mostly right beside the box. She hadshad a history of thinking she's in the box and her butt hanging out, but I mostly think she's using those spots on purpose. What is amitriptyline and what is it for ?
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Maybe put puppy pads in those spots
 
I wanted to give everyone a happy update: today she went for her sugar check and they brought her dose down to 8U twice a day from the 10U twice a day they moved her down to a couple weeks ago. Oddly enough her sugar was lower than it was last time at 39 today she's been acting perfect so I'm glad we kept this appointment. They expressed her anal glands and said they nornally only see overweight cats have issues with their anal glands. It was like a slush coming out on both sides. They will check it with her sugar checks now to make sure it doesn't get impacted like that again. We are thinking because she was down to 3.15 lbs when all this began with the blood parasite last year, then when she started in insulin in December it caused her to gain weight quickly so it may have affected her anal glands like she was obese? Not entirely sure.
NOW FOR THE BEST NEWS. As of Sunday to currently, she's only had one known accident outside of the box. I had car troubles yesterday so I took off and didn't feel the need to out her in her room while home and she pooped in the kitchen floor. I am calling this week a win because she's never gone this long without something. She's been as happy as can be. I use her room as a calm relaxed place for her and never shove her in for being bad. I think this has made her love her little area and she enjoys spending time in there when I'm home and the door open.
 
Morgan Williams said:
I wanted to give everyone a happy update: today she went for her sugar check and they brought her dose down to 8U twice a day from the 10U twice a day they moved her down to a couple weeks ago. Oddly enough her sugar was lower than it was last time at 39 today she's been acting perfect so I'm glad we kept this appointment. They expressed her anal glands and said they nornally only see overweight cats have issues with their anal glands. It was like a slush coming out on both sides. They will check it with her sugar checks now to make sure it doesn't get impacted like that again. We are thinking because she was down to 3.15 lbs when all this began with the blood parasite last year, then when she started in insulin in December it caused her to gain weight quickly so it may have affected her anal glands like she was obese? Not entirely sure.
NOW FOR THE BEST NEWS. As of Sunday to currently, she's only had one known accident outside of the box. I had car troubles yesterday so I took off and didn't feel the need to out her in her room while home and she pooped in the kitchen floor. I am calling this week a win because she's never gone this long without something. She's been as happy as can be. I use her room as a calm relaxed place for her and never shove her in for being bad. I think this has made her love her little area and she enjoys spending time in there when I'm home and the door open.
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What wonderful news! She's probably feeling so much better! and now that you know it's an issue it's easy to monitor!
 
Thank you guys for your help ! I never would've thought about her glands. She had an incident with food that caused bad bad diarrhea when she was a kitten that left her booty with not much hair around it so it never looked any different from her normal. I know when my dog had some gland issues it looked a lot different from hers. I'm glad it was suggested on here. We go back in 10-14 days to recheck her sugar to see if it needs to go down any lower and they'll look at her glands to make sure they are still good. As of right now I am starting a new job and have taken the last of my vacation days around time for her recheck so I'll be able to take her myself. I'll closely watch her still and make the appointment earlier if she's acting off. For now she'll still be able to stay in her room while I'm away because it seems to help the litter issues and her overall happiness. I, of course, won't force her to be in there while I'm home. While home, I leave the door open for her to do as she pleases. She seems very annoyed at the day and my other cat wanting to sniff her butt, but I gave her a tiny piece of a tuna fillet for cats ( no sugar and I checked with the store employees to ensure she can have it , no issues from the salmon one she had) to help ease her back into a good mood.
 
Morgan Williams said:
Thank you guys for your help ! I never would've thought about her glands. She had an incident with food that caused bad bad diarrhea when she was a kitten that left her booty with not much hair around it so it never looked any different from her normal. I know when my dog had some gland issues it looked a lot different from hers. I'm glad it was suggested on here. We go back in 10-14 days to recheck her sugar to see if it needs to go down any lower and they'll look at her glands to make sure they are still good. As of right now I am starting a new job and have taken the last of my vacation days around time for her recheck so I'll be able to take her myself. I'll closely watch her still and make the appointment earlier if she's acting off. For now she'll still be able to stay in her room while I'm away because it seems to help the litter issues and her overall happiness. I, of course, won't force her to be in there while I'm home. While home, I leave the door open for her to do as she pleases. She seems very annoyed at the day and my other cat wanting to sniff her butt, but I gave her a tiny piece of a tuna fillet for cats ( no sugar and I checked with the store employees to ensure she can have it , no issues from the salmon one she had) to help ease her back into a good mood.
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“The other cat” was our first indication there was an anal glad problem (after knowing to be suspicious of it). When cat 2 was “all up in” cat 1’s nether regions, we knew it was time for a vet visit. The vet would ask, was she scooting? We’d say no, there was a tattle tale. I’m sure she feels better. Thanks for being such a great pet parent for her.
 
Thank you Renee. She actually hates my other cat so everytime he gets near her she's hissing and his being a jerk. But everyone always smells her's and each other's bottoms, but they started doing it to her when she was becoming diabetic so I just thought that was it, because of the sugar. I had asked the vet about her scooting on the floor, but they are normally confused by her entirely so they said they didn't know. I absolutely know what to look for now. It is so hard finding good information from real people about diabetic cats online or in person. This forum has helped a lot with her progress the last couple of months. I know what to look for and it has lead to the betterment of her health. Thank you guys so much. She's so much happier and healthier.
 
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