Occasionally, a normally fastidious feline will begin marking outside the litter box. Coming home or waking up to this unaccustomed smelly mess is bad enough, but to have to suddenly begin dealing with it on a regular basis can unhinge an owner. This type of behavior is abnormal, and is just one sign of an unhappy cat and must be addressed immediately in order to avoid a habit formation.

Ask yourself the following questions:
1. Is the animal sick?
2. Has a new pet, baby or adult joined the family recently?
3. Are “alpha wars” being waged with the other resident cat(s)?
4. Has the litter type been changed or the box been moved or replaced with a new one?
5. Is there new stress in the house?

If any of the above rings a bell, you might be able to figure out the solution. Sometimes the answer is not obvious, and other methods must be tried. What works in one situation may very well not in another.

Just this month I heard from three different friends with litter box issues, all in multi-cat households.
One discovered that her cat in question was being attacked on the way to use the litter box. Simply raising the box solved the issue. This was a new one on me.

My second friend is dealing with “alpha wars” in her household of 14 feral and semi-ferals. (She was a former trapper/foster for Catalyst for Cats.) She is about to try a plug-in atomizer which will emit feline “feel good” pheromones into the air, hopefully calming everyone down. This method worked for me last year when a fifth (female) cat joined my all male troupe and I had a marking incident.

On the advice of Cornell University Veterinary School, my third friend has set up a surveillance camera to observe when she is not at home. She has also bought three new litter boxes. filling two with different litters and the third one with only a towel. I’m anxious to hear the results and also to view the video. I wonder if it will show up on YouTube or Animal Planet?

If the cause is discovered, with persistence the inappropriate behavior can usually be corrected. I would love to hear from my readers who have experienced, and solved, their own litter box problems. Just email me through the website.