Cats and kids and pee'ing-UPDATE #6

I am posting this question for a friend.

She has 2 cats, 10 years old. Up to now, they have been indoor only.

She has 3 children. Te youngest, a boy, is 2 and a half. The cats (one or both, it is not clear) have started peeing on this boy's things, constantly. They have been to the vet, 3 months back, no UTIs or any other health issues showed up.

Her husband wants to put the cats outdoors.

She is wondering if she should rehome the cats.

There are 2 litterboxes, scooped every other night. The boxes are cleaned weekly.

The boy is only permitted to interact with the cats when supervised. He is a bit rough with them and parents stop him right away.

Anyone have any suggestions??? How to get these 2 cats to get along with the "baby" in the family?

She is going to be checking this thread, may even join PT. I gave my opnion on putting 10 year olds outdoors: DON'T!

I am with you on not putting 10 year olds out of the house. They will not understand why they are out there... to many things can happen to them outside.

First thing she needs to do is keep them apart as much as possiable. Do not force the kitties on the baby and do not force the baby on them. Something is going on and she will just have to watch really close to see what it is but keeping them apart seems like what needs to be done right now. Give the kitties a "safe zone" they can go to where they know no one will bother them and make sure they have free access to it at all times.

Amy has her kennel and she knows when she is in there, NO hand is allowed to reach in there, nothing will bother her in there and that is where she runs when little kids come in that scare her. They are not allowed to go near her in there so she can feel safe. Give the kitties a safety zone to go to when they are afraid where nobody can mess with them, and be consistant.

Keep the door to the childs room shut? Keep the things picked up?

I think the cats having somewhere they know is their 'safe space' will help a lot.

Another idea is to install a cat door that leads into an outside enclosure(and back again!). Ideally, this would have a comfy "house" for them.

They can be quite inexpensive to build. They should have a roof or covered top, as kitties can climb!

A Google search on outdoor cat enclosures will give you some examples. There is a pic of a homemade on in post 8 of the following thread:

http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthre...Cat+enclosures

He he, Kelly joined and started another thread, same issue. See here:

http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=134449

So this is the message I received today from Kelly:

Alright so I woke up this morning to find that the cats had pooped on my
living room chair and in the kitchen. They have access to the litter box at
night and the boys room is shut at night and during the day when we aren't
home now. So why would they be pooping on our furniture now.
My husband is all done with them and we don't have the money to bring them
to the vet to see if anything is wrong. What do we do now?
Kelly

Question: When did the peeing problem start?

Following is a mixed bag of suggestions and thoughts.

Call the Humane Society and talk to them. They are reacting to the child, I am sure. Maybe they or a friend could foster them for a while.

Nancy Efrusy is a pet psychic that has done wonders for people here. She is in the USA, and very reasonable. [email protected]

At the very point where the cats need extra love and reassurance, they are behaving in a way that doesn't get them that.

Feliway is a relaxant for cats; it's expensive though a little lasts a long time.

Again - I think they have to have their own safe child-proof place. Basement?

Making them outdoor cats could result in an expensive vet visit -they are 10, and not accustomed to the outdoors. All you need is for one or both of them to be hit by a car or hurt by an animal, and to survive...and the vet costs associated with surgery or euthanasia.

Quote:

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The boy is only permitted to interact with the cats when supervised. He is a bit rough with them and parents stop him right away.

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DON'T allow the youngster to interact with them at all. Question - how do you keep them apart when he is not supervised? If that works, do it constantly.

Otherwise - rehome them as a pair. Safest and best for them...especially if vet checkups are going to be a problem for a while.

First and foremost, I'd shut off any rooms where the cat isn't allowed. So many times people try to humanize their animals and this causes problems. (I'm not saying that she's doing this but once a habit is begun, such as allowing pets to sleep w/their humans, it's difficult to break.)

After a cat has soiled an area, clean it w/an enzyme product such as Urine Gone and completely saturate the area w/it to remove all traces of odor. If you see the cat going near a previously soiled spot, in a firm, loud voice (don't shout), say "NO!" and shoo him/her away w/a squirt gun.

If all else fails, your vet can give you a prescription for Clomicalm. A few of my cats are on it and it's worked wonders. I haven't had an episode in months. Some PTers have had more success, however, w/Prozac, either a patch or pill. I wish I didn't have to medicate my cats but it's better than the alternative. Houses and furniture are expensive and, more importantly, our environment should be clean and healthy, not reeking of urine and feces.

Good luck w/this. I know how difficult it can be. If none of these suggestions work for you, then probably rehoming would be best, as long as you rehome them together. Please don't put them outdoors, though. Too much can happen to an outdoor cat. The average life span is only 2 years versus 17 1/2 years for an indoor cat. Hope this helps.

If They Are Healthy Cats And Doing This Out Of Jaelousy Then Thats Going To Be Hard To Correct. Is There A Place Like The Cellar That They Can Go, Until They Relearn Hwat The Box Is For?
Prayers Are Coming For You All.

PS: If you can't afford a vet, you can't afford the pet.

I think the best thing for all concerned is to rehome them together.

Please check with friends and maybe put them on PetFinder instead of taking them to a shelter.

When your youngest one is older, maybe you and hubby can save another furry life or two.

Take care.