My cat won't use the litter box, and the vet found no medical issues. What can I do?

There are a few different reasons why a cat may stop using their litter box. It's best to first check for some of the common causes. Below is a link to a good article about the common causes. It's also possible that Daisy is not using the litter box due to a medical condition. If you can't find a behavioral problem then it would be best to take her to the vet for an exam. https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-common-litter-box-mistakes/ I hope that helps and all is well with Daisy.

Hello and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Inappropriate elimination (peeing or pooping outside the litter box) in cats can be frustrating and difficult to treat. The first step you should take is scheduling an appointment for Udang to see a veterinarian. A lot of times a cat will start going outside of the litter box due to health problems like urinating tract infections, pain, urinary tract inflammation and digestive problems. Once you have established that there aren't any medical reasons for inappropriate elimination the following may be helpful: 1. Cats will urinate or defecate outside of the litter box for stress related reasons. Therefore it is best to keep the litter boxes in several different, quiet areas of the household. 2. A pheromone diffuser like Feliway can be quite helpful. 3. Ensure you have at least one litter box in the household per cat plus one. For example, if you have 3 cats, then 4 litter boxes are recommended. 4. Feeding an all canned food diet can help if there is inflammation in the bladder. There are also prescription diets available to help with bladder inflammation or digestive issues. Your veterinarian can help you choose the best one for your cat. 5. The litter boxes should be cleaned once to twice daily and completely emptied and washed weekly. Most cats prefer litter to be the clumping type that is kept a few inches deep. Certain litter types like Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract litter may be helpful. 6. You can also place aluminum foil over the areas Udang normally likes to urinate to prevent him from going in that area. If you have done a lot of the above suggestions you may also want to talk to your veterinarian about behavioral medications that may help prevent inappropriate urination. Good luck!

An underlying medical condition should be ruled out first. A UTI can cause these symptoms and can be sub-clinical for a while if not treated. Kidney disease and diabetes can also be underlying factors. You can get a home urine testing kit from Petco. ( ) My other two suggestions would be to use some Feliway diffusers in your house, do some environmental enrichment for her and get more litter boxes to put around the house with different types of litter. ( https://www.feliway.com/us/Why-Use-Feliway/Cat-peeing-outside-the-litter-box ) ( https://www.thedrakecenter.com/materials/environmental-enrichment-indoor-cats ) ( https://moderncat.com/articles/how-enrich-your-cats-home-environment/ ) ( https://www.petmd.com/cat/centers/litter/evr_why_multi_cat_households_need_multiple_litter_boxes ) Also, if you are not happy with your current vet it may be a good idea to get a second opinion elsewhere. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Litterbox aversions can be tough to deal with! It sounds like this started with a few medical problems so you should definitely update your veterinarian that Jack is still urinating outside of the box in case his crystals have not resolved. If everything is okay medically you could try a different type of litter in the box (unscented clumping is usually preferred;, adding additional large, shallow, open litter boxes; scooping the boxes twice daily and/or placing a Feliway diffuser near the boxes. If you're still having trouble talk to your vet - there are some medications like fluoxetine that occasionally can help with this problem too. Good luck!

It sounds like you are on the right tract with Neko in that fact that you clean the box daily and that you purchased a larger litter box. Some other things that may help would be to make sure the box is in a quiet, private location where he cannot be started/trapped in the box by another animal. Additionally, as far as litter goes, most cats prefer a clay based, clumping cat litter. If he seems picky, you could set up a few boxes, each with a different type of litter (corn based, pellets...etc) and see which one he prefers. Lastly, going outside the box can indicate a medical issue or behavioral issue. If he is urinating outside the box, have his urine tested for an infection. If he is having a soft stool, then I would recommend to have him seen by his veterinarian and the stool tested. If it is a normal stool, then you may try adding in canned food into his diet which can increase water content and make it more comfortable to pass. You could also try changing his diet to something that is very easy to break down such as Royal Canin kitten food. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Hello and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Inappropriate urination and defecation can be very frustrating to deal with. The first step you should take is to have Picachu neutered. An unneutered male will commonly spray in the household. A veterinarian can check to ensure there are no illnesses like urinary crystals or a urinary tract infection causing the inappropriate urination. You should also use a product like Natures Miracle cleaning solution to try to remove urine odor from carpets and elsewhere in the house. The odor of urine will likely attract Picachu to areas and cause him to continue to spray. If the problem is severe you may need to remove the carpet. The following are some other steps you can try: 1. Cats will urinate or defecate outside of the litter box for stress related reasons. Therefore it is best to keep the litter boxes in several different, quiet areas of the household. 2. A pheromone diffuser like Feliway can be quite helpful. 3. Ensure you have at least one litter box in the household per cat plus one. For example, if you have 3 cats, then 4 litter boxes are recommended. 4. Feeding an all canned food diet can help if there is inflammation in the bladder. There are also prescription diets available to help with bladder inflammation or digestive issues. Your veterinarian can help you choose the best one for your cat. 5. The litter boxes should be cleaned once to twice daily and completely emptied and washed weekly. Most cats prefer litter to be the clumping type that is kept a few inches deep. Certain litter types like Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract litter may be helpful. 6. If you are still having problems after taking the above steps you may want to talk to your veterinarian about behavioral medication. Good luck!

That must be very frustrating for you! There can be a couple of reasons why Cooper will not use the litter box. Cats like a very clean box, and the litter should be scooped every day with the litter itself being changed once a week. If the box isn't clean enough for him, he won't use it. Cats can also be very picky about the type of litter used. If you changed litter recently, he may not like it and won't want to use it. Don't use scented litters, cats typically don't like the scent and will not use the box if it smells funny to them. I would use an unscented litter only. The litter box itself may be a problem. It could be too small for him to turn around in, or if it has a cover, he may not like using the box under a cover. Conversely, if it doesn't have a cover, he may not like going to the bathroom in the open. Cats also won't use a litter box that is too close to their food and water sources, so if the litter box is close to those, he won't use it. Finally, there could be a medical issue behind him not using the litter box. If not of the above scenarios apply to Cooper, I would take him into your vet for a health check to see if there is a medical cause behind him refusing to use the litter box.