There's nothing worse than slipping your foot into a puddle of cat urine - while wearing your own shoes. If your cat has acquired the habit of peeing in your slippers, you are looking for solutions. But before you can solve the problem, you must find out why it is happening.
Sometimes it's difficult that we can't just ask our cats what's wrong. So, if your cat shits in your slippers and you're tired of cleaning your shoes, here are seven reasons why she might be doing it. And this problem also has solutions. I hope this is a one-stop tool for solving your urinary problem.
Why does a cat mark shoes?
Not always the unpleasant behavior of a pet can only be called hooliganism. As a rule, such an act has exactly a “cat” justification. After all, even if there is a tray that the cat uses for its intended purpose, the animal tries to leave its mark in your shoes.
Felinologists note several reasons for this behavior of the animal:
- jealousy: the cat, leaving its smell in your shoes, seeks to show that you are exclusively its owner; This is how he marks you;
- puberty or the desire to realize natural instincts: sometimes animals (especially unsterilized ones) begin to misbehave during the rut; with their smells they signal their readiness for procreation; if the animal does not “communicate” with others, then you receive the “signals”;
Important! It is not recommended to beat an animal or poke its nose into a puddle as punishment; some pets with a “harmful” character may repeat hooliganism out of spite.
- reaction to someone else’s smell: your own smell remains in your shoes for a long time, which may seem like the enemy’s smell to your pet, so he clogs it with his “aroma”;
- uncomfortable litter box: sometimes cats express their protest against an uncomfortable toilet; perhaps this is a signal that the tray is dirty;
- urolithiasis: the cause of hooliganism may be a developing disease; the animal experiences discomfort and is looking for ways to get rid of it.
Important! Before punishing your pet, try to analyze the situation and eliminate the causes of his anxiety.
Why does a cat shit everywhere?
Let's omit the case when careless owners did not train the cat to use the litter box. It’s another matter if the animal suddenly began to gradually ignore the legal placement of the toilet. Let's look at the probable reasons for this behavior:
- the pet has outgrown the litter tray, find out information about choosing a suitable toilet;
- the animal does not like the situation in the owner’s toilet. Here it may turn out that the new washing machine irritates the animal during operation, or the owner purchased a pungent-smelling air freshener;
- pet's vindictiveness: lack of attention, new people in the house, incorrect attitude of the owners towards the cat;
- any stress associated with a change of home, a long absence of owners, the appearance of a new animal in the house;
- If there is no obvious reason, then you should not postpone a visit to the veterinarian to check your cat's health.
Only by understanding the reasons can you choose the right solution to the problem.
We stop the cat from shitting anywhere
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//data-ad-slot=”2475549904″ $ads_google = empty($ads_google) ? false : true; ?> if ($ads_google == false) {?> $ads_google = true; ?> } ?> In fact, with a competent, patient approach, it will not be difficult to wean an adult cat from shitting anywhere.
The basic rule: the pussy should feel completely safe with the owner. Allow your pet to sleep as close to your bed as possible.
To stop a cat from shitting on the sofa, bed, or bed, they try this method: take a soft cloth, wipe the cat’s neck with it, and then move this cloth where the cat does a bad thing. This method works thanks to the animal’s pheromones, which “will not allow” the animal to commit a “toilet crime” in areas that smell of the purr itself.
Another good way: where the “fragrant” pile is left, the owner puts out bowls of delicious food. The animal does not go to the toilet where it feeds!
Did not help? This means we give the pet a new test: the cat is locked for 3-4 days in a separate small room with a tray that is completely suitable for the animal. Fresh food and water are brought into the room regularly. After a few days, a reflex to the correct place of the toilet is developed.
Remedies for weaning cats from shitting
All means can be divided into specialized, industrial and folk.
Chemical industrial products include preparations of the Antigadin format. Choose a convenient form of the product and treat unauthorized toilet areas.
If the new filler is to blame for the appearance of unpleasant piles and puddles, then you should just return the old one. Don't forget to change the filler regularly, this is very important!
stop your cat from crapping by purchasing a litter box in the shape of a house - this method has proven to be effective for many cats.
Sterilization is also an effective method: after the operation, the pussy loses the desire to take revenge and turn the owner’s house into a toilet.
Folk remedies for weaning cats off shit
The most common mistake when trying to stop a cat from pooping in the wrong place is to wash the area with bleach. She is more likely to lure the pet to do her dirty deed again.
But the idea of aromatizing dirty areas has a basis: citrus peels laid out on the dirty area, lubricating the area with fir oil, garlic and even iodine really repel the cat.
Of course, such remedies will not help with a flower pot: stick toothpicks all over the soil, their sharp peaks will not make cats want to go to the toilet. Also, inventive people glue double-sided tape, which is very unpleasant for the animal to walk on.
How to remove the smell of cat urine from shoes at home
What to do if your cat has marked your shoes, how to get rid of the smell of urine while keeping your shoes or boots - these questions worry everyone who has encountered this cat problem. In addition to the unpleasant impression of a pet’s hooliganism, there remains a pungent odor, which, if you simply wash everything off with water, can accompany a fetid trail for a long time.
It is not always possible and time to take your shoes to the dry cleaner and entrust the treatment to specialists. There are suggested methods on how to get rid of cat smell in shoes at home:
- table vinegar: after you wash your shoes, you can treat them with table vinegar, thoroughly wiping the entire stained surface; the smell of vinegar can remove the “aroma” of cat urine and scare away the pet from repeated mischief;
- soap: choose soap with a strong smell (laundry or tar is best), treat your shoes; soap will not harm your shoes, but may leave marks on leather surfaces;
Important! During any treatment, it is recommended to keep the product in the shoes for some time so that the smell is absorbed and muffles the cat's hooliganism. In some cases, the procedure must be repeated several times.
- potassium permanganate solution: shoes can be treated with a weak solution of potassium permanganate; but you should be careful: if the crystals are not dissolved, they can damage the appearance, it is not recommended to use on light-colored shoes, potassium permanganate can stain;
- baking soda: will effectively get rid of the smell of cat urine, but this is not a very safe product for shoes, since baking soda can leave stains on a matte surface that will be quite difficult to remove;
- hydrogen peroxide: you can treat the stained surface with ordinary hydrogen peroxide purchased at the pharmacy; the product removes biological substances, but after treatment it is recommended to wipe the shoes with plain water;
- lemon juice: a product that is safe for the appearance of shoes; cats cannot tolerate the smell of citrus fruits, so lemon juice will also help avoid relapse;
- vodka: effectively removes the smell of cat urine; The disadvantage of this product is its own persistent odor.
Important! After treating your shoes, first let them air out and then put them away so as not to provoke the animal.
Some experienced cat hooligan liquidators recommend that after treating shoes, put them in the freezer, preferably for several days. Low temperature, in their opinion, should remove the cat smell. This method can hardly be called safe for the condition of the shoes. Varnish surfaces and leather substitutes will definitely burst after such treatment, and not all leather can withstand prolonged low temperatures.
Shoes hold familiar smells
For a cat, their sense of smell is probably the most important of their five senses. It is fourteen times stronger than humans, and they have twice as many receptors in their nasal tissues as humans.
Cats have a special organ located at the top of their mouth called Jacobson's organ, which humans do not have. This organ allows cats to essentially taste the scents and pheromones in the air, giving them a wealth of information about the animals and people in the area.
Cats are naturally inquisitive and will explore new smells, but they will also seek out the smells of things that are familiar to them and that make them feel safe.
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Cats themselves create and secrete their own unique scented pheromones in glands throughout their bodies, including their cheeks. When your cat rubs their face against you or an object, they leave their mark as a way of saying, “I've been here before. It belongs to my space and makes me feel safe.” Cats will be drawn to things that smell like them or like things they like.
Sleeping on your shoes is your cat's sign that she is comfortable in your company, comfortable in your presence, and loves you!
Professional means to get rid of cat urine odor
You can buy special products at pet stores that will help remove the smell of cat urine from shoes. Sellers will offer you the following drugs:
- OdorGone is a product consisting of natural ingredients that eliminates the persistent odor of cat urine; It can be used to treat not only shoes, but also the room, since it also has a bactericidal effect;
- Odor kill is a vanilla scented product whose chemical composition is capable of breaking down urine crystals and effectively blocking odor;
- Zoosan - products from this line help get rid of even the stagnant smell of cat urine.
Important! Before purchasing the product, read the instructions carefully. Not all chemical compounds are safe for shoes. By removing the smell of cat urine, you may leave behind stains or damage the integrity of your shoes.
Cats and bathroom etiquette
Cats start using the litter box incredibly early. You can start training a kitten to use the litter box only at three weeks of age. Cats naturally want to hide their urine and feces. So when they start going to the potty out of the box, it should be an automatic sign of concern.
Some things encourage you to urinate out of your designated area, and most of these problems are easily solved. There are many resources you can try or products you can buy to stop your cat from peeing, such as sprays and neutralizers to put an end to this unwanted behavior.
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Do not use chlorine-containing products!
It is not recommended to use chlorine-containing products to remove urine odor from shoes because:
- they will leave light stains on your shoes that will be impossible to get rid of;
- subsequent contact of the skin of the feet with such drugs is unsafe for humans;
- Cats do not find the smell of bleach unpleasant, and some even find it a strong desire, so your pet may find it necessary to mark the shoes again.
To make problems with damaged shoes bother you less, try to put them in locked drawers or boxes.
How to prevent cat misbehavior
You can never be sure of anything with a pet: it is a living creature that may have its own problems and its own views on how its living environment should be arranged. In order to protect your home as much as possible from surprises, the conditions for keeping the animal are thought out even before the mustachioed friend is brought into the house.
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The cat loves cleanliness, order and clear organization of space. It would be wise to position the toilet in a way that she likes. Then she will agree to do her business where it is convenient for the owner.
Misbehavior in a cat can be prevented if:
- choose a toilet that your pet will like (even if you have to change several in a row);
- When purchasing a tray, take into account the size of the animal;
- place the tray in a secluded corner with 24-hour access to the room;
- place the feeding area away from the toilet;
- Do not place anything with a strong smell next door.
It is extremely important to clean your cat's litter box frequently:
- every time you change the filler;
- as soon as the smell appears;
- Trays used without filler are washed after each cat’s visit to the toilet.
The litter you choose is the one that suits your cat. They change it without waiting for a strong smell to appear, which is individual for each animal.
Sometimes a cat shits in the room because of helminths: the pain and itching force her to look for a place where she can wipe off the remnants of the discharge. Often she looks for something soft - a carpet, a bed or a sofa. To prevent this from happening, even a healthy cat needs to be given anti-worm medication from time to time.
If your cat has urinary incontinence caused by illness or old age, you can only protect your floors and carpets by buying her diapers. This decision will be the only correct one; it will completely eliminate hassle and dirt in the house.
Methods to Avoid
Measures for raising an animal must be completely safe for its health.
- beating;
- poking your nose into a puddle or pile;
- dousing with water;
- rough pushing towards the tray;
- shout.
All this will only frighten, provoke stress and ultimately have the opposite effect. The cat will become insecure and begin to look through all corners in search of something for which it will not be punished.
A little scolding is necessary, but only if the cat was caught “doing this.” Delayed punishment is pointless, because the cat will no longer understand what the owner’s aggression is connected with.
Sometimes it is advised to lock the cat in a cramped room with a litter tray: if it cannot find another place, it will begin to go there. But this method is also quite cruel. Such treatment can frighten, offend the animal and cause a persistent aversion to the toilet.
Reasons why pets shit in the wrong place
The range of possible causes is wide and varied, so we will consider each factor separately.
Disease
Because of the pain during defecation, even those cats that do not have any bad habits and have an easy-going character may refuse to use the litter box. The deviation most often occurs suddenly, i.e. just yesterday the animal went to the tray, and today the owner discovers several puddles on the floor. However, sometimes the opposite picture is possible: despite the discomfort, the pet tries to behave diligently and visits the litter box every other time.
The most common reason for refusing the tray is urolithiasis, which is accompanied by the appearance of blood in the urine.
Often the disease can be detected by the appearance of the feces and the behavior of the animal. The pet becomes lethargic or, on the contrary, restless and irritable. Anxiety intensifies closer to the time of visiting the tray. A cat can take a long time to choose a place, dig with its paws and sniff. Sometimes pets meow pitifully before or during bowel movements. Blood may be found in the urine. Dark brown urine is another cause for concern. The feces may be too hard or, conversely, liquefied. Blood streaks or individual fresh drops, mucus, fragments of helminths, etc. are sometimes found in feces.
If uncharacteristic symptoms appear, it is important to contact a veterinarian and undergo an examination. Most often, refusal of the tray is caused by pathologies of the intestines and urinary system, but diseases of other organs are possible. If the habit is not strengthened, after therapy or even during it, the animal will begin to defecate in the appropriate place. If the cat still does not recognize the tray, although the tests have returned to normal, you need to re-accustom the pet to the “toilet”. It may be worth changing the accessory to eliminate negative associations: the cat may think that the pain was associated with the previous litter box.
When my cat refused the litter box, at first I thought it was the problem. I installed several trays and changed the fillers, but everything turned out to be useless. When I decided to leave the cat a diaper, it became obvious that the problem was related to health. The favorite walked little by little, but often. The urine was sometimes the color of meat slop, sometimes with a bright bloody admixture. The examination revealed pyelonephritis and cystitis. I started giving the cat hemostatic and antibiotics as prescribed by the veterinarian. After 2 days, the blood from the urine disappeared, but it took 2 weeks for complete recovery. After this, the cat began to go to the litter box again.
Wrong tray
The appearance of a bad habit may be associated with inappropriate location of the tray, its shape and size, filler, etc. A cat may begin to shit in the wrong place not only after moving or a sudden rearrangement, but also spontaneously, for no apparent reason.
Some cats like the grate because they don’t get their paws dirty in the process, while others find it intimidating
Replacing trays and filler is the first thing to do when a bad habit arises. If the cat was purchased from a breeder or taken from other owners as an adult, you need to ask the previous owners what the animal prefers: clay lumps, wood pellets, etc. For street pets, you can leave an empty tray or add vegetable soil and sand there for it will be more familiar to them. Granules with a strong odor should be avoided. This is especially true for unnatural aromas: lavender, lemon, etc. It is also advisable to avoid silica gel fillers: they rustle when buried and when walking on the grate, which can cause fright in the cat.
Wood litter can scratch cats' delicate paws if there is no grid on the tray
The size of the tray must correspond to the dimensions of the animal. One day, my friend’s cat started pooping in the wrong place. She thought it was due to age. As it turned out, the cat didn’t mark. When I came to visit a friend, what immediately caught my eye was that the tray was “childish”, for kittens, small and with low sides. This despite the fact that the cat already weighed 5 kg and continued to grow. After replacing the tray, everything got better, the pet immediately stopped crapping.
Stressed cats are more likely to visit closed litter boxes
If there are no other visible reasons, and the animal walks by, it is advisable to try changing the location and type of tray. Cats do not like to defecate where they sleep and eat, as well as in open areas: in corridors and in the middle of rooms. This can be used for weaning if the pet has chosen one place. Tray boxes should be placed in the toilet, behind furniture, in corners, etc. The cat should always have access to them. You can try purchasing a litter box: your pet will feel safer in it. You should experiment with the height of the sides.
Territorial tags
Territorial marks can be left not only by cats, but also by cats. A distinctive feature of urine and secretions is their strong odor. The animal can either leave a small amount of liquid or completely defecate by. Most often, a bad habit appears in adolescence (6–12 months), although it can occur earlier. Adult pets are not inclined to change their behavior, but the appearance of a new animal or family member, as well as moving, can provoke a fight for territory.
When leaving a mark, cats lift their tails and spray the secretion in small portions, but they can also leave feces and urine as territorial claims.
A friend of mine has an adult cat (6 years old) who started marking for no apparent reason. The first thing he did was take his pet to the veterinarian to get examined. The animal had minor heart problems, but this was unlikely to provoke a reluctance to go to the litter box. A friend changed the trays, the fillers, and tried to retrain them... Nothing helped. The problem resolved itself spontaneously. It turned out that the cat started marking because the neighbors had a dog. She was temporarily placed in foster care, then taken away. From that moment on, the cat never walked past.
To prevent the development of a bad habit, it is recommended to carry out castration in a timely manner. For cats, it is advisable to remove not only the uterus, but also the ovaries, since the presence of the latter can provoke the onset of estrus and the desire to mark territory. If the animal stopped going to the litter box after the arrival of a new pet, you need to place several trays and gradually make friends with the pets. With delayed castration in male cats, the habit sometimes persists. In advanced cases, it is not possible to wean your pet off marks even with the help of sprays and oils.
Revenge
Cats do not take revenge on their owners in the usual sense of the word, but they can punish for disobedience if they consider themselves the leaders of the pack. Pets have a hierarchy. Depending on the role, each member of the pack has its own rights and responsibilities. The leader is responsible for the distribution of benefits and educates the rest. He punishes others for any disobedience and attack on his own status.
The leader cat is characterized by aggressive behavior. She decides when she will be petted and determines the play time herself. If the owner does not do what is required of him, the pet may bite and hiss. Aggression in such cats is active: they attack and do not run away. Leaders have sensitive sleep. Often these cats and cats experience stress because they cannot get quality rest and are constantly in a state of heightened alert, because they are obliged to protect their pack. Puddles are discovered after an act of aggression or any unwanted actions on the part of the owner: bathing, trimming claws, etc.
When grasping the withers, cats reflexively relax, but in the case of a struggle for status, this will only cause aggression
To re-educate an animal prone to dominance, it is enough to behave according to its status. The owner must independently distribute benefits (food, games, attention), protect the pet and show strength where it is needed. The latter does not imply punishment, but a demonstration of status. In a natural environment, the leader grabs the offender by the withers and presses him to the ground. So the cat holds the opponent until the latter stops resisting. Food should be given to the animal slowly and not when the pet demands it. You should also initiate games and affection yourself. Gradually the cat will get used to the new rules and give up its place.
Too young and lack of habit
A small kitten does not go to the litter box not because it is harmful or has health problems, but as a result of a lack of habit. Usually, a mother cat teaches her babies on her own, setting an example, but due to some circumstances this may not happen. In this case, the responsibility for litter box training lies with the owners.
During the learning process, it is advisable to limit the accessible territory. You can buy a kitten a cage as a personal room and leave it in it while the owners are away from home. First, the entire floor of the room is covered with newspapers, then the paper is gradually removed. The kitten is guided and rewarded for doing the right thing. As soon as the baby begins to dig and look for a place, he is transferred to newspapers. If a kitten wanders by, they do not scold him, but patiently wait for the next good moment. Gradually, the animal develops the habit of defecating on paper.
Attempts to play, sleep and lie in the litter box are a clear sign that the animal simply does not know what the “toilet” is for.
In the future, the owners place trays throughout the room and leave newspapers at the bottom. You can add a few soiled scraps to make it easier for your pet to navigate by smell. There should be several trays, because kittens do not always have time to reach the “toilet”. You should prefer containers with low sides to make it comfortable for your pet. You may need to place the kitten in the litter box yourself first. Later, with positive reinforcement and praise, the baby will begin to go to the “toilet” on his own.