Okay, before I begin I'd like to clarify that it's an issue I've dealt with in other cats due to my rescue and rehabilitation history, but this time is different because I now have a toddler and my usual solutions (deterrent sprays made of vinegar and pepper and closing off problem areas, primarily) aren't practical.
I don't know which of my two cats is doing it, but since introducing the toddler bed one (or both) of the cats has started urinating on my son's bedding. It's the only place in the entire house they're doing it.
I have two leading theories as to why:
- When I first adopted the male, my established female wouldn't let him near the litter box. This resulted in him defecating under the cot (where the bed is now). It was six months ago and he hasn't done it between her letting him use the litter box and about three weeks ago (the bed has been there for about three months now)
- Twice now when I've lifted the mattress, I've noticed a urine smell. As far as I can tell, the current soiling hasn't gone beyond the top bedding (and even if it did, the mattress has a plastic protector), so I'm wondering if a cat previously peed on that bed and my cat has just noticed it.
My son did have gastro a few weeks back and threw up all over his bed, so it's also a possibility that this led to the soiling behaviour from the cat (maybe they smell similar? I don't know). The timing would fit because the soiling started after this.
I don't think it's a problem with the cat's health because when I've come across crystals or UTI before, the soiling happened in various places and not just one specific spot. I also don't think the smell on the bedding (despite repeated washes, it may still be evident but beyond my perception) is encouraging it because they leave the bedding alone when it's in the laundry awaiting washing. It seems to be something about that spot in particular, but I'm 34 weeks pregnant and not currently in a position to rearrange the room to find out.
What I'm looking for is ideas on how to address this, because it's not a typical behaviour for either cat. My son sleeps at Nan and Pop's tomorrow night so my plan is to thoroughly wash the bed and frame in an odour-neutraliser just in case that's the issue, and I'm about to go to the city for four weeks to have this baby so I'm going to shut off that entire room in my absence with the window open in order to break any habit components, but I'm not sure how else to tackle it since chemicals are a no-go on my son's sleeping area and I can't just keep the door shut because it's his bedroom.
I'm open to suggestions because this is not a healthy situation, and it's tiring changing the entire bed and wiping down the mattress almost daily.
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from Pets https://www.reddit.com/r/Pets/comments/dwqjhk/cat_soiling_issue/
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