Cat peeing in house:-(?

Question

Last January we adopted a female Maine Coon mix from the shelter. They stated she would not let anyone pick her up-but she was very friendly to me and to my 5 year old son. She was already fixed so we assume she was a house cat once. She was fairly aggressive from the start-she will bite me if I am near my son and he shows any sign of being upset and she has our 40 pound dog shaking in fear due to her aggression. My 14 year old cat just flat out avoids her. She has bitten my hubby twice. When she bit my son we went to the vet and after a full work up, decided she is overly attached to my son and has "claimed" him so she feel ok keeping us away and correcting his behavior. So she is now on 5 mg of Valium daily for her behavior issues and it seemed to help. Then about 4 months ago she started peeing in the house. Trip to the vet, shot of antibiotics in case it was an infection-again, likely a behavior issue. She stopped peeing for a bit but this weekend we moved things in the house a bit so we can have gas logs installed in the fireplace and she peed in the floor. We woke up this morning to find a second pee spot. My hubby has put her outside-and I am beyond upset. I can't have her destroy the house and honestly, the dog and other cat seem much calmer with her outside but I feel like an adoption failure. We live on a dead end street so very little traffic and I have gotten her a small dog house to make her a nice comfy place to sleep on the carport. I am just a bit stumped as to anything else we could have done to keep her from haivng social issues like marking. I know when I have to tell my son about this afterschool today he will be upset, but I just don't know what else we can try. We have pretty much turned the house upside down the last few months to keep her happy so she won't attack us or the other animals. Any suggestions?

Update:

I steam cleaned the new rugs in the basement and found clear signs of peeing still going on since I thought she had stopped. I will take her back to the vet for another check and will call him too. My vet and I have already talked about her future if we can't get this issue resolved-I would not subject her to going back to the shelter. With her history she will never get adopted and we have a very high kill shelter here-I would be scared she would be put down or mistreated if she were to behave this way with someone else.

PR · Accepted Answer

I think it is pretty likely she may be suffering from an ongoing bladder infection. Sometimes it takes a couple rounds of antibiotics to get it totally under control, and sometimes it seems to get better and then needs another treatment. It might be a good idea to take her back to the vet and tell them it has returned. Ask for a different medication for the kitty. This may be why the cat was given up in the first place, and the owners may not have realized what had happened. This might also account for the aggression: she may be in pain. They might also check for stones or crystals in the urine. Even if she does not show current signs of a bladder infection, a second or different round of antibiotics might be in order. If you do this, you are giving her a chance to feel better and maybe have a good home with you. I hope you can resolve this. If you can't keep her, see if you can take her to an animal rescue league, rather than back to the shelter. Normally, cats have an 80% chance of being put down at the shelter, despite what they tell you. Find leagues at: www.petfinder.com or go to your local pet supply store on the weekend to find them.

By the way: The fact that she did not urinate in the house for quite awhile seems it would indicate illness. Cats don't normally urinate on the floor, and if it was on a bare surface, this would be even more uncommon.

Laurie · Answer

Wow, this cat has an attitude. Sorry but I had to laugh because seldom to you hear of such a feisty cat. Back to the vet she should go to see if she has a UTI (urinary tract infection) If that is clear, another person on YA recommended the following site for help with cat issues. I contacted them and they were very knowledgeable. These are  all natural that are supposed to help with many cat issues. : www.spiritessence.com
Hope this helps.

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Cat peeing in house:-(?

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