litter box woes...

[rjewell]

I'm at my wits end and I'm hoping someone here can help.

I have a very nervous kitty, Freakazoid. When I went out of town for 3 weeks in December, leaving her with our trusty cat sitter, she stopped eating. She's prone to constipation, especially when she doesn't get 20 mins of love from me every day.

By the time I got home, she was diabetic.

We seem to have gotten that under control, but ever since that time, she's been litter-box phobic. She'll pee in the same area every time (a corner of the bathroom). The vet suggested that Freak associates a normal litter box with the pain she was in while I was gone, and she wasn't eatting and very blocked. The vet went on to suggest that I use something that looks nothing like a litter box.

I've tried the water pan that goes under flowerboxes; she wouldn't use it. I made her a very shallow litter box out of plexiglass, plastic elbow brackets and lots of caulk. Her pee is so chemical-y that it eats through the caulk. I've tried clumping litter, but it clumps next to the edges making a big, muddy mess. I'm currently using the crystals as it seems to control the oder better than the other.

Even though her diabetes is under control, she still drinks and pees more than she did before this began. My whole house smells. I buy Nature's Miracle in 2 liter jugs and use about a quart a week. I have to daily clean up this mess of particularly stinky pee.

I love Freak. I don't want to get rid of her. But she's destroying my bathroom. I'm desperate for a suggestion.

Thanks in advance,
Rebecca

[dolly]

Hi Rebecca,

I'm sorry to hear about your litter box woes, they can be frustrating! Since the vet made a suggestion about behaviour, I assume any health issues have been ruled out such as a urinary tract infection. Have you tried using a more natural litter like a wood or paper-based one? This would be more like what they would have in the wild. Are you placing the liter box in the corner where she pees?
It sounds like kitty is very nervous. I like some of the natural calming remedies available such as Rescue Remedy. I don't advocate long-term use of drugs but perhaps something short-term to get her over her phobia might be helpful. A pet behaviourist could be very useful in working with you and kitty. Good luck!

[fleafly]

You said that her pee is chemical-y, has the vet ruled out medical conditions? It doesn't sound like her pee is normal.

I would start by ruling out medical conditions. If it isn't a medical problem, I would put a litter box in the spot where she has been peeing. Also Bach's rescue remedy was a good suggestion. It might calm her down a little bit. If nothing else helps you might consider grugs like Dolly suggested. Valium or dalprazalom might calm her down, it's a better solution than having to give her up.

[rjewell]

They've done the necessary tests to be sure that she doesn't have any infection. It's just stinky pee...

[PilotKitten]

I used that cedar kitty litter once and it's pretty durn absorbant and there's little to no smell...but there's a bunch of dust that comes off that litter and it gets EVERYWHERE!! It's a major PITA but it did keep the smell down.

Now I use the LitterMaid auto-litter box thingy and it's great.....I've had it for about 5 months and my kitty still runs into the room when it starts raking to try and figure out what it's doing!

[nern]

I would get a new litter box. One that is different than her previous box...if the previous box was uncovered, get a covered box. Put the new box in a new location and see if that helps at all.