Free to Good Home: RAT FACE

[Bertha Venation]

But be forewarned, she has a behavioral problem.

I'm going to skin this cat alive, I swear to god I am.

This cat, the sweetest, most loveable heart-stealing cat on earth, has a terrible problem. She marks things.

A couple of hours ago I walked into the kitchen, where earlier I'd done the dishes. They were in the rack and were dry.

At least... they should've been dry... but they were dripping. Then the odor hit my nose.

That little bitch hung her ass over the bar and peed on the clean dishes in the dish drainer. God dammit!

Favorite bamboo spoon in the trash, and sanitizing complete, I sit here and wonder what, if anything, can be done about this adorable little creech.

I'm joking about "free to good home." I can't give her up. Besides, I couldn't send her to another home knowing she has this problem.

After Harry died, I dared hope that this problem might go away. He used puppy pads instead of the litter box, so there was an odor of pee around if we weren't home to collect the pad right after he used it. But Harry's been gone eight days. Just eight days and she does it again. So that's not it.

I am, once again, at my wits' end.

[nolabear]

1. It's possible that that IS it.

She can still smell Harry; I'd guarantee it. She's a stray, right? Is she spayed? That might help. Valium might help (not yours; call a vet). In fact, call a good cat vet anyway; they should have some behavioral or chemical advice.

Good luck; it's a tough problem.

[Bertha Venation]

3. Hey, nolabear.

She wasn't a stray; she was born here and was one of the two we kept from that litter. She did have major injuries last summer ('09), and the problem started after that.

There's a problem getting her to the vet, too: catching her. We tried to get her to the vet a couple of months ago, and I grabbed her but she squirted free when I started to put her into the carrier. She has ninja skills.

Sigh.

[kimi]

2. You know

People do talk about animal behaviorists helping with situations like this. It might be worth a shot.

She may have a serious emotional problem. I've heard that some animals need meds for things that they've gone through. Not sure I entirely buy into the whole animal psychiatry thing, but hey, if humans can be emotionally affected by stuff that they go through, it may be completely plausible that susceptible, highly emotional animals can too.

Best of luck, Bertha. It's frustrating. I wish you and the family the best.

[MorningGlow]

4. No thank you--got one of our own

You SO have my sympathy, Bertha. I've got a pee-er too...but she's not adventurous enough to hit the dishes! :wtf: Her specialty is peeing on the baseboards so it drips down and soaks into the raw edges of the hardwoods. Way to preserve the stench for future generations, you know?

Do try to get her checked to make sure there's nothing physically wrong with her. We had Clover checked out and she's fine physically; unfortunately, she's a neurotic mess, so our next step is kitteh Prozac. Whee. :eyes:

[Flaxbee]

5. How frustrating, Bertha. I'm sorry. A few months ago, Bimbo

decided that she would pee and poop ONLY on the couch. Right where the cushions come together, too, for maximum destruction down INTO the couch itself. I have no idea why she started to do that, but it just happened one day - nothing had changed as far as I knew.

So (after the couch was pretty much ruined - good thing it was a $50 Goodwill couch - as you will no doubt understand, as long as we have cats, we've decided 'good' furniture is not a necessity) I moved a *large* litter box into the living room (sigh) and voila! All extra-litterbox eliminations ceased immediately. The box I use for her is a clear storage box - low rim - from Walmart... like an under-the-bed sweater storage box, about 1.5 times longer than an 'average' run of the mill litter box.

Does Rat Face have her own box? Where SHE wants it, not where you think it should be? I realize, with a household full of cats, having one's own box isn't really a possibility - the other kids use Bimbo's box - but it really 'belongs' to Bimbo.

And I scoop that one, and the other three, twice a day. A lot of work, but worth it for a pee-free couch.

Good luck. I know how irritating it is. And almost like she's grossing you out on purpose, the little f*cker. :D

[applegrove]

6. So sorry. Yup. Some cats are awful brats. I have one that will attack me

occasionally. Nobody in my family will allow this cat in their homes. 99% of the time he is the sweetest, most lovable critter. But that one percent is so frustrating.

[MiddleFingerMom]

7. I don't currently have a cat...

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...but if my housemates piss me off... ... ... ... you've inspired me.
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And asparagus is in season. :evilgrin:
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[KamaAina]

8. I was just thinking about her earlier

I was going to try and call upon the feline overlords to get her to give you a much-needed heavy-duty cat fix. :hug:

And I sincerely hope her problem isn't physical in nature. Only her vet knows for sure...