Retraining an old cat?

afox007

FI and I recently rescued a cat from his insane ex wife who was homeless and hoarding cats. Since she moved in she has peed all over the house, scratches the furniture, and has made a new habit of waking me up by scratching me across the face ( I currently have a lovely scratch from my mouth to the bottom of my chin). 

I don't know what to do with her. Apparently FI said she always had these problems, but he hoped  that her going from being around 7 other cats to just one would help. I have made sure that she has her own liter box and keep it clean (easy since so far I think she has used it twice my laundry is a better alternative apparently), there are toys, scratching posts, I've tried the spray bottle when I catch her and she just stares me down and continues. So far the only thing she has responded to was me accidentally smacking her when I woke up freaking out to the face scratching, but obviously I'm not go to beat the cat. 

LuckyAngel07

This is a tough situation, for sure! You've done a great thing by taking this cat in and I hope you can get these behavior issues resolved.

1) I'd recommend closing her out of your bedroom at night so that she simply can't scratch you. I love cuddling with my kitties, but one of them is convinced that around 5 a.m. is the perfect time to start jumping up on the dressers and playing and knocking things over. So, they get to hang around the rest of the house, but no bedroom access at night. If your cat meows at this new arrangement, try giving it time. She'll likely adjust.

2) If she's regularly peeing in the same spots, try moving items over those spots or placing a couple of litter boxes in those spots. Also, be sure to clean ALL places she's gone to the bathroom with an enzymatic cleaner to ensure it's cleaned thoroughly enough that she can't smell it anymore. Most cleaners will work well enough that we humans can't tell anymore, but cats' olfactory senses are multitudes more sensitive. I'd recommend Nature's Miracle and/or Got Pee for starters. The NM has done the trick really well for us.

3) You might need to try switching her litter. She may simply not like the feel of it. I used to use a clumping clay litter. I've since switched to a natural corn litter (Arm & Hammer). I like it loads better. I also add Cat Attract litter to both my cats' litter boxes, because one of them started going outside the box after we got our pup. The Cat Attract fixed the problem immediately. It's a tad pricey, but I mix it/layer it with the regular corn litter, and it still works perfectly.

4) Try litter box retraining. You'll need to keep kitty locked in a small space, like a bathroom, with her litter box for a few days. Keep a bowl of water in there for her and maybe a few toys as well, but that's it! No bedding or blankets she's likely to choose to pee on over using the box. Let her out for mealtime and some play/snuggles with you when you can dedicate yourself to watching her and prevent her going in the house. I just had to do this with my potty-problem kitty after she started pooping all over the house while we were gone on vacation. We only have 1 small bathroom in our house, but we sucked it up for the few days we kept her locked in the bathroom. It worked!

5) Make sure kitty has scratching posts in various locations and of different textures. Some cats love sisal, some prefer carpet-type fabric, and some like cardboard. Try a couple different ones and see what she likes. Then put scratching items in the places she typically scratches up. You can also put large double-sided sticky strips (they sell them in the pet store to prevent scratching) on any furniture/etc she's been scratching. I had to do this with my other cat, and they definitely help. Since they're basically just like huge double-sided tape strips, they're clear, so you don't have to worry much about them being visible to anyone who comes over.

If there's anything else I can help answer or that I missed, let me know! Good luck with her.

buhherfly

My cats used to/some still do pee in my laundry hampers.. I have found if you wash your clothes with some white vinegar in the machine, (you can use fabric softener to take the smell away for yourself) the cat is less likely to pee on it. They CANNOT stand the smell of vinegar. You can also mop with it to help if she is peeing in specific spots of the floor. Have you tried putting shredded newspaper or alternatives to the litter you're using? My cats are rescues, and they've lived with us since we found them.. They still have some of these problems. Cats are more "high-strung" creatures, they want to be the boss, and will prove it. Patience is the only thing I can tell you.