14 year old cat going outside box

[JennF1023]

My 14 year old DLH pees in the box but poops out side the box.  We have tried getting a bigger box using unsceanted litter. and just about everything possible.  (and yes the box is cleaned daily).  I am getting very angry because of the obvious mess/odor that this is causing.  He is eating fine and drinking fine.    I am at the point that I feel we may have to give him away.  I also don't want to spend  big $$$ on all the tests that vets do.  There is nothing wrong with him except this issue.  Help!!!

[opus88]

you can't be serious abt giving a 14 yr old cat away??
who would take in a senior kitty especially with litter box issues?
as a responsible pet owner don't you owe it to a little family member to have a medical care? yes I agree it can get expensive, but she's a living breathing little soul who depends on you and it my opinion is due some loving care.
I think she is hurting thats usually how a kitty will let you know when something is wrong..whens the last time kitty had a check up?

[Thomas Dock, Vet. Technician]

Hi Jenn...I can empathize with your frustration.  A few years ago, I had a senior kitty who who randomly decide to defecate in odd places.  You are right, the odor and mess are enough to make you angry.

However, I do agree with opus...your cat needs a physical examination at the very least.  Many inappropriate elimination behaviors have a root cause in a medical condition.  You certainly know your cat very well, but our feline friends are very good at hiding pain and illnesses from us...it's just part of their nature.   I think getting a good physical could be the start to resolving this issue.

I might also recommend a hooded litter box...some cats, no matter the size of the litter box, think that they are "all in" the litter box when their front feet are in.   Then, with their back end "hanging over", they defecate.   You also need to make sure you are using a good stain and odor remover to clean the error after his accidents.

Finally, if the physical comes back ok and you are still dealing with this issue, you might consider consulting with a veterinary behaviorist.  We have an applied animal behaviorist (Dr. Suzanne Hetts) available in the pet behavior forum of the Ask A Vet expert sections.

[LynneAV]

I am dealing with this same problem with our Annie, who is 16-1/2. She has been fastidious all her life, so we know she is not being "naughty" or doing this on purpose. We have managed to reduce the occurance to only once in awhile by these measures:

(1) Physical exam revealed impacted anal glands, which were expressed.  Having had that done once after exam by the vet, I can now run Annie in to the office at my convenience and a tech will check her glands and express if needed for only $20.

(2) Annie has some arthritis in her hips and also kidney problems (that we already knew about) that can cause muscle weakness. These two things can make elimination painful and difficult. When a cat experiences pain during elimination, he/she associates the litter box with that pain and therefore avoids it. I have been giving Annie a food supplement for arthritis (ask the vet first), and I am frankly surprised that this seems to be making her feel much, much better -- she is back to jumping up on "her" counter stool, and the defecation problems are much less frequent (don't know if that is the reason, but can't hurt).

(3) Annie's stools are not consistant, with her old age, and sometimes she is constipated and other times on the verge of diarrhea. This can be painful, uncomfortable and upsetting -- especially soft stool. Cats do not like to make bad messes in their potty box (I know, your carpet is a worse choice, but only to you). Efforts to improve "regularity" can help with this, but each cat is different and will require experimentation. And at our vet office, if the patient is current on exams, we can have a phone consultation about subjects like this with a tech (and they are all very knowledgeable and not rushed at our clinice) any time we wish.

(4) A friend gave me this suggestion, and it was a huge DUH!!! and head-slap to me, it should have been obvious to me but it was not. Annie has long hair -- I think your kitty does also. When stool is "messy," it sticks to their long hair, especially for an older cat who isn't as agile as he/she used to be. This freaks Annie out totally. When her tail or bottom first gets messed up, she jumps out of the box and runs into the living room before she is finished. Solution -- a short hair cut on her bottom.

As I said, these measures have not eliminated the problem entirely, but they have cut the frequency down to maybe one out of 10 BMs -- huge improvement.  Personally, I do not believe that our Annie has any behavioral issues whatsoever that would be helped with that approach -- but I did consider that possibility seriously and I observed Annie very carefully and tried all the measures listed above.

I certainly understand your feelings, because more than once I have stood and cried, especially first thing in the morning when I wake up to that mess and with my own arthritis that makes cleaning the floor on hands and knees very painful if not impossible. But ... it does get cleaned up, the whole day does not need to be ruined because of an accident (look what little kids do, take their diapers off and sit on the sofa, etc.), and this is your precious kitty that you have loved so much all these years. He needs you now more than ever.

Good luck, hugs to your kitty, and I hope one of these suggestions might apply to your kitty's particular problem.

[Thomas Dock, Vet. Technician]

Awesome post Lynne!!  Thanks!