Cat litter box issue

Though I don't live in the area anymore, I need the advice of the many cat lovers on MOL, please!

Story: 3 cats. Two we have had for years. Youngest we are "fostering" indefinitely since my son brought her back from Turkey. All was hunky dory in the litter box department until about a month ago. We have 2 litter boxes in the laundry room. We use the tidy cats breeze system which has larger "cement" litter and the pee goes thru into a removeable pad.

Aaanyway, about a month ago, someone began peeing a bit on the floor right outside the litter box. My assumption is someone is hanging his/her big furry kitty ass too far out of the box. No idea who the culprit is.

Right now I have both boxes sitting on puppy wee wee pads which does the job, but is gross.

any ideas to make the offender keep the pee in the box?

TIA!

Likely, one of the cats has a UTI. Usually, when they pee outside of the box, it is a health issue, not a behavioral one.

Maybe get a litter box with higher sides. We found that helpful some years ago with a related problem.

Maybe get an additional litter box or two. Rule of thumb is one litter box per cat, even if one of the cats is a foster. Some recommend one litter box each plus one extra litter box.

Litter box w a top, maybe?

First, get all three checked out at the vet to make sure that no one has a physical problem. If they all check out ok, then let's look at the litterbox set-up.

The rule of thumb is to have one more box than you have cats. Two boxes for 3 cats is not adequate. The dynamic among the cats is not always obvious. Sometimes 3 cats triangulate ---2 cats gang up on one. The one who is having litterbox problems may be picked on by the other 2, making one nervous about using the box. Since there are only 2 boxes, two cats may be guarding the boxes, and it is best not to have all the boxes in the same place (like people,cats need privacy because they are most vulnerable in that position. You will use a public bathroom if you must,but you would probably much rather go in the comfort of your own home)

Also, how long have you been using this Tidy Cats system? Sometimes the behavior you described is an indication that the cat doesn't like the litter. Cats are picky, some don't like the scented litter, some don't like the fine sand type, some don't like the coarser kind. Sometimes simple is better. I'd add 2 more boxes and re-think the placement. If they are used to the system you are using,don't change the brand of litter just add two more boxes to the mix. But, if this is a relatively new change, go back to your old brand of litter immediately and see if that solves the problem

Good luck. I hope some of these suggestions help.

Placement can definitely be an issue, as can the kind of litter and even the kind of box. I tried the rule of thumb of (# cats + 1), but found my cats were completely ignoring two of the boxes, so we cut down to three. Yes, three boxes for four cats. My original three use two of the boxes quite happily, and Tigger has a smaller box of her own. It depends on how the cats get along in the household, I think. In your case, increasing boxes by one at a time is probably a good idea.

I also realized after some frustration that Tigger was not happy using the larger boxes with taller sides, probably because she is elderly and has some stiff joints that don't want to climb that high. But a smaller box with low sides works perfectly for her.

I had to play with the placement for awhile before I got it just right for everyone, but they did settle into a rhythm and most of the problems went away. I still have occasional messes outside Tigger's box, but the vet said that is likely just extreme old age and some senility talking. No health issue she could find, although it's worth checking just to be sure the cats are okay.

I have one cat and one box and I would hesitate to introduce another box -- just might make her think there are choices on where she can go!

How frequently do you change the litter boxes ? Daily scooping? Just when you have trouble breathing? Total litter replacement and scrub down?

Our cat Mittens continues to poop right outside the box. Whiskers likes to pee in the box but standing up. Yes, standing up. I will spare you the pictures. Frequently the pee winds up going outside the box.

We have a new kitten and he seems to pee/poop only of someone else is using the toilet. It's strange. Is that a symptom of kitty-ness and needing direction from "mom" (ie. Me)?

No, Hahaha, that is an extreme form of compliment! Your kitten trusts you enough to join you in an activity,and synchronizing actions to you. (I have a cat who has done this all her life It cracks me up!)

Yeah, I get a kick out of it. I used to complain how as the only woman in a house full of boys, I never get any privacy. Now, my male kitty insists on relieving himself while I'm doing the same! But he's my little baby and I'm happy to share these moments with him.

Our cat poops all over the house but pees in the litter box.

Jeez, in the scheme of things, for what I'm reading here, a little pee getting outside the box ain't no big thang.

Boxes are cleaned multiple times a day. There could be some territoriality involved altho they have been getting along better as of late. The two younger ones are females, and have had their share of spats since the foster joined us in January. Our male is definitely the dominant cat in the household, but I suspect that his age (15) may be the key to this peeing issue.

Will your elder cat use a box that has a cover on it? That makes it more difficult for them to leave the posterior in an exterior position, as it were. But not every cat will use them. I used to have one that was all enclosed, but they turned their noses up at it after a few tries.

My experience is that cats usually don't like the closed boxes because they like to have a view all around them. Closed boxes are good for us,because they generally keep the odor down, and if you happen to have an enthusiastic digger, it prevents the litter from flying everywhere---but given a choice, most cats prefer to eliminate in the open.

Leighan, if this is sudden onset, don't forget to get all of them checked at the vet. If it is an age issue, you might want to get one smaller, lower box, and see if that cures the problem. He could have access issues.