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My cat pees outside the litter box but poops inside. Is she sick?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

My female cat will poop in the litter box but not pee, she pees whenever she feels like it. Could there be something physically wrong

4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Debi Matlack

Veterinary Technician

Published on June 21st, 2015

Inappropriate elimination in cats is often a behavioral problem rather than a medical problem, so the first step is to have him seen by your vet to eliminate any kind of illness or condition as a cause for his defecating outside the box. Once medical issues are ruled out, take a look at other explanations. Has there been a lot of activity that wasn't normal? Were you away and your cat was left at home or boarded? Is the litterbox located in a busy area? Has anything happened recently in this area to make him reluctant to use it again? Is there another cat, pet or person that is preventing him from getting to the box? Have you changed it from a hooded to an open box, or vice versa? Have you changed the brand of litter or kind? Is there something about the spot he has chosen to use that is attracting him in some way? Cats dislike disturbances to their routine and may act out to express their dissatisfaction. The litter box may not be big enough. The general rule of thumb is one litter box per cat in the household, plus one. That way each cat can have a place of their own to go in case the box is occupied or another cat has claimed it as territory. They should be scooped daily, if not more often and changed completely weekly washed with soap and water only. You can also offer one kind of litter in one box and another kind in another to see if there is a preference. I don't recommend the crystal kind, it makes a hissing sound when wet that can startle some cats and make them reluctant to use it again. The litter boxes should be located in a quiet, low-traffic area so that the cat can use them in peace. Make sure any other pets or people aren't giving them a hard time around or in the litter box. It may take some investigation and experimentation to find your cat's preference and accommodate him so that everyone is satisfied with the situation. And, when cleaning up pet accidents, don’t use any cleaner containing ammonia. This leaves behind a scent similar to urine

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24Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Other Answers

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    Answered By Laura Johnson VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 14th, 2017

    Hi, thanks for using PetCoach! Poor Awdee! Yes, Awdee definitely could be inappropriately urinating because she isn't spayed and is in heat or marking because she hears or sees other cats. Other causes can be from: Urinary tract infection, crystals in her urine, bladder stones, stress/behavioral. I would recommend a Vet exam and have them check her urine for infection and crystals and maybe take one X-ray to check for bladder stones. If the testing comes back normal I would schedule to have her spayed. I would keep her confined until she has recovered from the spay. In the room where she is confined use a Feliway diffuser and also put one in your bed room. Make sure you have 1 litter box per cat plus one. Do not keep all the litter boxes together in the same place if you have more than one cat. When you let her out of confinement keep the door to your room closed until you know she is using her litter box 100%. Then allow her back in. I hope this helps and good luck! http://pet-supplies.drsfostersmith.com/search?w=feliway%20for%20cats

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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    Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

    Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

    Published on May 27th, 2018

    Hi there. If this is a new behavior for Snyper, the first thing I would recommend is a vet visit. Most cases of inappropriate elimination in cats are actually a result of medical problems rather than behavioral issues, so this should always be the first step. If your veterinarian doesn't find any problems on Snyper's exam and lab work, then it's possible that this issue could be strictly behavioral. In that case, it's hard to give much specific advice without more information - but in general, litter box issues are either related to stress and anxiety, or finding something about the litter box unacceptable (type of litter, size, location, cleanliness, etc.) So these are things that we would need to trouble-shoot to try and determine the reason for this behavior. Feel free to request a consultation with one of us for a more in-depth discussion, if you prefer - we would be happy to try and help.

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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    Answered By Debi Matlack

    Veterinary Technician

    Published on November 1st, 2020

    Inappropriate elimination in cats is often a behavioral problem rather than a medical problem, so the first step is to have her seen by your vet to eliminate any kind of illness or condition as a cause for her eliminating outside the box. If medical issues are ruled out, take a look at other reasons. Has there been a lot of unusual activity? Has you cat been left at home or boarded? Is the litterbox in a busy area? Has anything happened recently in this area to make her reluctant to use it again? Is there another cat, pet or person that is preventing her from getting to the box? Have you changed it from a hooded to an open box, or vice versa? Is it big enough? Have you changed the type or brand of litter? Is there something attractive about the spot she uses? Cats dislike disturbances to their routine and may act out to express their dissatisfaction. The general rule is one litter box per cat in the household, plus one. That way each cat can have a place of their own to go in case the box is occupied or another cat has claimed it as territory. They should be scooped daily, if not more often and changed completely weekly, washed with soap and water only. You can offer one kind of litter in one box and another kind in another to see if there is a preference. I don't recommend the crystals, it makes a hissing sound when wet that startles some cats and make them reluctant to use it again. The litter boxes should be located in a quiet, low-traffic area so that the cat can use them in peace. Make sure any other pets or people aren't giving them a hard time around or in the litter box. It may take some investigation and experimentation to find your cat's preference and accommodate him so that everyone is satisfied with the situation. And, when cleaning up pet accidents, don’t use any cleaner containing ammonia. This leaves behind a scent similar to urine which can encourage a cat to return to the same place to eliminate.

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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