Why is my cat peeing on clothes and laundry instead of her litter box?

Question

My cat has a bad habit of peeing on things such of clothes or towels if left on the floor, even for a moment. She will also climb into laundry baskets and pee in there too. She has a large clean litter box, which she uses regularly. However this doesn't stop her from peeing outside of it too. Is there a reason she may be doing the this? How can you train a cat to not pee anywhere but their litter box? I'm afraid we've left the issue too long for it to be easily fixed. Pet's info: Cat | American Shorthair | Female | spayed | 1 year and 5 months old | 6.4 lbs

Jessica Keay, DVM · Accepted Answer

I am sorry to hear about your kitty! This is a frustrating and unfortunately common problem in cats! First, I would recommend a trip to the vet for an exam, and urinalysis to ensure there isn't a medical cause for this behavior such as a urinary tract infection or stones in the bladder. If the vet rules out any medical causes, then there are a variety of things you can try at home. There should be 1 more litter box than number of cats in your house. The box needs to be scooped daily and cleaned completely weekly. Some cats prefer a covered box and others an uncovered box. A very large litterbox is ideal. Some cats have a preferenc over substrates (one litter is better than another) so sometimes it takes some experimentation. I would recommend a pheremone diffuser product called "Feliway" that can decrease this issue in some cats https://www.feliway.com/us#redirected . You can also read this article for more ideas: https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951508 . If you try all these things to no avail then sometimes prescription anti-anxiety drugs can help. Also I would recommend being diligent about not placing towels/clothes/blankets on the floor.

Why is my cat peeing on clothes and laundry instead of her litter box?

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