Question by funinthesun101: How do you stop a cat from marking on the carpet?
I have two cats, 1 male, 1 female, brother and sister, and I have 1 dog, male. Before the dog came, they never marked anywhere in the house. Now, they always pee on the carpet right by the tv and it stinks SO MUCH! I can’t take it anymore,… but I don’t want to get rid of my cats. I think they are marking their territory. I have tried cleaning the carpet, keeping them away from it for a while, and yelling at them when I see them doing it. I have only seen my girl cat pee on the carpet. Please tell me if they’re marking their territory or what, why they’re doing it, and how I can stop it. My dad says we might have to get rid of them if they don’t stop so I am DESPERATE! Please Help!

Best answer:

Answer by HRO
Hi there,
I am sorry to hear that your kitty is peeing in the wrong place! I went through that with my kitty, Daphne. Here is what I learned from taking her to a “Behavioral Counseling” session with her veterinarian.
First of all, the vet examined her for any health problems such as urinary tract problems. Once he was sure that she was physically healthy he reviewed her behaviors with me. We worked it out that she was anxious about having a new pet in our home. If this is the case with your cat, these suggestions may help.

1) Clean the area thoroughly with an enzyme solution (Petzyme, etc). Make sure you pour enough on the area so that it soaks down to the padding underneath. Cats have good noses and can smell where they have marked even when we can’t.
2) From your question, it seems that she may have started this behavior when the dog came to live with you. She may be nervous/scared or angry that this new animal is in the house and peeing is her way to tell you she is upset. To solve this, you may need to give her her own space away from the dog that she can go to to feel “safe”. If she has a good relationship with her brother kitty, it may be ok for him to join her. (Try it and see) I happened to designate a bedroom as Daphne’s “room”. She has a litter box, food and toys in there. When she gets too anxious, she can go in there and feel safe from whatever was upsetting her in.
3) Cats have “Vertical territories”. This means that they like to be up high. It makes them feel safe. Make sure that she has plenty of places where she be up high. Perhaps invest in a cat tree or cat shelves where she can be up off of the floor out of reach of the dog, small kids, etc. Put one near your TV to see if it helps.
4) Also once the carpet is dry, you might want to put an object over the spot to prevent her from going there out of habit.

I hope this helps!

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