Over the past two years, I have had problems with two of my cats peeing on things after we moved to a new house.
I took them to the doctor to make sure they didn't have bladder infections. This had happened before with my parent's cat, and that was the trouble. However, the vet determined that the cause was not physical, it was behavioral.
These cats had always been high-strung. I changed the type of litter. I moved the litter boxes to very quiet locations. I added litterboxes to new locations. I bought a fortune in enzymatic cleaners to completely remove the scent of urine from anywhere they had messed. The vet prescribed them Valium. This helped a bit, but they still were urinating on things. I also didn't like that they seemed "foggy" on Valium.
I was washing the bedding on my bed several times per week. They expressed their angry opinions on my couch, so I had to cover it in vinyl and put hospital pee pads all over it so they could be easily washed, and I could bleach the vinyl cover. One of the cats began to pee on the stove.
Finally a lady from a local cat rescue advised me to ask my vet for a medication called Elavil. She calls them "happy blue pills"!
What a change! This inexpensive anti-anxiety, anti-depressant is worth its weight in gold. My cats are more relaxed, and I haven't had a single mess in over a week. The happy blue pills don't make them foggy either.
Pets are a lifetime commitment, and I love my (formerly) angry cats. We are all much happier now that they are on medication!
Source: Whisker Rescue in Red Deer, Alberta.
By Janet from Red Deer, Alberta
By
04/05/2009
I hope you expect to try to taper off the pills in another few weeks.
Cats in particular are extremely territorial. Many do not do well with moving at all. I've tried moving feral cat colonies altogether for their own safety and it does not work.
Once they get more comfortable in your home please tryo tapering the pills. No meds are without side effects but Kudos on your efforts to keep them!
By
04/05/2009
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