Dire straits for my cat
I'm in very dire straits for my cat, and I don't know what to do. Especially since I'm in Europe and not coming back for over a month. Anything you can offer would be appreciated, since I'm faced with having to get rid of him as the only option I can now see, and I would hate myself if I turned him to a shelter.
About 3 weeks before I left, Freaky decided to start peeing in the small room that leads up to the upper floors, i.e. in my housemate L's room. There was no rhyme or reason to it. It's a hardwood floor, and he's never peed on a hard floor before. He began doing it daily, sometimes more than once per day. L wasn't happy about this, but we decided to bring a second litter box downstairs into that room, since he seemed intent on it.
So he stood on the edge of the litterbox and peed outwards from it. And he never pooed into it, so he was clearly able to get up to the upstairs box. I brought him to the vet who did a number of tests and found him to be anemic, but otherwise alright. They put him on steroids, which he's been getting since then.
A friend N is housesitting for me, thankfully, since that's the only thing that's kept my housemate from leaving I'm sure. She took him for followups to the vet. They've tried several things with the boxes, tried putting this relaxation scent into the walls, and nothing. He's now locked out of the small room, and thus the upstairs and the litter box he's used to. But now he's crapping in the living room outside the box. A new step.
I don't know what to do. He's been so much less happy since moving to SF, and it's just gotten worse. He doesn't like L's cat, which may be a lot of it, although there's no way to know. But I do know that I can't have a cat that pees daily on hardwood floors, or at least I don't see how it's possible. If either of my housemates bails, I will never be able to get another in this environment, so I'm facing paying all the rent myself, not to mention all the damages from the floor whose smell may never leave.
I presume his mood shifts are related in part to not having a real backyard, although we do let him out to use what we have. And in part because of the other cat. He's so moody, even before this all started. I'm the only one he likes or has any interest in.
Can you think of anyone with a yard who could take an indoor-outdoor cat? Can you think of anything else? I think I may be completely out of options. He's a bit over 10 years, but only a bit. I don't know exactly since he was a stray at the shelter when I got him.
Thank you.
About 3 weeks before I left, Freaky decided to start peeing in the small room that leads up to the upper floors, i.e. in my housemate L's room. There was no rhyme or reason to it. It's a hardwood floor, and he's never peed on a hard floor before. He began doing it daily, sometimes more than once per day. L wasn't happy about this, but we decided to bring a second litter box downstairs into that room, since he seemed intent on it.
So he stood on the edge of the litterbox and peed outwards from it. And he never pooed into it, so he was clearly able to get up to the upstairs box. I brought him to the vet who did a number of tests and found him to be anemic, but otherwise alright. They put him on steroids, which he's been getting since then.
A friend N is housesitting for me, thankfully, since that's the only thing that's kept my housemate from leaving I'm sure. She took him for followups to the vet. They've tried several things with the boxes, tried putting this relaxation scent into the walls, and nothing. He's now locked out of the small room, and thus the upstairs and the litter box he's used to. But now he's crapping in the living room outside the box. A new step.
I don't know what to do. He's been so much less happy since moving to SF, and it's just gotten worse. He doesn't like L's cat, which may be a lot of it, although there's no way to know. But I do know that I can't have a cat that pees daily on hardwood floors, or at least I don't see how it's possible. If either of my housemates bails, I will never be able to get another in this environment, so I'm facing paying all the rent myself, not to mention all the damages from the floor whose smell may never leave.
I presume his mood shifts are related in part to not having a real backyard, although we do let him out to use what we have. And in part because of the other cat. He's so moody, even before this all started. I'm the only one he likes or has any interest in.
Can you think of anyone with a yard who could take an indoor-outdoor cat? Can you think of anything else? I think I may be completely out of options. He's a bit over 10 years, but only a bit. I don't know exactly since he was a stray at the shelter when I got him.
Thank you.