Picture this scene—you’ve come home after a long day at work and are finally ready to roll into bed and head off to dreamland. You throw the covers back, only to find a big wet spot; your cat peed on your bed! Cats are usually good at using their litter boxes, but sometimes cats can eliminate inappropriately, and this can put a lot of stress on your relationship with kitty, especially if it happens repeatedly. .
So, how do you stop your cat from peeing on your bed? Well, the first thing to do is to determine why they are peeing on your bed in the first place. While they may be doing this because of a behavioral problem, they may also be dealing with a medical issue, so knowing the cause can help eliminate the behavior. Here’s a look at why cats pee on beds and how you can prevent yours from doing so.
Why Do Cats Pee the Bed?
Cats urinate on beds (and other inappropriate places) for a number of reasons. Here’s a closer look at what those are.
Litter Box problems
Cats spend a fair amount of time in the litter box, so be selective about the type of litter used in the box and where it is placed. If your cat’s litter box is not up to their standards, they will find another place to use the bathroom. This will also happen if you don’t clean the litter box as often or as much as necessary.
Anxiety
Cats can suffer from anxiety, just like people, they just have different ways of dealing with it. One of those ways can be bedwetting. How does this help? When your cat pees, they leave pheromones that comfort them, making the bed a safer place for them. Why is a cat anxious? A cat can experience anxiety for any number of reasons, including moving to a new home, a new person or pet in the house, fireworks, loud noises, construction, etc.
old age
Older cats often suffer from joint issues that make it difficult for them to get up and down or get in and out of things. For some cats, getting out of bed (especially if there is a ramp or kitty stairs) may be simpler than getting in and out of the litter box. Older cats can also suffer from cognitive decline as they age, which can cause them to forget where the litter box is, resulting in them looking for the next best flat surface, which could be yours. bed
Health Issues
There are many health conditions or illnesses that can cause a cat to pee on your bed. Some of these include feline idiopathic cystitis, urinary tract infections, diabetes, kidney disease, bladder stones, and incontinence.
8 Tips and Tricks to Stop Your Cat from Peeing on Your Bed
Getting your cat to stop peeing on your bed can take some time and patience. Once you identify the underlying cause of the behavior, changes in some aspect of your cat’s care and home environment are usually necessary. Here are some tips and tricks to help you out!
1. Veterinary Check-Up
When dealing with any type of inappropriate elimination, it is important to rule out any underlying medical conditions. Book a consultation with your vet who will examine your cat and may recommend other tests such as bloodwork, urine tests or imaging. If your cat has been diagnosed with a medical condition, following your veterinarian’s prescribed treatment plan is important to prevent your cat from urinating on your bed.
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2. Organize the Litter Box
Think your kitten has problems with the location of the litter box, the type of litter used, or how it is cleaned? Then, fix the issue! There will be some guesswork here, as you will likely need to try a few different types of litter to discover which one your cat likes best or move the litter box around until you find the perfect spot for it. One thing to remember when moving the litter box is that it can’t be too close to your pet’s food and water, and it shouldn’t be in a noisy area.
When cleaning the litter box, make sure you scoop it every day and change the litter completely once a week. If you have multiple cats in your home, you should have one litter box per cat, plus one extra, scattered around your home. Also, if cats with joint issues have difficulty getting in and out of the litter box, get a lower litter box for them.
3. Stress-Proof Your Home
Okay, you probably won’t be able to completely stress-proof your home, but if you know what makes your cat anxious, you can eliminate the stressor. Of course, this won’t work with something like a new baby in the house or a move to a new home; in those cases, it’s a matter of giving your pet time to get used to the changes that have occurred and giving them a safe place where they can retreat if necessary. Hopefully once they get used to it, they will go back to normal behavior. If you can remove a stressor, however, the behavior should be removed more quickly.
4. Synthetic Pheromones
Synthetic pheromones, such as Feliway, are available as diffusers and sprays and mimic the natural pheromones that cats produce when they feel safe and secure. After making sure your cat’s toilet areas are up to scratch you can add a Feliway diffuser to the room your cat spends the most time in to help them feel calm and reassured.
5. Interact With Your Cat More Often
Take time each day to play with your cat! Playtime helps cats de-stress and become less anxious. Plus, it’s a fantastic way to bond with your pet, making them happier and more relaxed.
6. Use an Enzymatic Cleaner
You probably throw your bed linens in the laundry when your cat pees on your bed. Don’t do that, though! Before you wash anything, spray where your cat peed with an enzymatic cleaner. These types of cleaners remove any lingering urine odor, so your pet won’t smell the urine later and think it’s a good place to pee again. This is an extra step in the process, but it will help in the long run.
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7. Spray Your Bed With Perfume That Kitty Hates
If nothing else works, you can try deterrents to try and stop the behavior, for example, by spraying your comforter with a scent your cat hates to make it less attractive to them. Commercial sprays are available and cats tend to dislike citrus scents. Of course, you’ll need to find a scent you can live with if you go this route! While using scents that your cat finds may help in the short term, if you haven’t addressed the root cause of the inappropriate elimination, you’ll likely see the behavior reoccur, even if it is in a different location.
8. Close Your Bedroom Door
Finally, the simplest way to keep your cat from peeing on your bed is to restrict access and close the bedroom door! While addressing other factors, close your bedroom door, and don’t let your cat sleep on the bed. They may go back to the litter box if you do this or decide to pee on the couch or floor next time, but at least your bed is safe.
Conclusion
Cats pee on your bed for a variety of reasons, many of them medical. However, if you can determine the reason for your kitten’s no longer using the litter box, you should be able to resolve the issue. Start by eliminating health concerns with a trip to your vet and addressing any litter box issues. Solving this problem can take time and patience, but you should avoid any type of punishment that will only make the situation worse and stress your cat out more. If the problem persists, it can also help to seek help from a veterinary behaviorist.
Featured Image Credit: Creative Cat Studio, Shutterstock
