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The two options are, either it's behavioral or medical. If nothing has changed in his routine or surroundings, it's possible it could be a medical issue. Is he peeing anywhere else, or more/less frequently than usual, or does he appear uncomfortable when trying to pee?

Take kitty to the Vet to be checked for a urinary track infection. If a cat's behaviors change suddenly it is often a sign of illness.

My cats always did inappropriate peeing when they weren't feeling well. Off to the vet with Steve.

Yeah, could be a urinary tract infection. My cat would pee somewhere obvious when she had one and I always thought it was to tell me where and what the trouble was. Timing in the morning, and where you have no choice but to see it, is suspicious.

Wish I could help - one of my dogs destroyed 3 brand new Restoration Hardware bathmats in 20 minutes while I was out talking to a neighbor. Sigh. Just close the bathroom door.

We had the same problem with our cat. He decided that he liked to pee on a certain door mat and a certain bath mat. There wasn't a health problem and there wasn't a litter box problem. After a lot of internet checking and analysis, we figured out that some cats just like to pee on certain mats, and the only answer for us was removing the mat (in the bath) and replacing the door mat with a different one. He hasn't done it with other mats in the house.

For some strange reasons, some cats like to pee on bath mats, esp ones with rubber backings. There's something about the smell of them, I think. Mine did when she was younger so I got rid of her (NO! j/k, j/k!) Since then, I've only used mats without the rubber backings, similar to those used in hotel baths.

Definitely take him to the vet. My male, orange cat, Leroy, started peeing in obvious spots around the house and after taking him to the vet, found out that it was a urinary tract infection with struvite stones. It turns out that this is rather common in male cats. Luckily, a change of diet (prescription food with low magnesium) has made all the difference. But be sure to take him to the vet as this is a chronic condition with a relatively simple solution if caught on the early side.

My dog peed on bathmats when she had a UTI, but that was overnight when she couldn't go out, while your cat has a litterbox available so it might be totally different. However there was something about the bathmat - never on the tiles or wood floor. It was the best place, we could just throw the mats in the wash.

He's pissed.

Get him to the vet, quick! I could have saved my cat a great deal of pain and myself an enormous amount of money at the emergency vet if I'd recognized that symptom.

awesome name. my friend's cat is called Gene Wilder. i think he and Steve Martin need to meet!

You may wish to take your cat to the vet just to be on the safe side in case something is wrong with him medically.

However....I second what Bipolarbear said about some cats just going after bath mats. One of my cats (the female) will pee on the bath mat if I put one out...I, too, think it has something to do with the rubber on the back. I've had to switch to a towel-type of bath mat but I haven't had any problems since.

Good luck!

I agree with all the UTI people: Cats often pee in ways that get your attention when they have a urinary issue.

In my case, memorably, Pork Chop on the kitchen table while I was eating breakfast.

My sister's cat just had two UTI's in a row....he still used his litter box, but kept hopping in and out without doing anything. The vet said they will pee outside the litter box when not feeling well because they associate the box with the pain of trying to go, so they start to avoid it. They choose soft things like bath mats because they don't like the splash-back of a hard surface. My whole apt is wood floors with one area rug in the living room, and whenever one of my cats needs to throw up, they run...RUN...to my rug...sigh...

Teak bath "mats" like these at westelm. Target also makes a cheaper version.

Good luck!

Keep the bathroom door closed I have to do this with my dog.

I rescued a cat from a shelter who had a nasty habit of peeing on throw rugs and other mats. When I saw that she used some rugs and not others, I did some research on the Internet and found that some cats react to the latex backing. They seem to find the smell like that of urine and so they think it is a proper place to pee. Changing the mats to all cotton or vinyl back eliminated the problem completely.

In your case, since this was a sudden change, I agree with the vet visit. However, for others who are dealing with this problem for non-medical reasons, please try to change the rugs and keep the cat.

lol i registered just to answer this.. and because I'm new to the site. it's a good idea to take him to the vet, yes, but i agree with jilld17 and bipolarbear. cats just like to pee on certain bath mats. spray the mat with an enzyme spray and he won't pee on it anymore.

my cat also has a weird thing for bathmats (or anything with that rubber backing...?) so when it's not in use, i put the bathmat over the edge of the tub...it doesn't solve the problem, but it avoids a pissy mat! :)

Lots of cats like to pee on bathmats just because but to be safe, take him to the vet. My cat peed on the floor next to my bed one morning and I knew something was wrong. Took her to the vet and she was very very sick. The peeing is their way of telling you something is up.

Geez. This is the second entry today on cats peeing all over the house. I just don't get it.

Get a dog. They're way cooler than cats.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/spins_lps/2797826296/

It sounds like your cat is marking his/her territory.

Look into Feliway Spray:

http://catfaeries.com/feliway.html

woah, spinsLPs!!! you sure you want to start such a war in a kitty post??? :-)

When your cat does use the litter, be sure and watch it to see if it cries a bit when trying to pee---that is a sure sign of UTI. Needs to go get a shot to help.
Do not feed your cat milk ever, it is one of the main reasons for UTI. Lots of water also needs to be around for it to drink all the time.
Good Luck

But I agree with the other posters too - get your kitty to a vet!

Yep first stop is vet.

If there turns out to be no medical problem it could be behavioral.

My family and I lived between two cities due to work and family growing up and our cat (which we ended up having to leave home every weekend because my paw paw was raised to think cats were dirty) got a bad case of separation anxiety.

He would throw up on the carpets and pee in random places. He wasn't sick, just upset. So make sure there's not something that might be upsetting your baby.

I second the latex reason...
Some cats perceive the scent as being marked by another cat... which they need to remark as their own.
I'd replace this bathmat with one that has no latex backing. There are more and more of these around, from your vintage stores, to Target and places like Bed, Bath, and Beyond that won't break the bank, and still match your decor.

my cat also pees on the mat, she even drags it down from the tub edge to boot. It's just softer then kitty litter so she likes it better!!! We now hang the mat until we use it, and quickly hang it back, to avoid all pee mishaps!

We have a cat who likes to pee on bathmats. My best advice: shut the door, and pick up the mat when you're done.

If the vet rules out a medical reason, I can confirm 2 things: that cats like to pee on latex backed mats, and that separation anxiety can do strange things to a cat's behavior. If your cat associates your shower with you leaving for the day to go to work, he may be expressing his anxiety by peeing on the rug. I close the door when I shower and don't leave the bathmat on the floor to remove the target. The anxiety may remain! My cat associates my departure with my morning toothbrushing, and cries frantically until I spit, rinse, and pick her up for a ritual 25-stroke petting.

peeing steve martin = innate behavior
innate behavior = wild beasts
wild beasts = great outdoors
great outdoors = no vets
no vets = easy on the wallet
easy on the wallet = dispensable bath mats
dispensable bath mats = peeing steve martin

My little princess Mila started peeing on the bathmat after I left her with a friend for a week. She never stopped. It was originally behavioral, and then I think she decided that bathmats were nicer, softer, more absorbent, prettier and obviously more expensive than cat litter -- so why wouldn't she use a bathmat? She's not stupid! If I were a cat I'd use a bathmat too, especially if it were expensive. The vet has looked at her many times and there is nothing wrong with her bladder.

Solution: bamboo bathmat such as the one at Linen's and Things (US site http://www.lnt.com: $14.99, CAN site http://canada.lnt.com:$19.99).

After finding that bamboo does not absorb her pee, she has gone back to using the litter box (unless I accidentally leave a bath towel on the floor, she is crafty).

My cat loves to pee on my fairly new bath mat. And anything else that's new on the floor, whether it's a piece of paper or a shoe in the wrong place. He's very territorial. My cat is healthy but likes to pee on things he plays with, and yes, he loves playing with rugs.

"My cat associates my departure with my morning toothbrushing, and cries frantically until I spit, rinse, and pick her up for a ritual 25-stroke petting."

My cat does that too! He gets very upset when I brush my teeth. He also has separation anxiety. He obsessively grooms himself when I'm not around to the point of baldness. I am very thankful that he has an AMAZING digestive system so this doesn't result in hairballs everywhere.

As to your question, I also agree that you should take him to the vet, but it's probably a combination of latex bath mat and separation anxiety. Do you have a shower then leave shortly after?

Hey all! Thanks so much for the comments! I don't know if it's the mat. Last nite I washed all of the mats, never got around to laying them back down. But this morning, when I walked in to take my shower, he had already peed on that same spot of bare terrazzo floor! So first thing I will do is take him to the vet.

Thanks,
Mariah

Pets and bathmats don't mix. My dog ate mine, over and over. Time to get rid of it. (The bathmat! Not the cat!)

I think the first thing you should do is take the cat to the vet to get checked out. If nothing has changed in the household to cause him stress, then it may be a medical issue that needs to be looked at. There are many medical conditions which would cause your cat to urinate inappropriately such as urinary tract infection, diabetes and liver failure, just to name a few. I would want to rule out any medical reason for this happening first.

I'm going to add another question out there instead of answering. My cat has always had a problem with urinating outside of her litter box, she usually keeps it to bath mats, and such but since I got married almost a year ago she has started peeing on my SOFA! ICK! I know she is most likely jealous of the time I spend with my husband but I always make sure I spend quality time with her everyday too.

How do I get her to stop and feel comfortable with my husband? I can't get divorced because of my cat!?! Plus she is slowly ruining my most beautiful and beloved white leather couch. I clean everyday but I know eventually she will mark it beyond repair. I've taken her to the vet before - no medical problems found. She is obviously just very upset. Should I find her a home where she would be happier or is there something I can do?

Nester,

My cat has separation anxiety AND can be quite jealous of my boyfriend. She completely ruined my leather couch by peeing on it and has peed in other places in my apartment. I ended up buying a new couch and now keep it covered with plastic (currently using a heavy weight paint drop cloth) unless is being sat upon. Not the most beautiful way to keep the cat off the couch, but it does work! I'd like to get a removeable, fitted plastic cover for it eventually. I also learned the hard way by putting a coat on top of the plastic which she proceeded to pee on.

Good luck!

One of my cats took to peeing in a closet for a day or two. Turned out, much like the above comments, that she had a urinary tract infection. I'd take him to the vet.

I was concerned when my cat started peeing on the bathmats too. I had rubber ones and switched to just the cotton/ towel bathmats, but that didnt work. I took him to the vet and the dr. said he was fine and that maybe i should get a new litter box. So I did, and my kitty has never peed on the mat again. go figure?

i always think if a cat has separation anxiety, why not get her another cat friend to take her mind off it?

Cats like peeing on bath mats, especially those with rubber backs. I seriously doubt it's a sign of health or behavioral problems. Get a bath mat that's all cloth and I'll bet he stops.

Now if he pees on the floor or acts weird about peeing, definitely take him to the vet FAST.

We've never had a latext mat, but Cashmere sometimes pees on it when I forget it down--like when she's pissed at me for going to work. She sits there with her paws curled on it while she supervises my showers/baths, though. Damn she's cute, though!

You all are missing the real issue here.... After all, it is Apartment Therapy, not Pet Therapy. The real question is why do you have bath mats?

vet..which Im sure you have already done, and clean it up with natures miracle. I have had lots of pets- dog, cat, guinea pig.... worked like a "miracle" to get rid of the smell and pee. http://www.mythreecats.com/products/natures-miracle

My cats started this in a house we had flea issues (there were possums sneaking into the cellar). However, we've moved several times and they never broke the habit.

EASY solution: No bathmat. I keep a hand towel folded neatly on the side of the tub. When I shower I place it outside to step on when I am done. Shortly after drying off etc. I fold it neatly and put it back on the side of the tub. In another house where I had more room, I simply banned my beloved kitties from the bathroom.

See how I deal with other cat challenges here:
http://cuckoomulticat.blogspot.com/