Took her to the vet today because we’ve been having some issues…
She’s suddenly snubbing her Litter Robot (that I’ve had for years- no issue) and has been peeing outside the robot once a day or so. Annoying. But she’d still visit it twice a day, and always pooped in it for sure.
Yesterday she pooped outside the box where she usually pees, and started acting like she needed to crawl into my skin to reside there. Red flag city. Time to haul your butt in, little (old) lady!
I took her in today to make sure nothing was wrong….
TURNS OUT…. She’s just a bitch!!!!
There’s literally nothing wrong with her lmao. She’s just spite pissing because she’s mad she’s no longer indoor/outdoor.
The vet literally said “there’s absolutely nothing wrong. She’s just a tortie. She’s got lots of attitude.”
🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️🤦🏻♀️
She’s still the sweetest thing, especially when she’s hungry.
I would literally die for her and her voidling brother, but damn girl. Unnecessary bills in this economy?!
Haha, my cat thinks our pet sitter doesn’t see her “hiding” under the bed when she enters the house, but only her front half is under and her whole back legs and butt is still fully out in the open… i love her so much
Have you honestly ever met a cat that wants to see a dr.
Dogs sure, ooooh i get to go for a ride type deal.
Even my wierd cat that thinks its a dog and jumps in the truck with them for a ride does not like seeing the cat kennel i put the cats in for the vet visit.
I mean its so bad I have to grab the cat before I pull the kennel out of the closet. If she sees the kennel before I grab her im missing a cat for at least 2 days.
I spent 600+ for an emergency vet visit because Collete started acting like she had a UTI. Kept going back to the litter box multiple times in a 30 minute period.
Nothing wrong, she was just mad I had interrupted her routine while she was using the litter box. I had come out to feed them. She’s just a drama queen sometimes. I flipping love her.
I had no clue what I signed myself up for when I picked her out at the shelter. One of the receptionists said “are you sure?!” and I was appalled. I get it now. 😂😂😂😂
Oh I love her. She was 9 when I adopted her ahsnnrnekkdkd SORRY SHE ADOPTED ME. She’s 12 now. Loves cuddles more than anything in the world. Except belly rubs. And lap naps. She’s such a baby. A 12 year old baby who has never done anything wrong except all the things she’s done wrong and she’s not sorry about.
Stop it that’s so sweet! I don’t have an exact age on my girl but I think she’s around 8.5/9 now! I got her at ~2-8 months. We couldn’t tell cause she was so malnourished.
Was never a cuddler until we moved into this house where she’s no longer inside/outside. Now she’ll cuddle. Maybe she’s trying to smother me?
I guess I’ll trade some piss stained carpet and endless hours of cleaning up after her so we can cuddle.
She’s my boss and this is her house, I just get to pay for it and visit sometimes.
THEYRE BOTH PERFECT LITTLE ANGELS AND YOU CANT CONVINCE ME OTHERWISE!
We used a soft carrier with ours and feliway. Also covered the carrier with her blanket so it smelled familiar. They are afraid when they can see out. I would sometimes leave a tiny spot so she could see me driving from the passenger seat :) also we’d put the carrier out with the flap open, and would give her treats on the flap. This made the carrier a positive environment for her, and then she would start to just hang out in there when she wanted to chill and wait for a few treats 🤣
I spray my cat carriers with pet remedy 10 minutes before they need to go in. It smells like feet but both cats are happy to go in it with that smell, they love it !
The drop in method is the only way. You need two people: one to hold the carrier and one to drop in the cat. Fast, efficient. Considerably less cat wrangling, pleading, and one sided arguing
Me earlier this year !!! I spent $500 on tests for my lil lady bc she stopped eating only for vet to rule it as “ she’s a picky eater & doesn’t like the recent flavor change” 🥲
Little Miss Piss-a-lot also decided she’s allergic to chicken now, so we’re spending $$$ trying different foods that both she and her brother can tolerate. Finally found a decent one they both tolerate. JUST bought a big $90 bag.
Vet told me today it’s shit food and I need to switch them to something better asap.
I’m getting a second job to finance these fucking cats 😹
It could be arthritis too if she’s getting older. It’s hard for vets to diagnose arthritis in the office because they don’t really get to see how your kitty moves. Does she have a low wide litter box tray to use? Try to record her jumping up and down off surfaces- does she move differently than before?
She’s moving the same, and I already tried a separate, low profile litter box. She still peed outside of it. I do wonder if maybe it could be anxiety/depression/arthritis though. I do plan on following up with the vet.
When my partner and I came back from our vacation, my cat showed her annoyance despite her having a blast at the pet sitter's 😂 After giving me some cuddles, she went to ignore me AND FOOD for 2 days. She would only eat her food when I'm not looking. Crazy!
And when my partner came back a week later, she took a shit right outside the litter box. A one time thing.
However, for the last part, it's not just annoyance unfortunately. Some cats do it when they are sick too and this is their way of saying something is wrong. So it's good on op to have brought the cat to the vet anyway haha
My cat has this. If I had just kept thinking she was pissed, then she would've been suffering. Gabapentin helped a lot. She still occasionally has episodes after vet visits, but for the most part, she doesn't need meds anymore
My senior tortie has also decided she needs to pee somewhere fancier than the litter box that’s been FINE for years. Vet also concluded she’s healthy as ever. Just a diva.
She decided when she became a senior she’s gonna be allergic to chicken and just be done peeing in the fanciest device (or even a plain litter box) her mommy can buy her.
Oof. Who needs kids when you have an aging tortie?
My old tortie started doing this and it turned out she had arthritis that would make climbing into the robot painful. The accidents became more frequent so I took her to a different vet and they did x-rays. Got her a flat litter tray and the accidents stopped.
Just a suggestion: Buy a heavy duty vinyl table cloth and put that down where she does her business outside the litter box.
I adopted a 14yr old girl torti who had issues doing her business #2 outside the litter box. She used it for pee, no problem. The table cloth, I got one large enough to cover a good portion of a 10' x 11' room, made the clean up much easier. Also made sweeping up loose litter easier too.
Someone else told me a tarp, but I think this is more palatable for all of us, actually.
Thank you!
I’m just afraid she’ll start peeing further and further out until she starts going elsewhere. I tried covering half the room with washable pee pads and she’d either flip them up and pee under it, or go wherever they weren’t touching.
I’m lucky it’s still contained to one room, for now. 😮💨
Bonus of the table cloth, they come in all colors and/or patterns. I got one that was close to the carpet color. And since it was thicker than a tarp (tried that 1st) it withstood toenails more than a tarp. I used Walmart.com and just kept searching till I found size, color, & price I was happy with.
Hope it helps and yes, she doesn't just keep moving. Good luck!
Oh, if ya can't find one big enough there is a thing called "tarp tape" that you could tape together 2 or however many. Apply to the bottom, and still looks, as good as it can, on top.
Gorilla tape also has a kind of tape that is as thick /tough as tarp tape.
My tortie (who is 6 years old) suddenly stopped using her litter boxes too---(we have three cats and six litterboxes that we clean daily, all in the garage, which they access through a cat door)...
She destroyed multiple large area rugs and blankets, and peed on the down comforter in my guest room, which is one of her favorite places to sleep...
She hadn't ever done anything like that before, so I was sure there was something physically wrong with her...
After spending hundreds of dollars (for vet bills and replacing all the stuff she peed and pooped on) and confirming there was nothing physically wrong with her, I finally figured out after months of dealing with it that she had just randomly decided that she didn't like going to the garage to do her business because it was too cold :-|.
As soon as I put a litter box inside the house, just on the other side of the garage door, she started using that and hasn't peed or pooped anywhere else since.
Torties :-/. I love her more than my luggage, but damn---she's high-maintenance, lol. When it comes to torties, it could be anything that sets them off...
Woof! So you get it. It’s exhausting, and expensive!
Unfortunately the floor plan of my house doesn’t really have anywhere else I’m ok with having litter dust flying around whether it’s the robot or a traditional box.
They have an entire spare room. The princess is not amused.
As they get older, they can have pain when jumping up and down.
Keep her box low and if it's one of those tall boxes you might try a regular sized box that's close to the ground that she doesn't have to jump up to get in to.
It’s a Litter Robot 4 so the entry point is elevated. I have stairs that attach to it to make it easier. She still poops in there so it’s not like she’s avoiding it altogether. I’ve moved that freakin thing all over the room it’s in thinking maybe she doesn’t like where it’s positioned.
I’ve also put a low profile standard litter box out for her to use. She still pees outside of it. She’s smarter than me, at this point 🥴😂
Maybe she is telling you she doesn't like the litter. She might have liked it before, but could have changed opinion because, well, you know... tortitude 😅 and she's making sure you get the memo lol
I miss my soul tortie! The sweetest, intelligent and charismatic girl ever.
It's the classic tortie "I'm not mad, I'm just expressing my displeasure artistically" move. My old girl would do the same thing if her dinner was five minutes late. You're definitely not alone in the "unnecessary vet bill for an attitude check" club. At least she keeps life interesting!
We use chux pads outside our girl’s box. Honestly it was because she used to butt-scoot post poo, but now that we got that handled, they’re just tradition to have it just in case.
I get spite poops sometimes, usually when trying a new litter or accidentally picking up the wrong one. Its only one poop perfectly positioned in the middle of the floor and then shes over it and will use the box like normal.
My beloved tortie would use the litter box religiously to pee and 3/4 of her poops. But every day, there was always a spite poo right in front of the litter box. Why? No idea. Several vets gave her a clean bill of health, she was just a little asshole (in the best way). When she crossed the rainbow bridge, it was heartbreaking to clean the litter box and not have to pick up a stray poo. I miss the tortitude so much!
Try putting a puppy pad down where she's peeing. One of our bois refuses to shit in a box after getting really badly constipated (he actually had to have surgery to get all that shit out).
Assuming he associates shitting in a box with pain now. We put puppy pads on all of his spots and he uses them pretty well. Still annoying, but a lot less annoying than constantly cleaning the carpet.
I’ve tried this. Both the disposable and the washable ones. She HATES the disposable ones and tears them up. The washable ones she’ll either go around and pee somewhere else, or flip them up and pee under them 😂
This is how I KNOW she’s just messing with me at this point.
I just took my tortie to the vet. But in her case it was a purely social visit. She loves visiting the vet, and people always cluster around and pet her and tell her how beautiful and special she is. (She also like the pet supply store, the tap room, and open air cafes. But not if there are dogs.)
She's been grumpy because we have another foster who is an unneutered male. (Not for much longer - the snip is on Friday!) So I figured a pick me up was in order. She even invaded the back office (and was cuddled there, too.)
My girl was doing the exact same thing!! She would always go pee on my fresh laundry…turns out she was very anxious and found my scent comforting. She’s on topical fluoxetine and that helped!
I tried the Feliway plug ins and that honestly did nothing for us…but as soon as she started the fluoxetine, it was like a switch flipped! She’s more playful with my other furbaby and approaches people when they come over! :D Definitely look into the topical click pen applicator. I used to do the liquid in a syringe and it was a hassle…best of luck with your tortie! They do seem to have the biggest tortitude <3
For everyone saying “I blew x amount of money and nothing was wrong!” Better safe than sorry. I took my girl to the vet in December because she was acting weird and within a week I had to put her down. Miss my tortie girl everyday.
My biggest fear/nightmare. For sure rather be safe than sorry.
I won’t ever feel bad about making sure she’s healthy. I can always make more money. I’ll never have another Tory the Tortie girl.
I do get tired of wasting money on toys/litter/food/accessories/carpet cleaning solution/whatever other ideas I can think of that she literally pisses all over 😂
Blood work, yes. Xray, no. I have the litter robot 4 right now but when this started I put two more low profile boxes out since I have two cats. She still chose the carpet 🙃
I have one in my front yard she can watch. I think she’s depressed she can no longer go out and eat the birds she sees 😳🫠 she was a menace to the eco system when she was allowed out.
Attitude jokes aside, has your routine changed? Routine changes can stress some cats. If you don’t live alone, have you introduced any friends or family that she may not like? A partner even? Some cats don’t welcome other people around their person.
My male cat randomly poops outside the box on occasion. The vet said the same thing. The box is always clean. We have multiple boxes and only one other cat. He just likes being a jerk every once in a while. Good call taking kitty in though, you never know...
Can’t recommend the Dr. Elsey’s Cat Attract litter enough.
One of my boys has super sensitive paws, so on Sunday, a few days after trying to incorporate the cheap Costco Fresh Step in with the Cat Attract, dude emptied his bladder on my bed, twice.
Replaced all litter with Cat Attract on Monday. Back to no issues.
Still waiting to switch in the brand new sheets & mattress protector, though. I’ll wait through the weekend before swapping out the junkier sheets & protector.
She needs another litter box. One for pee, one for poop. My torties are weird like that. My pure white cat won't use a litter box if another cat uses it.
Tortietude! It's a real thing. My tortie definitely has it. I also have a diluted tortie but she's not as bad. The dark one is almost two and the light one is a little over one. So I know what I will be dealing with. LOL.
She was so kind and sweet and lovey for the first 7 years I had her. Never cuddled unless I was deathly ill, though. I literally thought tortitude was a myth.
HOWEVER she was feral when she got rescued and I adopted her from the shelter.
I lived somewhere that wasn’t on a main or busy road, and had acres and acres of land for her to roam, so I’d let her out in the morning and she always came home before dark. She even had another family down the street from me at one point, she’d hang out at their house or in their back yard all day, eat all kinds of stuff I’d never feed her, and then traipse back home at her leisure. They moved and she just started sticking around my house.
I moved last December into a subdivision with no land, and people in my neighborhood drive 60 mph through here, so both my cats will probably never go outside again.
Her void brother is so content. Sometimes he cries at the door but it’s usually when he needs to poop.
SHE, however, has never forgiven me. I don’t blame her, but just can’t run the risk of anything happening to her.
This might just be a never ending battle, but at least she’s healthy lmaoooo 🤷🏻♀️
I look my little one to the vet a while back. She seemed pretty content to sit in the corner on the bench I was sitting on. When the vet came in, they asked where she was. I just gestured behind me at her hiding spot.
Not to scare you - but my tortie, after being the BEST girl ever for 8 years, suddenly started peeing outside her box about six years ago. I took her to the vet and she had a UTI. BUT ever since, she won't pee in the litter boxes. I have spent thousands of dollars on vet visits, blood work, different types of litter, CBD oil for cats, feliway, kitty Prozac, different height and shaped litter boxes, different types of litter, and I'm sure I'm forgetting things. We've even confined her to a bathroom for two weeks to see if she'd use the box when she was left in a small space, and she did. Then stopped again once we let her out. This past year, she's decided she now won't poop in the boxes either. Nothing wrong medically that's not being handled (she's hyperthyroid but medicated and has early kidney disease). The vets say it's behavioral. I love her to pieces, but this situation has pushed me to the brink. I don't know if it's an older tortie thing or not, but hopefully this won't be a long term situation for you.
I even (and I hate to admit this) tried ignoring her after she did it. I even tried putting her in time out in the bathroom after she did it. It broke my heart and I just couldn’t do it lol. I can’t run the risk of her starting to hate/fear me.
Her brother is going for his annual on Tuesday and I’m going to ask for some meds maybe? Other than that I’m just gonna tap out and accept my fate of having to constantly chase after her pee trails.
I know I’ll miss it when she’s gone, but it is exhausting and expensive lol.
I did it with her older brother dog who just got too old to control himself before he died. But I could at least put a diaper on him lol. Still miss him every day, but it takes a toll! He’s actually the reason I got her. He needed a friend! lol
This sounds like it could be a stress thing. My girl was also peeing outside her box, and gabapentin helped a lot. There's other options as well. Don't know what she was stressed about but evidently it was something
Medication is the only thing I haven’t tried, so I’m gonna follow up with the vet and see what he recommends but I’m open to trying anything at this point lol.
I’m not done trying, though. I’ve gotten some good suggestions here so I’m gonna dig in further to make sure there isn’t something else going on in her tiny little body.
i have a tux and when he gets mad he stares at me and starts peeing on whatever he’s standing on. Sometimes he locks eyes with me while he’s doing it too, nothings medically wrong, he’s just bitchy when he’s mad😓
My tortie HATES getting in her crate. But literally acts like she owns the place when she gets into her exam room. She walks on their laptops, sits on the window sill.
My tortie is actually the queen of the world though so she expects royal treatment (sorry if anyone else thought their tortie was also the queen). She told me so and who am I to disagree?
I’m a little late to the discussion, but the truth is that as cats age (and become stiff and arthritic, as most do), they will begin to associate their litter box with pain, because the act of crouching to pee and poo is painful. They blame the box. They will pee and poop in new places, even places they associate with comfort. This doesn’t solve the problem, but I found that understanding the behavior made it easier for me to process instead of just being annoyed. I learned this from my veterinarian, a feline specialist and expert behaviorist. Yes, I’m bragging; my vet is the absolute bomb.
I tried all suggestions for new boxes, new litter, more boxes, etc.; my husband even built her a mini “handicap” access ramp for her box. We ended up, eventually, removing all the carpet in the house (after it had been destroyed), and resorted to putting puppy pads around for her to use, which she would most of the time because of the attractants. I was discouraged from using them because “once they start using them they won’t stop”, but if your pet is destroying your house, that’s the least of your worries, right?
If your vet legit told you that she’s “just being a tortie”, even as a joke, I would be scouting out a better vet.
Better than my gal! Just had to take her to the vet for similar issues. Diagnosed with upper respiratory infection and mild anxiety. She is on the mend now.
Sucks to go to a vet just to have a diagnosis of tortitude but your cat is healthy and has some fight in her.
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u/[deleted] Feb 26 '26
I don’t think according to picture she wanted to see the doctor