Need help/advise

[Steve]

Hello my savannah loving friends!!

We brought home our 2 new babies 10 days ago. F2 male siblings. They have been in isolation together in a bathroom adjacent to our bedroom. After the 3rd day we noticed one of the kittens straining and a little spasmodic trying to urinate. We observed closely and could tell that he was having a hard time and then outside the box or inside wherever he would let loose a full bladder. We assumed possibly a UTI so took him to the vet for a culture sample and other tests. All tests were negative but the problem has persisted. One night he just let loose more urine than a kitten should possibly have in its tiny body while playing on our bed. Barely 20 feet from the box.

Fast forward to today. The other kitten just did the same thing. I was playing with him and watched him go into his box and he sat there for at least 2-3 minutes and when he hopped out there was nothing. 10 minutes later he was playing with his brother and I watched him squat so I went over and picked him up to take him to his box and the kitten just let loose peeing everywhere as I was carrying him.

Could this be a behavioral issue? Could it be a genetic flaw?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Steve

 

[WitchyWoman]

Did the vet check for structural abnormalities on the kitten who appeared to be straining? Have you spoken to the breeder about this and whether it occurred at her place? Do they poop in the box?

Are you using the same litter as the breeder and an open (no lid) litter box? Do you have more than one box? If not, add one more box.

You'll need to thoroughly clean all areas where they've peed with a good enzyme cleaner such as Anti Icky Poo. They'll keep peeing on the same areas if they detect the slightest smell of urine.

Hopefully some breeders experienced with this will chime in and offer insight. It appears as though they are litter box trained but are choosing other areas.

 

[Steve]

I haven't able to speak to the vet directly but will today.
The litter is probably not the same and we do have 2 boxes. They poop in the boxes.

The disturbing thing is watching the cat squat in the box trying to pee, nothing comes out then a little bit later pees wherever he happens to be.

I just saw the thread of the person with the 6 year old and similar issue. Is it a breed thing? My other boy never did this.

 

[admin]

Steve, how old are the kittens? And no, it is not a "breed" thing...

 

[Steve]

12 weeks old

 

[admin]

12 weeks old

So you really need to contact your breeder first...and then perhaps talk to your vet about the fact that the second kitten is doing the same thing...are they spayed/neutered?

You need to be using the same litter the breeder was using as well as the same food...

 

[Steve]

What questions should I ask the breeder? She's already aware that there is something wrong and that we've taken one of them to the vet. We thought very highly of this breeder until we presented a problem and now she's slow to return calls.

Not neutered yet.

 

[WitchyWoman]

Ask if she actually saw the kittens peeing in a litter box and how consistently they did it. Ask if she noticed pee puddles around the kitten room. Ask if she had other situations occur with other kittens she has sold. The measure of good breeders is how well they respond when things aren't going perfectly.

 

[Steve]

Thanks. This breeder is close so we were able to visit several times and I saw the kittens use the box. I also know that there were accident spots but she didn't know which of the three. It's not that they aren't using the box here, they are. A lot! I'm trying to chalk it up to kittens playing and getting distracted but then I go back to watching the cat get in the box and try real hard and nothing comes out. That's what's bugging me.

 

[WitchyWoman]

Forgot to mention to try sprinkling a layer of Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract litter over the top of the current litter and see if it helps.

Also experiment with litter depth. Sometimes it's too deep, sometimes too shallow, and it may take some experimenting to find the magic zone. Same with the size of the box -- maybe they are too small. The straining may simply indicate that they know they're supposed to pee in there but for some reason, they don't like doing so.

It is not uncommon for cats who don't like the litter or the box or the location of the box to poop in the box but pee elsewhere.