Brother's cat peeing on my stuff again

[A156728]

I need some help

I live in a house with my parents and my brother, my brother has a spayed female cat called Sally.
Sally went through a phase where she would sneak into my room and pee on my stuff, usually things that had fallen on the floor. She would only ever pee on my stuff, she also peed on my shoes that were downstairs. She stopped doing it after a while.

Well she recently started doing it again and I don't know why. The only thing I can think of is she's gone outside a couple of times recently (she doesn't like going outside unless it's summer)
She is really cuddly with me, meows at me and purrs when I stroke her so I don't think it's stress.

I suffer from OCD and the idea of the germs and her peeing on something and me not realising and laying in it is causing me to have anxiety. It is currently 2am and I cannot sleep because I can still smell urine in my room after removing the cushion she peed on and the idea of being in the same room as urine is causing me distress.

My family's solution to the problem is to tell me to keep my door shut, and to say it's my fault for leaving the door open. But we live in an old Victorian house and the door is warped and sometimes just pings open by itself

Is there anything I can do to stop her from doing this? I need her to stop!

[fjm]

I would invest in an enzyme spray that you can use on any areas that she has peed on to break down the urine and remove any smell, and an extra latch for your bedroom door. Choose one that can be opened from either side - you don't want to feel panicky that you might get locked in. It is possible that Sally is using your room precisely because she can rarely get into it, and it is therefore on the absolute margins of "her" territory and needs marking as such, so you may find things improve if, once you have made sure there are no traces of urine smell to encourage her to mark again, you welcome her in when you are there to supervise her - perhaps give her a small meal or a few treats and let her sit with you while you read (nothing too absorbing - you need to be alert to any signs of peeing). But management - making sure she does not have access - is the easiest solution.

[Ruth B]

Shutting her out of the room may stop her peeing on your things but it doesn't really answer the problem as to why she was doing it. Getting an extra catch for the door might help you feel happier and if you are happier that in itself could help her stop. I don't want to upset you further but it could be that she is picking up your own anxiety and thinks something about your room is unsafe therefore she tries to make it better by saying 'this room is mine, people who upset my family should keep out' the only way she really knows how, by marking the area with her urine. She doesn't realise that she is making the whole thing worse.

It is possible if she doesn't go out a lot that she has gone out recently and found that a new cat has left plenty of markers over what she used to think was her territory and now wants to make sure that they know she is there and claims the area. If she isn't allowed in your room it won't smell of her much so again she is putting her scent in there the best way she can think of.

Like FJM says get a bottle of an enzyme based cleaner specifically formulated to get rid of cat urine, normal bleach can unfortunately make matters worse as when it breaks down it leaves a scent similar to cat urine, making them feel like they need to mark that place again. I would also suggest getting a UV torch as cat urine glows under UV light so you can find out just where she has peed and clean it up fully. It will also mean you have the ability to check whenever you feel you need to and it will show you clearly that she hasn't peed in there which will hopefully make you feel a little happier rather than worrying about whether you can smell it or not.

I also agree on the idea of inviting her in when you are in there so she can get her normal scent in the room. Could you get her a bed to go in there or even make one with some old towels and encourage her to sleep or at least sit on that so her scent can soak into it. If she has cat beds around the house it might be worth moving one into your room so it already smells of her. It might be worth getting one of the wand and string toys that you can then attach feathers or other things to and play with her in your room with it. Playing with a cat can be a great way to relieve your own stress levels as well, which again will help her.

I hope you can learn to enjoy her company, and not be constantly worried about her peeing over your things.