Sorry if this is a repeat. I looked through a few other threads and thought our situation might be a little different.

We have two Bengals. Simba is one year older than Lynk....Lynk is about 15 months old.

Lynk will use the litter pan faithfully but will, on occasion, urinate on the leather sofa. It seems like he tends to do this if we are in the room sitting on the sofa itself. The first time he did this I was sitting on one end of the couch and he jumped up on the other end. I noticed he was squatting funny and realized that he had urinated.

We initially took him to the vet to rule out a urinary problem...got some advice on Felidae spray, etc. The problem seemed to work itself out but we have recently caught him doing it again. The vet had given us some meds to see if those worked but we weren't very good at giving them to him at the time since the problem seemed to go away.

Lynk is a little odd in that he doesn't care to be touched too much. He loves to play and will on occasion jump up and lay down near us but tends to like to hang out with Simba the most. Simba has no issues with the litter pan or the sofa. What is odd to me about Lynk is how (even though he will always stay an arms length away if you are reaching down to pet him) he will immediately come and jump in the litter pan and urinate or poop when you start to clean it. At feeding time or litter pan cleaning time he seems to forget that he doesn't like being handled. I don't get it.

Anyone have a similar issue? I'm starting to think that Lynk is just a bit neurotic....maybe he'll grow out of it?

Current plan is to clean the sofa (again) real well and leave the cushions moved up so that he doesn't have a platform to stand on and urinate.

Hi John. Welcome to the forum. It's difficult to understand a cat's behavior. You have two bengals with totally different personalities. Since you've ruled out any medical problems for Lynk (although not sure why the vet would prescribe medication if there wasn't a problem), then this is behavioral, especially since he will use the litter box at other times. All you can do is make the couch undesirable for him to use. A couple things come to mind -- do you have at least two litter boxes? You should have three -- one per cat and an extra one. Is the litter box far away from the couch? Cats can have bladder control issues just like humans. Make it more convenient for him -- even if that means putting a litter box in the living room. I know most people want to hide them out of the way, but a cat needs quick access at times.

Many bengals do not like being held. Most love being petted. If Lynk has been this way since you got him, then it was the lack of socialization at the breeders that may have caused him to behave like this. Mine doesn't like being picked up and held and is not a lap cat but he is super affectionate. However, a cat that does not like to be touched could be feeling some type of pain somewhere. Since you have two bengals, they have probably bonded really well. Normally, I'd say to give it time, but it's been a long while. You obviously engage Lynk in play time and interact with him. Hopefully, he walks around with his tail high in the air meaning he has a lot of confidence. Confidence is a huge issue in cats. Just observing a cat can give you some clues. Good luck.

Two thoughts:

1. The most obvious and straightforward thing you could do is put a litterbox down next to where he has peed on the couch.

2. From your description though, it sounds like it could be a territorial thing, where he places some significance on the couch as a "socially significant" place where maybe he feels a little bit of insecurity about. Perhaps the thing to do would be to put a cat tree next to the couch, so he could nest up in the tree and feel like he has some territorial ownership of the place, and thus no need to mark it.

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The little monsters 3

I also thought this may be territorial from his behaviour with the litter trays as both my two do that as well. As soon as you've cleaned, whether they need a wee or not, they'll get in and manage to squeeze a bit of wee out to 'mark' them.

How often does he do this? I'm wondering if it coincides with the leather being cleaned or something? I don't have a leather couch but I know people who do and that you need to use a special leather cleaner. Maybe this is removing all his scent and he is then marking his territory again. I tend to put pet blankets on all our furniture in the places they like to sleep which you could try, as this would keep his scent in the area even after they've been cleaned.

I would definitely do what Brian has suggested though as he is much more knowledgeable than me!!

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Clare
Hendrix and Jagger, Brown Marble Boys (born 18 August 2013)
Hampshire, UK

Having your college kids back I would imagine would be enough to make Lynk feel unsettled. I had this conversation with my OH only today as his nephew was over yesterday and said how unfriendly our two were. However, when he is round, they both play Xbox games and the noise level immediately goes up, lots of shouting etc. They are also in the room where my two like to go for an afternoon nap so their routine is thrown out as well. Jon was moaning they're not well socialised but admitted when I pointed these things out, especially as his nephew is incredibly tall, that it must be quite scary for them. They are fine if you are sat chatting, they will come in and sniff someone's hand and then let them pet them, but with noise and someone going straight in to pet them, they will run off.

Routine is everything and I'm sure Lynk will adjust and get used to the extra humans in his world eventually, and hopefully stop any inappropriate peeing where he is feeling insecure. He is pretty young and this is a big change for him.

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Clare
Hendrix and Jagger, Brown Marble Boys (born 18 August 2013)
Hampshire, UK

You should have mentioned the college kids in your first post! Did this urinating behavior begin after they returned home for the summer? Environment and territory are everything to a cat and changes can upset the balance. Marking is when the cat is standing, raises the tail and sprays urine onto a vertical surface. If he squats, he is peeing. If he used the litter box near the couch, put it back there for him. It is a great idea of putting a cat tree in the area. Both of your kitties need their own territory -- even if they get along great. And we had a post from someone who was upset because her bengal bonded with her other kitty and not her and she felt a little left out -- that can happen.

Peeing outside the litter box is the #1 problem cat owners face mainly because it's so messy and stinky. Once the behavior starts, it can be difficult to stop. Do not punish the cat or spray him with water -- cats don't really understand punishment. I know you want to get your couch back in order -- so I hope that some of the suggestions here have helped you out a little. Good luck!

If he wasn't familiar with your kids, then you may have hit the nail on the head, especially because he only does it when people are in the room. It's like "who are these people and what are they doing in my space?" It's going to have to be a shared space, so I recommend you add some cat furniture or shelves to please the kitties.