Cat urine can prove to be impossible to get rid of. This is because it has a smell that lingers even weeks after the incidence. Unfortunately, most cats will pee on the carpet at some point in their lives.
This means that you will have to come up with a way to remove the stains and smell from your house. This article is going to outline how to clean dried cat urine from the carpet. In addition, we are going to help you prevent your cat from spraying your carpet once more.
Why is it so difficult to get cat urine from the carpet?
When your cat pees on the carpet, you might not find out immediately despite the smell. However, once it dries, your house will constantly smell of cat urine, making it very uncomfortable for you and your family to live in.
Furthermore, it gets even more difficult to get the stains from the carpet. Therefore, you should clean the urine from the carpet as soon after the accident.
But why is it so difficult to remove? Cats have very concentrated urine, based on their genetic composition. Originally, cats are desert creatures, which means that their body has a way of recycling body water over and over again.
This leads to highly concentrated urine since they hardly drink fluids. Therefore, when the cat pees on the carpet and dries, the smell will not go away easily.
The concentrated urine will have a foul smell, and that is why cats use it for communication. For instance, cats have the natural instincts to mark territories.
They are protective in nature and also quite jealous. This only encourages them to mark using their urine, especially when they feel threatened.
What motivates your cat to pee on the carpet?
This is probably the first question that may come to mind when you find your cat peeing on the carpet. You should understand your cat and why she is behaving that way before you can be able to stop it.
It is essential for you to stop your cat from spraying if at all you are looking to get urine smell off your house. Cats behave differently in different situations, and urine is their primary gateway for communication. There are several factors that will influence your cat to urinate on the carpet. These include;
Anxiety
If your cat feels in any way threatened in some kind of way, peeing anywhere in the house is going to be very popular. Your cat can easily be triggered by anxiety when exposed to certain situations. For instance, having strangers in the house will most likely cat cause fear in your cat.
In order for your cat to feel at ease, she needs to feel safe. When you have a stranger in the house, your cat feels threatened. She may see the other person as a threat and therefore react. In most cases, she will avoid the litter box. In addition, your cat may refuse to come to the living room when the guest is still in there.
If the guest is staying with you for some time, you should introduce them to your cat. For instance, if you are moving in with your spouse, it is important for your cat to be comfortable. Introduce them to your cat by leaving their items randomly in the house. This way, your cat is somehow going to get used to their scent after which the anxiety will go away.
In addition to this, it is important for you to spend time with your cat. This way, she can always feel safe and protected in your household.
Unclean litter box
We all want a litter-trained kitty, and that is what we get most times. However, your cat values cleanliness, making them sensitive when it comes to their litter box. She wants to eliminate it in the designated places but then, she will not if the litter box is unclean, or even smelly.
Maintaining high litter box hygiene is vital when you want to stop your cat from spraying urine all over. This includes scooping the litter box every time your cat pees. You should change the cat litter every now and then to make sure that it does not stink of cat pee smell.
Encourage the cat to use the litter box by making sure she can easily access it. Consider putting the boxes in quiet places that will provide the serenity she needs in order to relieve herself.
Medical illnesses
In some cases, your cat could be peeing all over your house because she is ill. Female kitties are quite vulnerable to developing urinary tract infections. These illnesses may include crystalluria, bladder stones, UTI, or idiopathic cystitis.
In addition to spraying, a cat with feline urinary tract issues will also experience frequent and painful urination. She might not actually make it to the litter box without having an ‘incident’ on your floor, couch or carpet.
It is therefore important to spend time with your cat and observe her. Look at her peeing patterns, this way, you can always tell when something is not right. Also, take your cat to the vet for examination and diagnosis. Your vet is going to give you a full diagnosis and also recommend the best treatment method for your cat.
Urine Marking
Cats are territorial in nature, which makes them want to protect their own. However, when you are running a multi-cat home, you might watch your cats pee on the carpet. Mainly, one of your cats might be going through some stressful situation, or simply wants space. In order to keep the other cats away, your cat is going to mark territory using his urine. This is natural behavior, which means it is difficult to control.
In addition to this, unneutered cats might also mark urine, when in heat. If your cat is intact, peeing on the carpet is not going to be unusual to you and your household. Whenever in heat, your cat is going to mark places in an effort to attract a mate. Therefore, get your kitty to the vet for neutering/spaying before he gets to his reproductive life.
Once you have noticed that your kitty is peeing on the carpet, you will need to clean it immediately. However, sometimes we miss the stench and so the urine dries on the carpet.
This not only makes it difficult to remove the stains but it might trigger your cat to pee all over. Therefore, always pay attention to your cat’s behavior above all. This way, you can always detect behavioral issues before she can start ruining your items with urine.
However, upon detecting the spot that has been spoiled with cat urine, you should clean it immediately. If the urine has already dried, then you are up to the task of removing it.
This is because dried cat urine is quite difficult to remove. Not even the regular detergents will work on your carpet. However, below are some of the most effective ways to clean dried cat urine from the carpet:
How to clean cat urine from the carpet
- Use a black light to identify the stain
- Clean the spot immediately
- Baking Soda
- Hydrogen Peroxide
- Leave the area to dry out
As we all know, spraying in cats is a common vice that cat parents have to deal with. Whether behavioral or natural, you have to control this behavior immediately. Before we can look at the tips for making your cat stop this habit, we are going to look at how to clean dried cat urine from the carpet.
Unfortunately, when our cats are avoiding the litter box, carpet is their second favorite to pee on. I mean, it has that soft feel on your cat’s paws. And furthermore, it is warm and comfy, so why not? For whatever reason your cat is spraying for, you should clean all the dried urine from the house. Below is how to get dried cat pee from your carpet;
Step 1: Use a black light to identify the stains
Sometimes your cat can spray urine on your carpet and it will go unnoticed. Well, not to be all dirty but we clearly have busy schedules, so busy to miss such accidents. However, the longer you stay without cleaning the sprayed spot, the harder it gets to remove the urine.
This is because your carpet will clearly have multiple layers, which means that it will suck in all the urine. In some cases, the urine will even penetrate to the floor. Due to the decomposition of bacteria in your cat’s urine, this will leave a stench in the house even after the spot is all dried up.
Use a black light to identify the stains on your carpet. This way, you will not miss a spot when you are cleaning it. Ensure that the room is dark so that the stains can be illuminated by the black light.
Step 2: Clean the spot
This is the next important step that will help you remove the urine. Unfortunately, water and regular detergents or bleach are not going to work for you, especially when it is dried cat pee you are trying to remove. This is because your cat’s pee is usually concentrated and thus smelly.
You can, however, use a mixture of water and vinegar instead. Vinegar is a cleaning agent as well as a cat repellent. In order to clean the dried cat pee, soak as much of this mixture on the stain. Make sure that the mixture gets to every part of the stained spots. This means that you are going to make sure that the spot is completely wet.
Once you are sure that all the parts have been soaked in the mixture of water and vinegar, get an old rag or towel. This is because you are not going to use it afterward. Now soak up as much urine as you cat using the towel. Alternatively, you can use paper towels, in the case of small stains. R1epeat the method until you are completely sure that all the urine is gone.
Step 3: Baking soda
Once you have blotted as much of the mixture from your carpet, you may use baking soda to remove the smell. As much as you can get rid of the stain, the smell of cat pee can stick for quite some time. Baking soda not only has great cleaning properties but will also help absorb the odor from the carpet. You can use this method right after washing your carpet using water and vinegar solution.
In addition to this, you can use baking soda and hydrogen peroxide to initially clean your carpet of dried cat urine. Mix ¼ a cup of 3% percent of hydrogen peroxide with dish soap and stir to mix completely. Then pour the solution on top of the baking soda and leave it for a few hours. Afterward, you may vacuum the dried powder from your carpet, leaving your house free of cat smell.
Step 4: Take your carpet out to dry
Once you are done washing dried cat pee from your carpet, you may consider taking it out to dry. This is if you are capable of doing so. Not only will the sun’s ultra-violet rays help but also the fresh air. You can thereafter get it back in the house without having to worry about the cat pee smell again.
However, the fact that your cat peed on your carpet only means that she is still having litter box issues. You will need to fix this in order to prevent recurring spraying issues in your cat. This will need you to pay attention to her behavior and understand why she is behaving that way.
In the first section of this article, we outlined some of the most common reasons why cats spray. Now, let us look at some of the preventive measures that you can take in order to keep your cat from spraying on your carpet.
Preventive measures for cat spraying
Once you notice that your cat is spraying, the first step you should take is to clean the urine. You can use the above-discussed methods to clean dried cat urine from your carpet. However, you will also need to stop your cat from spraying completely, in order to avoid future incidences. These measures include:
Keep your kitty stress-free
Cats tend to develop stress quite easily, which is among the leading reasons why cats spray. If you are not cautious and observatory, your cat can be going through emotional distress. This can be as a result of new environments, strangers, your absence, or competition for resources, especially in a multi-cat home. As a result, your cat will try to communicate her frustrations by spraying urine all over.
However, you can be able to prevent or minimize stress in your cat. You should allocate some time in your schedule and dedicate it to playing with your kitty. You will also be able to help her adapt to the new environment. She needs to be assured of her security and protection. In addition, provide enough food and other resources to reduce the completion in a multi-cat home.
Check for illnesses
Once again, your cat can be sprayed as a result of urinary tract issues. Therefore, upon noticing that she is spraying, it is important to observe her behavior. Often, your cat will spray small amounts of urine that have a pungent smell. She can actually do so in your presence to alert you of the pain she is going through.
In severe a severe condition, you will also observe blood in urine, and sometimes she won’t pee at all. Rush her to the vet-care immediately you observe these symptoms. She will be well examined and treated.
Note that sometimes your cat will actually empty her full bladder on your carpet. For a litter-trained cat, this should be regarded as unusual behavior and thus get her checked up. Your vet is going to rule out any medical illnesses leading to your cat spraying.
Clean the litter box
Your cat will obviously have reasons to pee on the carpet if the litter boxes are not clean. In fact, she is going to avoid the latter as much as she can if it has the slightest odor. This is why you should scoop the litter boxes regularly if you are looking to encourage her to use them.
If she completely refuses to use the litter box, consider changing the entire box. We often forget to adjust to our cat’s hygiene standards. Well, you should understand that with such a strong sense of smell, your cat is going to pick any smell in the litter box.
If you feel like she has been using it for some time, it would help if you got a new litter box for your kitty. In addition to this, change the cat litter every now and then to give the litter box a fresh touch.
Provide toys
As much as we have identified some of the causes of cat spraying, some cats do it simply because they are unruly. No matter how much time you invest time training her to use the litter box, she can pee on your carpet every now and then.
Distraction is going to help you get rid of this habit. Instead of leaving your cat at home bored, get exciting toys for her. This way, she will be too busy to engage in her unruly behavior.
To conclude
Living with your pet means sometimes you win and other times you lose. The above-outlined tips are going to help you get rid of the cat pee smell as well as clean dried urine from your carpet. Good luck!
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