Dont go to that extreme.....
first is there anything new in the house? He may be feeling stressed at
something so check that out first
Is he drinking more? Is he lsoing any weight?
If so then this could also be a possible thyroid condition...get the vet to
check for that
Is his stools normal colour? If not perhaps there is something more....check
for IBD, or thickening of the bwel walls, get his counts done for
cancer...check out his bowels for Alimenttray
lyphosarcoma/adenocarcinoma...I am not wishing to frighten you or anything
just that I lost my Yogi yesterday and a few years back he started this and
we had tests done...he had thryoid and bowel wall thickening...
Have you changed his diet at all? That could have an affect.
Use vinegar solution tog et rid of smells it really does help and work. Do
not use anything with ammonia in it as this just encourages them to come
back to the same spot. Alos perhaps bring a litter tray to the place where
he does this most ...perhaps he is caught short...
Hope this helps
LInda

circa Sun, 23 Nov 2003 06:46:59 -0500, in rec.pets.cats.health+behav,
D (NoMail@NoSpam) said,

Get a complete workup on the cat, by another vet if necessary. Ask
the vet to pay special attention to the cat's bowels. Get an
ultrasound if necessary. A cat at this age suddenly starting to
behave in the fashion you mention is not normal, and unlikely to be a
behavioral issue. This may also be a constipation problem, which is
not uncommon when a cat has kidney problems. Get the cat back to the
vet.

Laura

<snip>

When is the last time you bought a new litter box?  Plastics retain
odors and if the litter box is old, it needs to be replaced.  I
recommend buying a new box every year just for this reason.  Once the
cat got used to using the carpet, the litter box will appear less
attractive, so you need to make it more attractive.  Dr. Elsey's Cat
Attract litter can help as well: http://www.preciouscat.com  I have
recommended it to cats with elimination problems with great success.

Also, you have to completely kill the odor in the carpet for it to not
be as attractive - there is a product called ODORKILL which is
available in pet sotres that should do the trick.  Forget Nature's
Miracle and the like - IMO, they don't work as well as ODORKILL.

Also, be sure the kidney infection is gone.  You cannot be sure unless
you have the cat check again.  Inflamation and pain will keep a cat
from using a box.  If pain is the source of the problem, no amount of
behavior modification will help.

best of luck,
-L.