I'm at my wits end on this one.  I really need some help, because I'm
just about done trying to accomodate this cat.  Basically, one of our
cats poops outside the litterbox just about every single time.  She
urinates in the litterbox without a problem.

Some background.  We have 4 cats and 2 beagles.  Two of the cats
(Pixie and Smudge) are about 9 years old, and I've had them since they
were kittens.  They're not littermates, but I adopted them from the
same shelter within a couple weeks of each other.  Our problem cat
(Aubrey) and her littermate (PeeJee) are a little over a year and a
half old.  We got them when they were about 2 months old as "free
kittens" (a local couple had a pregnant cat show up on their doorstep,
and they took care of her and the kittens until the kittens were old
enough to be separated).  The beagles are 8 and 9 years old.  The
older (Daisy) has been with my wife since she was a puppy, and has
lived with the two older cats for almost 5 years now.  The younger
(Nikki) we adopted a couple months before the kittens.  All animals
are female.  The 3 we've had longer have moved several times, but the
other 3 have only lived in our current house with us (obviously, Nikki
has had other homes).

When we first got Aubrey, she appeared to be using the litterbox just
fine.  We kept her and her sister confined for a week or so, so we
were able to have both of them checked out by the vet before we
started introducing everyone.  After they were cleared, we spent
another week or so introducing everyone before we let them have full
run of the house.  We had the kittens spayed within a few weeks after
that (I can't recall exactly when).  As far as we can remember, we've
had a problem with her defecation ever since then, though we may have
had a problem before she was spayed and are just forgetting.  PeeJee
has never had a problem.

Originally, we had 1 litterbox.  When we let the kittens have free
roam of the house, we added a second, hoping that would be enough.  We
have since added 3 more litterboxes (for a total of 5), in a variety
of locations.  Aubrey knows where they all are, and uses at least 2 of
them for urinating.  One of those doesn't appear to be used by any of
the other cats, and the other looks like it's not used by either of
the older cats.  We have tried at least 7 different kinds of litter,
including S'Wheat Scoop, WBCL, Cat Attract, a few other different clay
litters (clumping and not), a citrus litter, and two different kinds
of crystals.  Currently, we have 3 boxes with crystals, and two with
Tidy Cat multiple cats (non-clumping) clay litter.  Last night, Aubrey
pooped outside the litterbox in the laundry room, and covered it with
a towel.  Then this morning, when I found it, she was in the same
litterbox urinating.  This evening, she pooped in the middle of the
kitchen (not near a litterbox), which would appear to be a new and
different twist.

In addition, some other behavior has started lately.  She's spent a
lot more time on the counters and tables, specifically destroying a
couple floral arrangements.  But the worst new behavior, by far, is
with the water bottle.  She's always been a little fascinated by
water.  She loves to wait outside the shower for us, and will often go
in the shower right afterwards.  If we leave a toilet seat up, we'll
find her staring into the bowl.  For well over a year now, we've had a
5 gallon water bottle in the kitchen, under a desk next to a cabinet,
that all of the animals use.  For a while, she's enjoyed jumping on
top of the bottle.  Recently, she's figured out how to topple the
water bottle.  She's done it at least 3 times, with the most recent
being right after we filled it.  We've since put a cast iron pan on
top of the water bottle, so she can't get on top of it anymore.

I'll try and answer a few possible questions.  We've taken her to the
vet a couple times, and there isn't anything medically wrong with her.
We've never had any problems with any sort of spraying.  The only cat
that has a problem with either of the beagles is Smudge, and she
largely just stays away from them.  We have areas where the cats can
be and not be bothered by the dogs.  All of the cats are indoor only,
and we have a locking doggie door that lets the beagles go outside but
not the cats.  The cats all free feed, and the dogs are fed twice a
day.  It doesn't appear to be a multiple cat problem, because we have
plenty of litterboxes including one that only Aubrey uses.  We've gone
through a range of litters with different textures and scents, and
tried several different kinds of boxes, both open and closed.  And I
am obsessive about cleaning all of the boxes before I go to bed each
night.  Additionally, I thoroughly clean and de-scent the spots where
she defecates outside the litterbox.

At this point, I don't know what to do anymore.  We're investigating
places we can send her where she'll be well taken care of (with no
chance of being put down).  But she doesn't appear to want to be an
outside cat.  On at least a couple occassions, one of the doors of the
house has stood open for an extended period of time and she stays
inside.

It pains me greatly to be at this point, but I just don't know what to
do anymore.  All of our pets are family, but I can't deal with this
problem anymore when we've tried everything I can think of.  And my
wife is now pregnant with our first child, and this will become a
greater problem with a child in the house.  It's bad enough that the
beagles "clean up" after Aubrey most of the time (which has deluded us
into thinking the problem was solved at a couple points).  This just
can't happen when we have a child crawling around.  I want to make it
clear that we're not at this point *because* of the child on the way.
It's just yet another piece of this problem.

I won't let her be put down, not over something like this.  And I
won't send her to anyone where she might be neglected or mistreated.
The places we're checking out are relatives of good friends, or local
rescue organizations that fit those criteria.  I'd much rather solve
the problem and keep Aubrey with us, but I am completely out of ideas.
I need some help.  Please.  I'll try almost anything to solve Aubrey's
issues.

-Todd