There is one caveat of cat companionship that even those of us with the best-trained felines have to deal with at least once: the dreaded smell of cat pee. There’s no mistaking this odor, and once your cat starts having accidents outside of their litter box, it can be hard to control in your home.
Here’s how to determine what’s really going on with your cat and how to get rid of that cat pee smell:
What Makes Cat Pee Stink?
Let’s start by better understanding what makes that cat pee smell so pungent. There are several different waste chemicals involved, most notably urea, which is a compound found in both human and animal urine. Basically, when environmental bacteria and bacteria within the urine breaks down the urea, ammonia is released. If you’ve ever cleaned with ammonia, you’ll be familiar with its eye-watering side effect.
As time passes and the bacteria continues to multiply, mercaptans are produced. Mercaptans are what causes the smell when a skunk sprays. There’s also felinine, which is a protein that emits fragrant sulphurs (rotten egg smell) that get stronger as time goes by. This is part of the reason why that cat pee smell doesn’t seem to fade. All of these stinky by-products are used in feline communication. It helps male cats mark their territory and cats can also use these aromas to tell if their fellow feline is sick or in heat.
Why Is My Cat Peeing Outside the Litter Box?
If your cat is litter box trained, chances are the smell will be pretty well contained due to the deodorizing properties of your cat’s cat litter. However, if your cat tends to go outside of her litter box often, it’s important to figure out why. It could be something as simple as a dirty litter box to something more serious like a urinary tract infection or bladder stones.
Start simple and make sure your cat’s litter box is kept clean and in a private, quiet area. Then consider other things that might impact her litter box behavior. Have you introduced a new animal or had company over that might be making your cat jealous or stressed? Is your cat exhibiting any signs of illness such as blood in the urine or frequent urination? If in doubt, don’t hesitate to see your vet.
How to Get Rid of Cat Pee Smell
Once the potential cause of your cat’s accidents is determined and corrected, it’s time to get down to business. First, you’ll need to locate the source of the smell. While this may sound like common sense, you’d be surprised at just how tricky the area can be to locate. The cat pee smell is so strong that it fills the room, making it hard to pinpoint the exact location. This is especially true if the spot has already dried and there isn’t an obvious marking on the floor.
Once you have located the source of the stink, the process for getting the smell out will depend on what the soiled area is made of:
- Machine-washable fabric: If the item in question is machine washable, wash in the machine as usual but add a box of baking soda (yes, an entire box) in addition to your detergent. Make sure to wash in cold water and air dry if possible, as heat can cause the smell to set.
- Carpet or upholstery with a fresh stain: Let’s say you’re fortunate enough to find the area before it has dried. First, soak up as much of the liquid as possible by dabbing the area instead of rubbing so you don’t spread the stain. A hands-off method of doing this is to put down the soaker-upper of your choice (like a towel or paper towels) and then place something sturdy (like a weight) on top of it. Do this several times, replacing the wet soaker-upper with a clean one until the area is as dry as you can get it. After this, you’ll need to clean the spot thoroughly. You can either use a wet vacuum with water or you could try a homemade recipe. Saturate the area with baking soda and then pour a mixture of ¾ cup of hydrogen peroxide and 1 teaspoon dish detergent over this. You’ll want to work this mixture into the material and let it sit until dry. You might want to do a patch test to ensure that the peroxide won’t discolor your carpet or upholstery then vacuum up the excess. You can also buy commercial cleaners that will help clean the fabric, just make sure that they aren’t ammonia-based. The smell is too similar to urine and might make your cat want to mark the spot again.
- Carpet or upholstery with a dry stain: Dry stains are usually already set, and therefore a lot more stubborn when it comes to removing them. You can try to use a wet vacuum and follow up with a high-quality pet odor neutralizer on these stains. Keep in mind that neutralizers don’t clean; instead, they’re simply used to neutralize the alkaline smell of the pee, which can help keep repeat offenses from happening. A simple, acidic neutralizer contains one part white vinegar with six parts water; spray this solution on the fabric and let it sit for ten minutes before completely removing it with an absorbent towel. Whether you use a neutralizer or not, you’ll probably need to hit the spot twice to get the stain out completely. Unfortunately, if the urine has also soaked through to the padding underneath the carpet, you may end up having to replace that area of carpet and padding.
- Tile, wood or laminate flooring: If the mess is on wood, laminate, or tile, cleanup is fairly easy, since the liquid doesn’t tend to soak in. Clean up the excess liquid, then follow up by wiping down with ½ cup white vinegar mixed into 1 quart of warm water (or use a commercial product). In the case of hardwood floors, sometimes the chemicals in cat urine can react with the varnish and leave a permanent discoloration; you might need to sand and re-varnish the area.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.