Remedies for Removing Cat Urine Stains From Fabric

Removing Cat Urine

• Urine stains can be unsightly, but they pose a much bigger problem: if not removed completely, your cat, with his keen sense of smell, will associate clothing items, certain carpeted areas or fabric-covered furniture as an appropriate place to urinate. Therefore, tend to fresh urine stains immediately--and comprehensively.

  Two home remedies associated with pet urine removal are white vinegar and ammonia, and in fact, one stain-removal treatment offered by "Hints from Heloise" involves making a do-it-yourself stain remover using vinegar. However, the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine cautions you not to use these household products. Both smell like urine and may actually encourage your cat to soil in the same spot. On the recommended list of products formulated to neutralize cat urine is Anti-Icky-Poo, Nature's Miracle, Outright Stain and Odor Removal Products, and Oxyfresh Pet Deodorizer. Many of these enzyme-based products not only neutralize cat urine odor, but remove fresh and set-in stains on clothing, carpeting and other soft furnishings.

  Appropriate use of enzyme-based products involves exercising your best judgment. These may be sufficient for removing odor and stains from clothing, bath mats and other washable items. But because they may also cause fabric to fade, it's best to take more delicate items, such as that expensive goose down comforter, silk blouse, or your grandmother's heirloom quilt, to a professional dry cleaner to have cat urine stains professionally treated.

Trickier Stains

• The Winn Feline Foundation stresses that some urine stains, such as those on carpet, pose a particular problem, as the urine almost always seeps into the underlay. Light stains may be effectively removed with a neutralizing product, as long as you make sure to treat the carpet from top to bottom, as well as the underlay, if necessary. Hydrogen peroxide is often mentioned as a way to remove residual tannin (the urine stain itself) in carpet and other fabrics--but beware, as hydrogen peroxide also has a bleaching effect.

  In most cases, the services of a professional steam cleaner are required, as household devices can't do the job. A segment of stained carpeting and underlay may need to be replaced or furniture re-stuffed and re-covered. Similarly, urine-saturated mattresses are almost always a lost cause.

Treating the Bigger Problem

• The biggest problem you may face is the cause of feline house soiling. The Winn Feline Foundation recommends one product, Feliway, a synthetic hormone that's sold in spray or electric diffuser form, to help curb inappropriate elimination. However, when your pet chooses to urinate outside of the litter box, this is a sign that something's wrong in Fluffy's world.

  Possible reasons for house soiling can include aversion to a particular texture of litter or to the smell of deodorized litter, or lower urinary tract disease or another medical condition. Stress and separation anxiety can also cause a cat to urinate where she shouldn't. Territorial spraying, in which the cat does not squat to urinate but projects a small amount of urine on a soft surface while standing, is a common and even expected behavior in unaltered indoor cats. Marking can be remedied simply by neutering or spaying your pet. The Winn Feline Foundation offers some helpful suggestions to better help you find the cause of house soiling in the Resources link below.