Hi Debbie,

Oh, the dreaded mystery urine spot!  I feel for you because I used to have a cat (Max) who insisted on marking his turf on things like my closet door and even my stove!

First, it would be ideal to figure out if the dog or cat is the culprit.  Modifying unwanted behavior takes on different forms for dogs and cats.  I would suggest blocking the dog from access to the dining room for a week, or so.  If a urine spot still appears, you can be pretty sure the cat is the culprit.  If there is no urine spot, keep the kitty out of that room for a week.  If the urine appears again, it’s probably the dog!

Based on my experience, my guess is that your kitty is probably the one urinating in the dining room.

Inappropriate elimination can be caused by medical conditions such as urinary infections or by behavioral problems.  Sometimes, it can even be associated with a more serious medical problem such as a urinary obstruction, which is an emergency situation that requires immediate attention.

But cats also may go outside the box when they dislike their litter or if the box is dirty. They can even develop this problem due to stress from changes in their household, such as a new pet, or moving to a new home.

Obviously, if your kitty is urinating outside the box for a medical reason, he or she can (and should) be seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible.

Let me know if you find out the dog is the offending piddler!  That advice will be a bit different.

Now, as far as cleaning up that carpet goes, you say that it’s “shot”. Before you roll it up and roll it out of the house, you should try a few of BISSELL’s pet clean up solutions first.

If the urine stain is limited to an isolated spot, you can use the BISSELL SpotBot ® Pet , a portable deep cleaner that works wonders on pet stains. You simply set the SpotBot Pet on top of the stain, and press a button and walk away. After 3 minutes (6 minutes for the longer cycle) your spot is clean. Be sure to use the enzyme action cleaning formula as it is designed to neutralize urine odors. Once the odor is gone, your pet is less likely to re-soil the area.

For a larger soiled area, or to clean an entire room or rooms, use the ProHeat 2X® Select Pet Deep Cleaner. It has a build in heater to maximize cleaning   and has tools designed to clean pet messes.

Best of luck to you Debbie!