Untraceable smell of cat urine?

First of all, you want to immediately address the issue of your cat spraying outside of the box. It's a good idea to have the cat examined by a vet to rule out medical issues and to determine if it's behavioral. Here's some information and solutions for this issue from the professionals: http://www.catinfo.org/?link=litterbox Now about cleaning. Cat urine has trace amounts of the mineral phosphorus, which illuminates under black light. You can get a specialty black light fixture at some party/entertainment stores or just a bulb you can put on a lamp, sold at most hardware stores and look around to with the lamp to find "accidents" outside the box. Beware, thought, the cleaning agents you're using to clean the cat's box, although smell good to us, may be repulsive to cats, who's sense of smell is much stronger than our own. I'd avoid using any perfumed cleaners (and definitely vinegar or ammonia) on either the box or household surfaces. For cleaning the box, just plain dish soap is fine or you could use an enzyme cleaner, such as Nature's Miracle or Pet Oops! by The Clean Team. For "accidents" outside of the box, instead use a dry cleaning powder (to asorb any liquids), followed by an enzyme cleaner. An enzyme cleaner works to digest the bacteria and break down and remove the urine, instead of just covering it up as do most cleaners, and usually is child and pet safe (check the label to be sure though). You can purchase an enzyme cleaner at most janitorial suppliers or pet stores. Good luck!

Pet urine consists of mainly three parts. Urea; makes the urine sticky and allows the other two parts to stick around. Urochrome gives the urine its ugly yellow color that stains carpets, furniture, the wall and anything the cat sprays or urinates on. The third main part of the urine is Uric Acid. Uric acid in the urine consists of salts and crystals that give off the extremely pungent odor. These odors attach to minute solids floating in the air, most are invisible the heavier ones you can see floating in the air when the sunlight comes through the window in just the right angle. Each particle has a positive electrical charge because it is missing an electron. This enables it to drift as it is drawn in one direction and then another by electrical charges embedding in carpets, drapes and walls. Carpet and furniture are a reservoir for pet allergens, and the allergens can remain in them for four to six weeks. An ozone generator will remove the odors by seeking out the source and destroying it, aerosol sprays and candles only replace the odor with a more pleasant odor they do not remove the odor only mask it. For a natural one time application solution, www.air-renu.com

It's a common misconception that it's a matter of training or territory. It can very well be a side-effect of stress. You say she's just moved in with you and is used to a different family, plus you have a two year old, which can be terrifying for some cats. Kids are loud, have poor motor skills, have little insight into what a cat would or wouldn't appreciate - cats have super sensitive ears and tend to flee when a kid comes at them with a bit too much enthusiasm. It's not the kid, it's the combination. It can feel like a threat to cats. Does your two-year old have experience with petting cats? How to do it gently and not to screech from joy at them because it scares them? The move would be the main thing. Usually if cats maintain one familiar element they are okay through changes (same owner but different house, other owner but same house) but when everything changes it's no wonder they don't know what hit them, none of this is within their control and they don't really understand what's going on. If the vet can't find anything wrong with the cat (it could, after all, be a medical condition causing "leaking") then please consider ways to make the cat less stressed. Do you have a tall scratching post? High places to climb give cats overview of their new home and make them feel more in control, they can go up and be alone without kids bothering them, plus cats are just naturally climbers. You mention she hid, ate and used the litterbox - a cat who feels good just climbs up somewhere where humans/kids can't reach and chills there... give her a chance to enjoy an overview before you full-on introduce her to your family at ground level, where she is so much smaller and more vulnerable than everyone else.

you could use pet shampoo on your carpet/furnature where ever you smell the urine...that way your using soap, but it is perfectly safe to use around pets and babies..... if you are smelling urine around the box, maybe when kitty went potty, a few drops hit the wall/floor near the box and dried, so no matter how much the box is clean, the few drops outside the box linger......try puting newspaper around box, so if kitty misses a lil it will go on the paper and u can change it when u change the box... and smell around the apartment, after kitty has done her business, she scratches in her box to cover it, so maybe she gets the smell on her paws, and wanders through the house..... try using the pet shampoo on the areas

There are enzyme based cleaners specifically for this. I think you can find it at your petco or petsmart and it is good for carpet. In regards to the litterbox odor, with them being plastic and cat claws scratching it, odor gets into the plastic, it will lever fully be odor free no matter how clean you try to get it. I wish they made stainless steel litter boxes that we could get much cleaner. I had a cat who would pee here and there on clothing, bedding, towels left on the floor, and it ended up being a urinary tract infection - she was looking for a nice soft place for her woohoo. If you are sure she is healthy - and that it is behavioral - you can get a plug in for the wall - called FELIWAY. I have used it for years with my two cats - 1 with urine issues, the other with stress issues. This plug in is a cat calmative and i get it at petsmart. Works like a charm with urine issues, once you get any health question out of the way. Once a cat pees in a spot it is hard to get them to stop, so cleaning the carpet with an enzyme cleaner will be helpful. Also make sure the litter box is in tip top shape at all times. If I switch my litter from a clumping clay to any other litter, like pine or newspaper stuffs she will pee all over the place instead of using her litter box. So make sure you aren't changing the source of litter, keep it all clumping clay if that is what they like. I have also heard from other parents with children and pets, that when the pet is stressed out, lots of chaos around the kids.... the cats will pee in places. They just don't deal with stress well. The peeing can be a sign of a stress.....did the cat start to pee when the baby came home? This is the type stuff you need to think about. A friend of mine's cat would pee on her toddlers bed.... and no where else, because she wanted the attention. Make sure that you don't get upset with the cat for peeing outside the box - it is only going to make the situation worse. The cat is needing something from you.....more attention, love, peace and quiet..... or a trip to the vet..... not sure. My first instinct with any litter box behavior is a bladder infection. I would investigate that with a vet first because of how painful they are for the cat and on a personal note, I almost lost a cat due to a bladder infection that led to a blockage, so I tend to be more cautious when I hear other cats doing this behavior.