This Is Why Your Shoes Smell Like Cat Pee!

The most common cause of shoes smelling like cat pee is that cat may have peed in your shoes. The other reason is the material of your shoes that causes sweat or bacteria buildup. Sweat contains salt and ammonia which can lead to bacterial growth resulting in a smelly shoe like cat pee.

Have you ever wondered why your shoe smells like cat pee? It’s a common problem that many people face, especially those who wear shoes without socks or sweat heavily. It’s a problem that can be both perplexing and embarrassing. Whether you’re dealing with the odor in your favorite pair of sneakers or your expensive dress shoes, the smell can be overwhelming.

So, After diving into this issue with the sneakerhead community and reading through forums, I’ve gathered some tips and suggestions that have worked for many people. In this blog post, we’ll explore the reasons behind the cat pee smell and share some effective ways to get rid of it.

Why Does Cat Pee on the Shoes?

One reason for your shoes smelling like cat pee is that your cat has pissed on your shoes. This is a pretty common incident for cat owners. There are different reasons why cats piss in your shoes.

The main reason why a cat starts peeing on your shoes is that your cat might be suffering from a health condition that would cause your cat to piss outside of the litter box. If your well-trained cat has suddenly started peeing on your stuff, chances are that the cat is suffering from a urinary infection.

Usually, the cat tries to pee outside of the litter box to indicate that he is suffering from UTI or bladder infection. In this case, I recommend taking your kitty to a reputable veterinarian who will be able to find out what the problem is and prescribe medication to resolve it.

Cats also like to mark their territory. When you don’t give your cat enough time, he starts missing your company and likes to mark his territory as he is mad at you for leaving him too long. He will urinate on almost anything they see including shoes and clothes if they feel threatened or don’t want you around anymore.

The best advice, in such cases, would be to keep all items that belong to you off the floor or anywhere else the kitty can easily reach them with his claws. You can also try putting his litter box near where he spends most of the time, especially near the areas your cat begins to pee on when left alone for any length of time. Also, try giving him a treat when you get home from work when he goes into the litter box instead of leaving him in there longer than needed.

Also Read: Cleaning of mesh shoes

How to get rid of the Cat Pee like Smell in the Shoes?

The remedy for getting rid of the cat piss smell in your shoes depends on several causes. You can’t remove the cat urine smell from your shoes with only one solution. First, you have to analyze the main cause and then apply the respective solution.

Cat Has Peed in Your Shoes

If you have a cat at your home, the chances are that your cat has peed in your shoes or you may have mistakenly put the step in the litter box. Other possibilities indicate that you might have stored your shoes near the cat litter box.

In this situation, there are sprays with active enzymes that break down the chemical structure of cat urine and its smelly compounds. Nature’s miracle urine destroyer is a great product to get rid of the stains of cat urine and its smell. You need to soak shoes with this chemical and let them dry in a clean place. I hope, this method will work out.

If the cat pee smell due to his urine still didn’t get away from the enzyme solution, fill your shoes with a clean litter and let them sit overnight. It will help absorb the stubborn odor of the cat’s urine. The next day, dust off your shoes thoroughly to remove the litter. You can again rinse your shoes with the urine destroyer I mentioned above.

You can also make a solution of vinegar and water. Take one part of vinegar and 3 parts of water. Rinse the shoes with the solution. Also, sprinkle baking soda. Stuff the shoes with a paper towel, and put the shoes to dry on their own under the sunlight (if they are white, don’t expose them to the sunlight).

You can use both methods, i.e. vinegar method and enzyme cleaner method on your leather shoes. If it is real leather of good quality, it will remain intact.

Bacteria Might be the Cause

Sometimes, there is an issue with running shoes that due to the building up of sweat and bacteria, start smelling like cat urine. The reason is that the padding of running shoes is porous, due to which it holds water and provides a place for the bacteria to grow.

The bacteria react with the padding to form an acidic type compound that smells like cat urine. To get rid of this, make a thick paste of baking soda and apply it all over the shoe’s padding. Let the shoes sit overnight. I hope the smell would go away.

Must Read: Removing molds out of the shoes

Why Do Shoes Smell After Getting Wet or Washing?

If your shoes smell after getting wet from washing, by stepping into a puddle, or from sweat after an intense workout, the moisture is absorbed by the lining and padding of your shoe, which leads to odors from bacteria taking over the moist environment.

Usually, our running or workout shoes are not water-resistant. If you had your shoes outside for an extended period, there’s a good chance that dirt, mud, and other types of debris have found their way into your shoe which might be causing it to smell.

To reduce the smell from the shoes after they get wet, insert a cedar shoe tree in them that will absorb moisture quickly. Leave the shoes with a cedar tree for 2 to 3 days under the sunlight. If the smell still persists, I would douse the funkier parts of the shoes with vinegar. This will surely work out.

To dry the shoes after they get wet, don’t put them in the dryer as this can damage the shoes. I would recommend placing a fan nearby to help speed up this process along since it will also prevent any mold and mildew from forming which can also cause a foul smell to come about.

Another solution to remove the smell from your shoes is to seal them in a zip lock bag and put them in the freezer overnight. This will kill the bacteria.

Note: Make sure that you take orthotics (if any) and laces out of the shoes when following the above steps.

Why Do Shoes Smell like Cheese?

Shoes smell like cheese if you wear them with sweaty synthetic socks. Any foot sweat will also be absorbed into the shoe leather, which causes them to start smelling bad. This only happens because the sweat is left inside them for a long time and they don’t get properly dried out after each wearing.

I would recommend you always wash your feet with an antibacterial soap in the morning. Also, put lotion on your feet before wearing the shoes. Try to use cotton socks or merino wool socks and rotate your shoe pair. Don’t wear the same shoes every day.

The other solution for removing the smell from the wet shoes is to put the black tea bags in your shoes and leave them for about one week. The tea bag will absorb moisture and also take away the bad smell.

How To Get Rid of the Smell From ECCO Sandals?

ECCO sandals are not made of typical rubber. You can remove odor from Ecco sandals by scrubbing them with non-detergent liquid soap and alcohol. After that, let them air dry. You can also check out the Ecco shoe care guide for more information.