Here's a few more details. I currently have seven cats in a ten room house. The problem probably started about a year ago last September when three kittens got droppped off. The number was then nine, but two have since died. I think the nub of the problem began when Tao, the lowest cat on the social ladder, got bullied away from the food dish and retreated to the upstairs area (sort of a cross between Emily Dickenson and Mrs. Rochester). That's where the cat boxes are. she has a helluva warcry, and I think she was giving grief to any box use. By now, every room has been pissed in, and every cat has given it a try, at least once. I've added a box downstairs, put food and water upstairs for her (although everybody snacks on it), and I think that they've just fallen into a bad habit.