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Male cat spraying

mealworm Apr 30, 2003 05:54 PM

hi,

I have 4 cats (2 boys and 2 girls). All my cats are outdoor cats and have been spayed or nuetored. My younger male has a spraying problem. He seems to get along with the all the other cats but also seems a little dumb...lol. He pees in odd spots around the house.. particually near places where the other cats hang out i noticed. He also goes #2 in my basement sometimes.

I've tried some different methods to help him. I tried straying him with water but it didn't work because he really never understood why i would do that and went right back to his peeing. (like i said.. he's not the smartest little kittie). Any advise on different meathods would be great! thanks alot!

marie

Replies (1)

MunchieScrunchie Apr 30, 2003 07:56 PM

Hi Marie,
Is your cat peeing or spraying? Spraying to mark territory is usually done with the cat standing upright, backed up to a wall or some other object, tail held high and erect and he will spray a stream of urine onto the vertical object and you will see his tail quivering as he does this. (I should know, I also have a male that sprays {sigh}) Peeing is usually done in the squatting position. The first thing you need to do is take him to the vet to make sure there is no medical reason for his urinating inappropriately. If his health is good, then you need to evaluate what may be causing him to do this. Does he seem stressed? Threatened by any other cat? They sometimes spray due to stress as well. Mine is a nervous nellie type cat because he was a feral cat, so his spraying is stress related basically.
Yours could simply be marking what he perceives as "his" territory. You need to thoroughly clean the area with a vinegar and water solution or one of the enzymatic cleaners they sell in the store. You may have to clean the area several times to neutralize the odor so the cat can't smell it. I haven't had much luck getting my cat to stop altogether, but putting silver foil over the areas he sprays has helped cut him down. The sound of the urine hitting the foil scares him. He used to spray in numerous places and now he is down to only one wall which for some reason, he doesn't mind spraying on the foil. But at least that is managable for me.
Good luck with this. It's a tough problem to solve once it gets started.
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Dottie
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