Alright, now what ?

So... I posted a few weeks ago about Tash peeing around the house. It was determined to be behavioral.

After putting tin foil in one spot (where he went) and the cat water in the other, we thought we had things solved. Tash hadn't done anything for a couple weeks or so.

Well, tonight, I see him by the chair, tail shaking wildly. I walked up to him to discover that he's peeing on the cat water bowl! He didn't actully pee IN the water, but against the metal bowl and onto the ground.

Since when were cats willing to urinate where they drink?!

We picked up the water, used some urine-off type spray on the carpet and moved the water (new water / new bowl) by the food until we figure this one out.

Now I'm at a total loss....

Maybe someone here can think outside the box for me (wow - no pun intended) and help me come up with a way to get him to stop spraying (and yes, he's fixed)

GRRRRR!!!! :m3:

 

Hi. What you are describing is not "peeing." He's spraying. Basically, he's marking his territory. If he never did this before then something is stressing him out. Perhaps another cat outside? If you can't seem to find what is causing him to spray, you can as a last resort talk to your vet about putting him on some kind of progesterone. However, as with all drugs there may be side effects and should really be thought of as a last resort.

 

have you tried Feliway diffusers around the house?
I have been working w/a woman who wants to give her meezer up due to inappropriate peeing (he's peeing though not spraying) and she's even put him on drugs but he's still peeing, but not as much.
I'm not sure what she's tried other than drugs but they weren't working for him.

 

Wow, I feel 'ya. Copper did the same tail shaking/peeing/spraying thing to my hallway wall Sunday morning. I saw him and sent a slipper his way lol. :roll: His act was totally because his boxes were soiled. He had just pooped in one box and I had moved the other box beside that one to block him from the bathroom door so I think he thought both of them were dirty. That new litter does nothing for poo smell!

I'm not trying to "one up you" but I am just saying that Copper amost always pees this way. That's why I have really high sided boxes so he can "spray" away. And as long as the boxes are clean and I have properly cleaned up any other areas, he uses the boxes. As I typed this he went into the guest room and used that box (and it was soiled too) and sprayed the back of it just like you described Tash doing. He got off track last week at some point and started spraying/peeing on the bathroom door. But I think it's because I haven't totally gotten the smell out of that room yet--all of the boxes used to be in there and he routinely peed on the side of the bathtub so I've got some more work to do in there.

I know I sound like a broken record, but I am saying again that Tash sounds just like Copper in that he doesn't like his litter boxes or litter for some reason. And I think that once they get used to peeing like they're spraying--that's what they do. He may LIKE the sound of the pee hitting something solid like a water bowl. Good luck to you...it's a constant job around here for me!

 

Okay you guys we seem to have a peeing and spraying dilemma going on here. LOL Peeing occurs on the ground (on the floor, in litter boxes, on the carpet and so on). Spraying is vertical. This occurs on the sides or the face of any object, such as the door, the back of litter boxes, walls, the sides/backs of furniture and so on. When a cat starts that "tail shake" you know the spraying is a split second from occurring. In a nut shell, peeing is found in the form of a puddle on a horizontal surface. A cat who is spraying will usually urine-mark a vertical surface. For example this urine will be running down a wall or a door and so on.

 

Chessmind, I know that he's spraying... sorry for the confusion on my terms. He's been to the vet for this already and it was determined that it is indeed behavioral.

I have used the feliway diffuser a couple years ago when bringing Kitters in the house. I was thinking of buying a refill this weekend. It seemed to work before.

As for the litterboxes... I'm somewhat at a loss for now. We bought new boxes. We bought two high-sided ones and two low-sided ones. We also bought ones with lids. We've been tending to the litter quite a bit and it simply doesn't seem to matter. I wish I could pinpoint if it is the litter (what what it is). We've also used different brands and it doesn't change anything.

Nothing has changed in the house for a couple years, we haven't had cats outside bothering our resident cats. No one has been fighting recently.

If I could just figure out what it is, then maybe I can tackle the issue.

(And, I want to avoid drugs as much as possible. I hope we don't have to resort to that)

 

Well, I guess I am the one confused. My vet said fixed male cats can't spray. :roll: So what the heck is Copper doing? Almost every time he goes in his box or other places it is a vertical stream with the tail quivering. There has been pee running down walls, the refrigerator, doors, etc. Another time I posted here that he was spraying, I was corrected and sent to a website that described the difference. So now I say spraying/peeing. (I can't find that link now.) Almost every time he does it now, his boxes are soiled. That's the only reason I have found with my bad boy. Switching litter cut down on his problem greatly, but it's not completely cured.

 

the "sprayer" is a gland under the tail, while the "pee'r" is well you know where that is.
So you'd know if the spray is spray and not pee.
My vet once told me (and I'm sure there are exceptions to this...with cats there always is) that a male kitten that is neutered prior to the testoserone starting to surge through their bodies most likely will not spray. A male kitten that is neutered after might (keyword being might) spray.
It's a way of marking their territory. A lot of people think female cats can't spray - they do even spayed ones. I had one that used to back up to my tires and spray them and she was spayed the second she hit 6 months of age.

 

So if the sprayer is under the tail, neutering does not actually stop it then?? Is it removed or is it the darn testosterone that makes them use the sprayer. Copper is definately peeing, but he is spraying the pee vertically. Does that sound correct? I'm really confused now. :roll: And Copper was fixed when he was very young.

 

yes...my vet said something like what you said Mary. but i didnt know female cats sprayed :shock:
Max was neutered when he was 3.5 months old and Mini was spayed when she was 2 months and 3 weeks old. So hopefully i wont have any spraying problems.

 

Is it just those two areas that he is spraying? By the sounds of it, I don't think it has much to do with the litter boxes. Unless, one cat is trying to prevent him from using the boxes (or the location of the boxes) or vise versa causing a territorial conflict.

Where are the litter boxes located? Are they all in one room or are they scattered around the house?

You mentioned that he has been picking on his brother....I have a feeling that might have a lot to do with his spraying.

I think the feliway diffuser might help but if he is only spraying in a few specific locations I think the feliway spray might be more beneficial.
It can be sprayed directly on the area he is marking. But, you've already cleaned those areas with an enzymatic cleaner it could affect the effectiveness of the feliway. In that case, you could place something vertical in front of the area he sprays and spray that directly with feliway....it should be sprayed where it will be at nose level to him. Respray the area every 12 hrs. for about 2 wks. and try to keep him away from it until it dries.

 

Something is upsetting him. So now he's redirecting his aggression on his brother and spraying to mark his territory. I think it may be a cat/animal outside that's coming around your place and driving him nuts.

 

We do have neighborhood strays but I haven't seen them in months. That doesn't mean that Tash hasn't, though.

I haven't seen him fight too much with Boris lately. But, he seems to always be in a mood.

I will try the feliawy as soon as I can get to the store. As far as I know, he's only going in the two spots. When I blocked those areas, there was a suspect place in a spare room but I can't tell for sure.

He is certainly acting like he's spraying (with the tail shaking... etc.) But, it doesn't come out onto a vertical surface. It dribbles out and sounds like he's peeing on the ground. I thought that's what my vet said fixed cats do when the spray.

But, the topic can get very confusing.

 

Kitties are so hard to figure out sometimes. If Tash is not used to having a lid on his litterbox, maybe he doesn't like that.

Have you thought of moving one of the litterboxes to a different location where he can get to it easier? Although I guess the other cats may just want to use that one, too, if it is more convenient.

Does Tash have any trouble getting to the litter boxes? Does he have trouble with stairs?

Sorry I can't be of more help.

 

I think he's just stubborn.

He's fine going up and down stairs. Actually, he charges up and down them pretty good!

I could consider moving a litterbox but I don't know to where. If I put one box, say, in the bathroom, I'll have five cats quite happy to use one little box in a bathroom. It would be quite a mess and become a problem.

Right now, they're in the basement and it was never a problem before.

(We did remove the lids... they were on two of four boxes and they weren't getting used much.)

 

:m20:

 

Just for the record my 10yr old Molly sprayed all the time, I was washing walls down all the time tried to use everything to stop her, but to no avail. She just had her uterus removed last month and so far no spraying! Hopefully this will continue.

 

Good luck, Karen, I hope it works for you.

We've gone a few days successfully... but I feel like it's only a matter of time before Tash does it again.