So What Is Cat Spraying Or Cat Urine Marking
Cat spraying is a common behaviour in cats, mostly displayed when your cat is marking their territory or stressed. Changes to your pets environment, such as bringing home a new pet or baby, can also lead to cat spraying. There may also be new cats in the area or outside that your cat can sense, even when indoors. For some cats, stress can be caused by even the smallest changes, like moving a chair into a different place of the living room. Simply put, cat spraying is a cats way of communicating their unease or stress through a physical response, natural to their instincts.
If you notice this kind of behaviour, think about any major changes in your cats life that may have triggered the behaviour, and see if you can adjust anything to make the environment feel like its previous state. It may be a house move, furniture move, new cats in the home and anything in-between unfortunately, it can sometimes be hard to pinpoint.
Consider combating the behaviour by restoring your cats sense of territory and comfort, like allowing your cat to have specific spaces to roam in the house, purchase synthetic pheromone products to help ease any major transitions and always speak to your vet for further advice. Just remember, all cats are different and some cats are more prone to stress than others, so in some instances medicinal help may be required along with some behavioural modification/destination .
Make The Behaviour Incompatible
This is a technique used by many animal trainers and is working pretty well. You simply need to make it impossible for the cat to urinate in any given spot by making it physically impossible. For instance, place a sizable object, like a TV stand or an armchair, over the spot where the cat likes to urinate. That will help to break the habit provided that the issue is not medical-related.
What Smells Stop A Cat From Peeing On Things In Your House
Are you fed up with cleaning cat urine stains from your carpets and furniture? Then youll be surprised to know there are some smells that deter cats from peeing outside their litter box.
While you mustve heard of essential oils that deter cats from peeing around the house, there are other materials with strong scents which you can easily find in your kitchen. Here are some easy options to try out:
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Considering Possible Health And Behavior Problems
Apply The Solution Near The Base Of The Furniture
Do not just spray the mouthwash solution in your entire couch or sofa as it will just drench your furniture. Apply it on the base since cats instinctively sniff near the base of any furniture as they walk across the room, checking for a particular spot to pee on. By spraying it on the base your cat will detect that something is off without overwhelming the furniture and room with the mouthwash smell.
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How Frequently Should I Spray Cat Deterrent
Various cat deterrent sprays consist of different fragrances that keep your pet away. These sprays work with different efficiency based upon their composition. When you are using a cat deterrent spray, it is recommended to use it for several continuous days at starting. Using it for a day or two wont change your fuzzy mates habits and will not give you the desired results. After using it regularly for about 7-10 days, you can use it with a days gap until you feel productive outcomes have been achieved.
What Is The Cat Deterrent Spray For Peeing
Sorry if youre perplexed. I know its not an easy choice! But its one of the most crucial choices youll ever make. If youre still unsure which type of cat deterrent spray for peeing is best for you, I recommend comparing the characteristics and functionalities of the cat deterrent spray for peeing listed above. Each has advantages and disadvantages.
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Inappropriate Urination: How To Change Your Cat’s Behavior
Once you’ve isolated the reason your cat is peeing in the house, you can begin to change its behavior. This will take time.
- If your cat has been peeing where it shouldn’t, you’ll need to remove all trace of the smell or block off the area entirely. Clean the spot with an enzymatic cleanser rather than an ammonia-based one, cover with foil or plastic, and prevent access for several weeks to give the neutralizer sufficient time to work.
- If there is a new cat in the house, give them separate litter boxes. Give them different territories until they are comfortable with each other. Sometimes not getting along can cause cats to show aggression through urination.
- If your cat is threatened by a new baby, guest, or other change, give it time to adjust.
- Moving to a new home is a big change in your cat’s life. Not only is the cat claiming and adjusting to a new territory, but it might also be reacting to the scent of a former tenant’s pet. You’ll need to reassure your cat and completely remove all odors of other cats so your cat won’t feel the need to mark its territory.
Don’t forget to give extra attention, affection, and praise to your cat. Reassure your pet that it is a loved and important part of the family.
Natures Miracle Enzymatic Formula Stain & Odor Remover
Natures Miracle is an enzyme cleaner that will get rid of organic odors and stains.
Features:
What we like about it:
Natures Miracle is an effective stain and odor remover that works on both old and new problem spots. The enzyme cleaner breaks down bacteria quickly to remove stains and odors while leaving a nice, citrusy scent. It can be used on different surfaces such as hard floors , cages, clothing, carpets, and much more.
Its also pretty cheap, which is really a good deal if youre looking for something that works but youre on a tight budget.
What needs improvement:
While Natures Miracle is excellent at removing stains, some cats still find their way to the same spot to do their business again, unless you use a lot of the product on the problem spot.
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Let Your Cat Pick The Type Of Litter
Heavily perfumed cat litter may seem to be the better choice for you, but cats tend to disagree. Their noses are more sensitive than ours, so what smells pleasant to us can be overpowering to them.
They also like to stick with whats familiar, so a cat may urinate outside the litter box if you suddenly switch to a new type of litter.
Studies have shown that among cats, the all-around favorite litter type is an unscented, clumping clay litter containing activated charcoal.
If you want to try a new type of litter, make sure you have at least one box in the house that contains the old type of litter just in case. If your cat rejects the new litter, dont use it.
Dont Place Any Food/water Next To The Litter Box
Cats are renowned for cleaning themselves half of the day. So its not surprising that they like the things around them clean. If you place their food or water bowl too close to the litter box, they simply will avoid using the latter because they dont want to eat or drink near the toilet. Also, make sure you clean the litter box frequently to avoid any unpleasant smells deterring cats from using their litter box.
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Why Does My Cat Pee In The Same Spot
Frustration, stress, or anxiety can sometimes cause a cat to change their urinating habits. Any change in their routine, such as a new person in the household or moving house, can lead to changes in urination. They may also mark spots in the house with their urine as a means of marking their territory.
What Can You Spray On Furniture To Keep Cats From Peeing On It
Spray mouthwash solution on furniture to keep cats from peeing on it. Use a 50:50 blend of mouthwash and water and spray on the base and target zones where your cat always pee. Deterrent sprays consisting of orange oil or peppermint oil are also effective since cats hate their smell. Do not use ammonia-based disinfectants since your cat will think it is urine and will continue to pee in areas that you sprayed it on.
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What Can Deter Cats From Peeing On Carpet
If the carpet is not cleaned properly, use a disinfectant and odor neutralizer. Make sure you avoid products that contain ammonia, since they usually smell like cat urine. Choose something with a citrusy smell, since some cats do not like this. Making your own disinfectant at home is also an option.
The Difference Between Urination Or Urine Spraying
When your cat is spraying they will typically back up to a vertical surface, like a wall or the side of your couch. They will often lift their tail, it may twitch a little bit and the urine will spray out onto that vertical surface.
On the other hand with inappropriate urinating, they will get into a crouching position and they will urinate as though they’re urinating normally. They might strain a little bit but they will be urinating on a horizontal surface. That’s really the big difference between urination and spraying.
This is vital to identify because the causes of spraying and inappropriate urination are very different and so the techniques to stop your cat peeing everywhere will also be different.
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Move Your Cats Litter Tray And Food Bowls
If there’s still a problem after all of these other tips and especially if your cat is spraying or urinating in one spot in particular, what you can try and do is move their litter tray to this spot. It might not be where you want it but if you can get them back using the litter tray you can then slowly move the tray back to a position where you’re happy for that litter tray to be.
Alternatively you can even try putting their food and water in that area. Cats are really clean hygienic animals in general and they don’t like peeing where their food or their water is. Putting them in the problem spot can help put them off. Be careful however that this doesn’t actually just stress them out more!
A Problem With The Litter Box Itself
When your cat starts peeing in the house, the litter box should be considered. All too often, we ignore the obvious: You rush your cat to the vet fearing the worst, only to find out that the problem is a simple case of user error.
A cat that is unhappy with his box will stop using it. Think about it: would you use a dirty, smelly toilet? Of course not. Cats are very clean animals, and some of them are extremely finicky about their litter boxes.
If you can answer yes to any of the questions below, this may be your reason.
- Have you recently moved the box? Cats adore privacy and lots of space, so make sure the litter box is in the correct location.
- Is the litter dirty?
- Are there too few boxes to serve all the cats in your house?
- Is the cat ever prevented access to the litter box?
- Is the litter box placed in a cramped spot? Does the cat have any reason to fear getting trapped there or not being able to escape easily?
- Is the box located in a location that offers no privacy?
- Does the litter box have a hood or sides that are too high?
- Has your cat ever been upset or interrupted while using the box?
- Are there any reasons your cat might have negative associations with the litter box?
- Is your cat expressing a preference for peeing on certain surfaces or materials like carpet, fabric, or dirt?
Note: A cat that has been declawed will have special needs when it comes to litter. You may need to switch to paper litter that is softer on those delicate paws.
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Urine Marking In Cats
The most common behavior problem reported by pet parents of cats is inappropriate elimination. Its estimated that 10% of all cats will eliminate outside their litter box at some point in their lives. Quite a few of these cats have issues with some characteristic of their litter box , but approximately 30% dont have litter box problems at all. These cats are urine marking, and urine marking isnt a litter box problemits a communication problem. Urine marking is a form of indirect communication used by cats.
Clean The Litter Boxes More Often
A filthy litter box is almost guaranteed to send a cat elsewhere to pee. Cats are very clean creatures by nature, so they prefer to use a clean litter box.
At a minimum, litter boxes should be scooped out once a day. You should do a deep clean every 1-2 weeks by dumping all the litter and washing and refilling the boxes. Consider a self-cleaning litter box system if you find it hard to keep up on the scooping.
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The 3 Best Cat Pee Deterrents
If you have already tried out these natural cat repellents and they dont seem to work for your pets, theres no reason to be concerned.
Many professionally formulated products will help deter your cats from peeing outside their litter boxes. Check out these three options to pick the right one for your home:
Should You Punish Or Correct A Cat For Peeing On The Carpet
You should never punish your cat for urinating on the carpet. For a start, negative responses to unwelcome behavior arent the best way to get results. Also, you may be punishing your cat for something that is out of its control. Either your cat is still peeing around the home because they arent fully trained yet which means your methods are at fault or because there is something medically wrong with them.
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Bonus Section: Why Do Cats Pee Outside The Litter Box
Contrary to some peoples opinion, cats do not pee outside their litter box to get even with their owners. The reason can be something as simple as the litter box not being changed. Cats are very sensitive to smell, and if you do not take out the waste and change the litter box regularly, your cats will eliminate elsewhere. Who wants to keep going to a bathroom with an unflushable toilet?
It could also be because you have multiple cats in your household. Some cats do not like sharing their litter box with another. As a rule, keep as many litter boxes around your home as the number of your cats.
Some cats spray to mark their territory or let other felines know that they are ready to mate. This is a completely hormonal issue and may be fixed by having your pets neutered or spayed. Others do so because of a feud with other cats in the household or because they are stressed or anxious.
The last reason could be a medical issue. Older cats who have arthritis have a difficult time getting inside their litter box, particularly if its side is too tall or if the litter box is located somewhere difficult to go to . Eliminating outside could also be a sign of urinary tract infection, diabetes, and more. To make sure that this is not the case, get your cat to a veterinarian as soon as possible.
End The Peeing Problem For Good
While these six scents can prevent the peeing problem, its critical to get to the root of the bad behavior. Schedule a wellness appointment with your vet to determine if the peeing is caused by an underlying medical condition. If your cat is stressed, use calming pheromones to soothe his anxiety. Ensure the litter box is clean and easily accessible to your cat.
Featured Image Credit: Africa Studio, Shutterstock
Contents Overview
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