Herding Cats at Home - May 2004

A: Part of "loving cats" is knowing your limits. How many cats are living in your house? Urinating indoors can be a sign of territorial stress, that is, too many cats trying to share too small a space. In the wild, cats live mostly alone. Living in large groups can be difficult for them unless the cat owner takes great care to provide everything they need -- including enough space.

Cats urinating indoors can also mean that you have not provided enough litter boxes for the number of cats you have. There should be at least one litter box per cat, plus at least one extra. Cats will also avoid the litter boxes if you don't keep them clean enough. You need to scoop and clean them every day.

Urinating indoors can also be a sign of illness in cats. Any cat who starts "missing" the litter box should visit the veterinarian for a check-up right away.

If any of your cats have not been spayed and neutered, you may be seeing "marking" rather than plain "urinating." Intact cats, especially males, spray very smelly urine to "mark" their turf, boast to other males, and advertise themselves to the females. Intact female cats often spray urine to mark, too. Spaying and neutering all your cats will significantly reduce (if not eliminate) this kind of marking behavior

Unfortunately, there are no "miracles" or magical herbal products that will solve your problem. However, you DO need to be VERY careful to thoroughly clean and deodorize EVERY spot where a cat has urinated. The scent of the urine will draw him (and other cats) back to that same spot -- because now it "smells like a litter box." The scent says to cats, "This is a good place to go!"

Cats have much more sensitive noses than we do. So even if you can't smell cat urine after you clean a spot, a cat might be able to. To clean up properly, use a product specifically designed to completely eliminate cat urine odor (some popular products are "Get Serious" and "Nature's Miracle.") You can find these products at pet supply stores and on pet supply web sites.

So, in short, there are no "miracle cures." But doing the following will help prevent and solve future problems:

• Limit the number of cats in your home. If you have too many, they will naturally feel stressed and will "mark their territory."
• Make sure all cats are spayed and neutered.
• Keep at least one litter box per cat, and at least one extra.
• Keep the litter boxes extremely clean. Scoop waste every day.
• If a cat starts missing the box, take him to the veterinarian. He might be ill.
• Clean up any "mistakes" immediately and completely, with a product designed for that purpose.

And finally, remember that "loving cats" means being a responsible cat owner. Spay and neuter your cats (to prevent future litters of "strays"), and don't subject them to the stress of living more closely together than they like, or of having to use dirty litter boxes.

A: There are a number of things that may be making your cat seem to be afraid of you, or not want to get close to you. My first suspicion would be scent.

Cats live in a world dominated by scents. They are MUCH more sensitive to scents and odors of all kinds than we are, or even than many kinds of dogs are. I suspect that there might be something about your "personal scent signature" that your female cat finds either frightening or unpleasant. It doesn't mean she doesn't like YOU; just something about how you smell!

First, thank the Cat Goddess that she gets along with your other cats! Conflicts between cats can be pretty tough to solve.

Now, take a close look at your own "personal scent signature." Most people, especially women, use many more scented products than we realize: soaps, perfumes, lotions, cosmetics, medications, face cream, cleaning substances, etc. Try minimizing your use of such products, or substitute unscented products, and see if that makes a difference.

If you want to be really scientific about it, stop one product at a time and see if any of the changes helps. For example, if you usually wear a particular perfume or cologne, stop using it for a week and see if your cat gets friendlier towards you. If that doesn't seem to work, stop using another product (like a soap or hand lotion) and see if that helps. If the problem is scent-related, ideally, you will be able to figure out just what scent (or combination of scents) your cat objects to. There are enough different products available that you should be able to find substitutes that both you and your cat like.

And don't forget about unscented ("hypoallergenic") products. There are many available.

Another thing you could try is to let her gently sniff containers of various products you use and watch how she reacts to each one. If she wrinkles her nose and jumps back three feet, I would suggest you stop using that particular product! (But you do need to remember that all scented products "combine" with our own skin scents to produce a new blended scent. Scent is VERY complicated!)

Another possibility (and it may be a combination of factors) is that something about the way you move or walk frightens this particular cat. Since you took her in as a stray, she may have had bad experiences while she was very young. I have known cats that won't go near anyone who walks very quickly or heavily, or people who wear heavy shoes or boots. (Maybe these cats were stepped on or tripped over once, and they are still spooked by fast movements and feet!)

Does your cat usually rush away from you when you approach her? If so, your movements might be frightening her. If you suspect this might be the case, work on moving especially gently and slowly around your cat. One thing to try is to just sit quietly on the floor or ground with a few tasty treats and hold out your hand and let your cat approach you. Don't rush her or force her. It may take several tries until she feels safe enough to approach. Reward her with a treat. Speak VERY softly and gently. Keep doing this until she feels more comfortable around you.

In any case, it might take some time and patience to figure out WHY your cat doesn't want to come near you, and to communicate to her that coming near you is really safe and OK. Be patient with her and never rush her. Be sure to reward any progress she makes. Speak softly and offer lavish praise. Tell her how beautiful and special she is. (All cats love praise and flattery -- and you never even have to lie!) Don't try to touch her first, let HER come to YOU. Once it's HER idea, you should be fine.