Neutered Cat Spraying his Owner?

Okay.... this is a new one by us.....

We've been having some inappropriate urination and defecation for about the last year. We have a lot of cats (a lot) and we know that some cats just can't handle being in a multi-cat environment. We've rehomed two cats so far and are finding a home for a third who is currently separated from the rest of the gang for his own sanity. It's not like we're new to these types of problems. We've both worked in cat rescue and have helped numerous others in dealing with problem behaviors. We've dealt with them ourselves, even.

But this... well... I don't know where to start.

Our Charlie jumped up on my husband last night while he was sitting on the house, turned around like he was going to lay down in his lap like always, but instead SPRAYED him! All over his shirt, hands, and pants! I can see spraying objects owned by a person, but an actual person?

I've known Charlie since he was three months old (shelter baby) and have owned him since he was a year old. He's dumb as dirt, just wants to please you, and is pretty much as close to a Labrador as a cat will ever be. But he is a green-eyed monster and gets jealous at the drop of a hat. He also has issues with dominance. He's going on five years old, and he's been neutered since he was eight weeks old, and I really can't understand why the spraying behavior is starting now. I'm not even sure that he's ever even sprayed before!

I know what the trigger was for this episode - Seena (who is another behavioral urinator - she likes plastic bags and cardboard more than litterboxes - and yes, been checked out multiple times by two different vets) was let out of our "rehabilitation room" for the first time in two months. She was going nuts because she finally got to spend the evening with my husband on the couch, which was always her favorite thing. Charlie got jealous and decided to mark my husband as his. (Evenings have been Charlie's special time to spend with us since Seena was confined, though he is much more my hubby's cat than mine at this point.)

I get why he did it..... I've just never heard of cats spraying their owners! And I'm not even sure how to start correcting this behavior. I've resorted to medicating with Prozac just so it doesn't happen again - my hubby just about had a breakdown last night. I'm always the first to say rehoming is in the cat's best interest, but in this case I don't think it is. He's happy here, and he's fine with the other cats - he needs the company of other cats, even.

I'm just really flabbergasted and at a loss of what to do about Charlie. (And poor Seena is still choosing plastic over litter.... Don't even know what to do there either.... So my stress level is just a bit higher than normal and I'm having trouble thinking this through.)

Before you go assuming anything - always get him to the vet. UTIs commonly are the cause of spraying & in a neutered male cat the risk of blocking up is greater.

I've had a kitty spray me before - he had a massive UTI/crystals - so the vet is always my first stop.

As for the stress with the kitties....have you tried Feliway, Rescue Remedy, etc?

Yeah, Feliway ended up getting massively sprayed. Took it down, washed the wall, and didn't have any more problems after that. It either works well (and I've had it turn cats around completely in the past) or it tanks. In this case, I don't think they liked it much.

UTI was my first thought (and hope!) too, but the urinalysis was fine. (Forgot to mention that, sorry! We ran him up earlier today.) It's definitely behavioral.

The kitties aren't stressed, just me.


EDIT

I just saw someone else down the page is having the same problems with a spayed female. Must be that time of year again. I do just want to add that while we've have problems in the house with inappropriate urination in the past, we've had it resolved for the past three months since finally locating and rehoming/separating the problem cats. Most of my hubby's cats came with ongoing behavioral problems (8+ years worth of spraying) and it's taken some time to sort through who had problems and needed to be separated and who was perfectly okay to be let loose throughout the house. That and a few of my females who just couldn't deal who are now living happily (and very spoiled!) with my mother.

But it's never bothered the other cats, go figure. When we've had problems in the past, one of the cats would be sniffing around and I would clean it up immediately and then nothing else would happen for a week or two. No territorial marking, no trying to cover up the spot with more marking. We have really laid back cats who just don't mind these things.