Female cat wont stop spraying

My wife and I recently adopted an 8 year old female Bengal from a breeder. The breeder was a friend of my mothers who was getting a divorce and decided to get out of the breeding business. Her plan was to take all of the cats down to shelter. Knowing that many shelters will put down Bengals we decided to adopt Chloe.

Chloe seemed fine for the first week or so but ever since has developed a habit of spraying vertical surfaces in our house. She will back up to a wall, erect her tail and spray. She has been spade for over a year now and pees in her litter box every other time.

In our 10 months of owning her she has gradually been moved to smaller and smaller spaces as we try to control where she sprays. She now lives in our spare bedroom and has a favorite corner to spray. It has gotten so bad that the paint on my walls is starting to come off. We have tried the following: Feliway Diffuser plug ins (She sprayed it), Natures Miracle, Deep cleaning the corner and carpet, tin foil over the spot (She sprayed it), an upside down carpet runner, a homemade cleaner of vinegar and baking soda, Multiple litter boxes and different types of litter, Vet visits (They say she is healthy), Special food to eliminate crystals from her bladder, and even a folder covered with double sided tape on the floor (She sprayed it). If she doesn't spray the deterrent directly, she moves over to the nearest available wall and sprays that

I really don't want to give this cat up because I feel that no other owner will tolerate the spraying and she will end up being put down. She is an excellent cat aside from the spraying. However I am about at the end of my rope and extremely stressed. If anyone has any other ideas that I seem to be missing please let me know.

Thank you in advance.

Has her urine been spefically tested to rule out a UTI?

When was her last physical &/or bloodpanel?

I don't know if it will work, but for her favorite corner cut and modify plastic storage bins. Or really any sort of plastic as long as you can make it were it will gather the urine at the bottom rather than go on the floor - line the bottom however you like. It might save your wall while you try to work on the spraying problem.

Hi, I have had some episodes of spraying that resolved after the cause of the stress was removed and lots of cleaning.

She has been to the vet, but has she been recently? If she is clear of health issues then it might be stress or an old habit.

Some here have had luck with medication. I don't recall the drug but someone will share what they have used. Maybe ask the vet about medications.

You may have to try other enzyme cleaners. I had better luck with www.nokout.com and www.weecleaner.com It is important to follow the directions on the container.

You are a great person to try to work through spraying. Hang in there!

I don't know where you live, but have you tried the Cat Attract litter - and several litter boxes?

You can find a Cat Attract dealer near you (if you live in the US) here: http://www.preciouscat.com/

And for the enzyme cleaner, I'd purchase Nok Out. Nature's Miracle kind of sucks. http://www.nokout.com

Have you tried Rescue Remedy (flower essences)? They don't always work either - but when they work, they work. You put a few drops in her water when you clean the dish daily, and dab some behind her ears, at the base of her tail - and a good dab under her chin so it wafts up into her nose... http://www.catfaeries.com

...as to medication for stress... some try Prozac or Buspar for anxiety/depression. I'm not sure that's the problem here.

When we tried everything (cat attract didn't exist then) for our Spooky, our vet recommended Elavil (generic is amytriptaline). It is an old-line anti-depressant that never really worked well as an anti-depressant. But it is what is given to children to help them stop wetting beds. It causes whoever is taking it to retain their urine. It made Spooky pee once a day. For whatever reason, it also made her start using the box again. We weaned her off of it after 3-4 months. Others here have had success with it - others haven't. Our vet says that when people come to him with stress peeing problems, it works for those to whom he recommends it about 80% of the time (pretty good odds). ...and most are able to successfully wean their animals off of it.

It did make her very sleepy for the first three weeks - but then she pretty much went back to being her normal, playful self. Only she wasn't peeing outside the box.

Since then she has peed outside the box occassionally. But we figured out it was only when she was in pain. She has really bad teeth - she's only 7 but has had to have 5 pulled (and we brush her teeth). Now we take her for her dental every six months, and haven't had any problems since then.

...but we've never had a cat spraying. Only peeing outside the box. I don't really know the difference between spraying and peeing outside the box. I think of peeing outside the box as usually a health problem, though sometimes a stress problem - and I think of spraying as territory marking - triggered by a new animal or person in the home, or triggered by a stray or feral cat outside that the inside cat can see or smell.

Originally Posted by LDG

...but we've never had a cat spraying. Only peeing outside the box. I don't really know the difference between spraying and peeing outside the box. I think of peeing outside the box as usually a health problem, though sometimes a stress problem - and I think of spraying as territory marking - triggered by a new animal or person in the home, or triggered by a stray or feral cat outside that the inside cat can see or smell.

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That's pretty much it - though some cats can get so set into peeing by spraying that it's pretty much the only way they do pee. I had an outdoor kitty years ago that even though he'd use the litter box, he's still stand in it and pee.

I think I recall others who have had cats that spray on the insides of the litter box instead of squatting.


To the OP - does the cat pee in her litter box at all?

Twitch sprays in the litterbox (as a result of being declawed), so we have to use high-sided rubbermaid tubs for boxes. She doesn't spray/urinate outside of the box.

Squishy sprays both in & out of the litterbox due to having chronic urinary issues.

I really feel for you. I had a female that did this. I think it was just a result of what she smelled outside because she would spray under windows and wall outlets. Believe it or not she finally stopped but I cannot remember what happened to change it. The vet recommended we put her on some medication. It was several years ago and to be honest, I don't remember if it was some sort of hormone replacement drug or just an anti-anxiety /anti-depressant drug. It made McKenzie very lethargic and so I opted not to continue with that route. Maybe Feliway would help? I've never tried it but several people rave about it.

I would discuss drug options with your vet and hope you get it under control.

That's a sad problem and one I've never be able to figure out. I once had a cat that did that too. I never did know whether the cat simply had a bit of "male" behaviour, whether it was jealous of the other cats or insecure, or whether it had incontinence like so many female humans get.

A few years later that cat died from lung cancer (in non-smoking home) so I never did figure out whether she did it because she was sick, whether it was because she was the runt of the litter and had a kind of crooked back and tail that leaned forward so her physical build might have been the cause, or what. Maybe that type of odd build just made it hard for her to control herself.

Thinking back now, I forgive the poor thing because what seemed to be a big issue then seems to be so small now. Maybe you should have her checked by a vet. She also might simply be suffering from some form of anxiety.

I understand some dogs also pee when they get excited. (So do some humans, especially females).

Has she been neutered? Has she been checked for a UTI? Is there anything you can think of that is stressing her? What kind of litters have you used? One of my females wees standing up, so we have to have a covered litter tray.

Originally Posted by KKuhn

She has been spade for over a year now and pees in her litter box every other time.

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Originally Posted by booktigger

Has she been neutered?

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An easy answer to your question