Pseudo spraying reflex??????

Hi - I have +/- 2yr old(he was adopted) male SH ginger cat. I had him neutered at about a year old if I had to guess. The question I have is; can he display a pseudo spraying action i.e at times it appears that he is spraying on something, but there is NO liquid being expelled.

Please advise if this is possible, as I am getting complaints from neighbors that he is spraying on their furniture, but he has never "marked" any of my furniture,he has only displayed this "reflex action".

I have a cat that does that mock spraying - turning his behind to things with the vibrating tail. And nothing comes out - much to MY relief. But he is indoor only.

Can you keep him inside? Or only on your property? If he is spraying the neighbors furniture - I assume their outdoor stuff - maybe clean it with an enzyme cleaner and then spray it down with Feliway. That should help.

Google does this to his food cabinet. Nothing comes out, but he tries!

My neutered foster boy, Leo, also does this. I freaked when I first saw it, but like your kitty, it is only the action, and nothing is actually spraying.

Tolly does it too. Like you others the first time I saw him do it I was shocked, but nothing comes out. It's just a weird thing he does.

I had a female kitty who used to do it too. She's at the Bridge now, but she used to do it when I was in the bathroom. She'd come running in, bump her head against the side of the tub, then turn around and do the tail shake at the same spot.

Since your neighbors are complaining I would seriously consider keeping your cat indoors. Neighbors don't look too kindly on animals of others destroying their property, be it a real threat or perceived. I worry something might "happen" to your cat to separate you guys.

Currently studying house soiling in cats as part of my MSc in Clinical Animal Behaviour at Lincoln University and the subject of 'pseudospraying' has come up as part of this topic.  It's thought that cats can pseudospray when they're highly aroused and that pseudospraying can later become actual spraying in some cases.  It's thought that this kind of behaviour can occur as a result of frustration from being denied access to something (possibly a resource of some kind, either physical or social, e.g. a person) or being denied access to be able to respond in the way that the cat wants to (e.g. not being able to chase away a cat on the other side of a window). It's thought to take place more frequently in multi-cat households or in places were resources are more limited.  Is it possible to check with your neighbours to clarify if he's actually depositing urine on their furniture or whether he's pseudospraying?  It could be that he's doing more than one thing in that he may be pseudospraying inside your home (possibly through frustration for some reason) but may actually be spraying outside for another reason (e.g. the arrival of a new cat in the area).

Hi Sue, and welcome to TCS!!!

Thank you for taking time to respond with scientific info to this poster's thread, but it was started in 2010 and it's unlikely that they're still around. If you'd perhaps like to write a TCS article about pseudospraying, you can PM Anne, the site owner, and I'm sure she'd love to have you contribute.

If you'd like, you can wander over to New Cats on the Block and introduce yourself and your furfamily. We all love to see pictures!!

If you need help navigating the site, you can PM me or a moderator and we'll all do our best to assist you.

Thanks!