Prozac for cat spraying

Ok so I am new to this site and am looking for some info. I have a 4 month old bengal who was spayed at 3 months (which is when she started spraying ) that is spraying. I have tried everything and have ran uti tests and everything is good. As a last resort the vet said to try Prozac which i couldn't believe but was desperate. Anyone who has dealt with a cat spraying knows my frustration. It is day 3 now and she is doing great, same playful kitten but I found more spray last night. I know its early but was wondering how long it takes for it to start working and if it wasn't successful for some cats. My vet seems very positive that this should work and quick. I am just feeling so hopeless. Please any input would be great! Thank you!

Prozac has become my miracle cat drug. I used to be 100% against putting my cats on any kind of medicine like prozac but after one cat started peeing everywhere in the house, completely destroying some carpets, I had the vet run every single test she possibly could on her, with the results all being negative. I must have looked pretty upset because the vet actually said "I'm so sorry that I can't find anything medically wrong with her". I never thought I'd actually want a medical problem until that moment! Anyway, the vet put her on prozac and after 2 weeks, she completely stopped peeing outside of the litter box. She also had some pretty severe separation anxiety that also stopped, and she stopped bullying one of my other cats. The only thing I noticed that changed about her was the bad stuff...otherwise her personality is exactly the same. When I had success with her, I tried it with another cat that also has problems with stress peeing, and its been working really well for him too. So I've gone from someone who used to refuse to medicate my cats, to someone who would now recommend prozac in a heartbeat. I know not everyone has luck with it, but I did, and I'm definitely happy that I went down that road. Good luck with your cat!

Thank you for your input. I felt the same way about using meds for my cat but you just become so desperate. I love having cats but dont want my house to smell like it. Im glad you have had success and am hoping that she will be done spraying very soon. It seems like a for sure miracle drug. This is really the last option and than i will have to make her a outside kitty which will be very hard considering my others come inside and she is a snuggle bug. I never ever have dealt with this and was regretting taking her. I dont want to feel these regrets but its so hard when your walls,etc. are being used as a litter box. Thanks again!

Also I know how you feel with the vet running test. You almost want them to find something so you have a answer and than it can be fixed.

Just a update about the prozac for the spraying. It has now been 10 days since she has sprayed, the longest run ever. I am so excited and am so happy we are using the meds. She will be on it 3 months and than stop and see if she starts spraying again, hoping she doesnt. I have seen no side effects, she has the same energy and appetite. All in all seems like a wonder drug

Its been a little while since I've been on this site because we just moved into a new house and have been relying on our phones for internet until we had the actual internet hooked up, so I know this is a late reply but I just wanted to say yay for the prozac working for you ! I definitely know that relief. Its amazing how much of my stress disappeared once my litter box problems ended . On that note though, I think today I'm going to ask the vet to put a 3rd cat on prozac. Its been successful for two of my cats so hopefully it will be for a third. One of my males has started spraying our new house. I know its most likely due to the fact that its a new place but we've been here for a couple weeks now and the spraying has actually gotten worse instead of better. Plus we were in a hotel for 2 months before this and he never once sprayed the hotel room. Its definitely spraying too - not peeing. He has a vet appointment today so here's hoping I can get this issue fixed soon! I hope things are continuing to go well for you!

Hello! This is officially my first post on the site, I joined because I read this thread...

My kitty, Bellatrix, started spraying/peeing the past couple of weeks. We have dealt with several changes in the past few months...such as, flooding (though containted) and subsequently ripping off our bathroom wall to access it, changing her litter (though I did it gradually, she took to it right away) and perhaps other, less major changes...

What did her in was this huge, high cabinet she LOVED to sleep on! All the time! It wasn't ours, and was taking up space, so it left our apartment and moved upstairs about two weeks ago. That's when we noticed the pee. 

ANYWAY! Long story short, she is now on Prozac as well. This evening will make dose three.

She has been confined from accessing the bathroom and living room, where the incidents occurred, and I am in the process of my second round of cleaning with Nature's Miracle (anyone ever use that stuff? Actually, anyone ever read this thread anymore? Lol!)

So I just wanted to offer my input since it is a relevant situation. I am also in the process of purchasing Feliway spray and diffusers ($$$!!!) to use in addition to the cleaner and the Prozac...we saw pee in the box for the first time in a week yesterday morning, so til she does this on a regular basis, bedroom/bathroom off limits for Miss Bella.

I think the cabinet moving was the last straw that broke her back, per say, and caused her to act out in such a way. She also could very well have some sort of hormonal/mental imbalance, which it is looking like now...

I will come back after a while and give my feedback on how Prozac works on my kitty, to offer some more insight to any other readers.

But I do want to say thank you to everyone who contributed to this so far, it has really been  a help. I was weirded out about giving my little love meds!

Thanks for the thread. I just put my cat on Prozac. It was the last straw for me. She is an indoor kitty and I was contemplating making her into an outdoor kitty as a last resort. She pees and poops all over the house and the vet couldn't find anything medically wrong with her either. If I move the litterbox to a location she's peeing in she will use it for a while then the pattern starts over again. She even pees in the heater vents! ugh.  I've had to cover them. I'm getting ready to move into a new house and this cannot happen in the new house. My vet told me about the prozac and said it has a 90% success rate and has worked on every cat owner he has prescribed it to so I'm very hopeful after reading this thread and talking to my vet that this will be the answer.  It's only been a day but will be moving in 2 weeks and am hoping her behavior improves by then. She is an older cat, about 16 yrs so she doesn't have too many years left.

Hey @gapey  , I hear ya!

I joined this site and had more confidence in the Prozac after reading this thread. It made me feel a lot better.

My nightmare with Bellatrix is over for now, we're (well, ME, since I'm the mommy lol all duties on me!) still giving her the Prozac every day in her wet food. Were you able to get your hands on the liquid form of the med? That makes it so much easier. Just squirt it in and mush it around and she doesn't know the difference. We also have a feliway diffuser plugged in to the bedroom. We actually had to tilt it on its side so we could plug it into the top side of the outlet, otherwise it leaves oil on whatever plug is above it. Still seems to be working!

It's such a pain to go through and I commend you for not letting your kitty become an outdoor one...honestly, at her age, and if she's been an indoor cat her whole life, it may become a death sentence for her. Not intending to sound dramatic, but I'm so glad you did your research and talked to the vet!

I'd love to hear how your situation develops. Feel free to reply to me on here or send me a private message. Best of luck  good vibes!

Yeah I didn't want to go the outdoor route it would have been the last resort. I do let her out occasionally but only supervised and don't let her out of my sight. The house I'm moving to is pretty secluded and no other cats/dogs nearby. It's basically surrounded by farm land.

The vet told me about a cream that you put on the ears but it's more expensive. He said it comes in a liquid too but he didn't have any in stock and he didn't say how much that is but probably more expensive. I decided to just try the pills and have to quarter them. I was able to dissolve it in water and mix it in with her food and she seemed to eat it fine. I've been able to give her all her medications that way. She's also on a medication to lower her blood pressure and have to quarter those too.

Ok, sounds good. I only pay about $7 for the liquid form and it's about 120 days supply. If you want to make it a little easier on yourself go ahead and try and find out how much it is, but if this is working out for you this way then great!  If it ain't broke, don't fix it...

Just a warning about the cream they mentioned--I've heard it's less effective and isn't absorbed into the body as well, so try to stay away from that. 

One of my cats has recently - short term - been on diazepam (Valium). Vet gave me script which I had compounded as an oral suspension at my local independent pharmacy. The pharmacist does so much for dogs and cats that he was able to make it chicken flavored! This was for inter-cat aggression - the one receiving the medication was the cat being attacked.

Yeah I wasn't too interested in the cream anyway. I mean it would get on my hands and probably get absorbed into my skin and I don't want that. I may try and see if I can get the liquid form. That's not a bad price at all.

Someone said that her pharmacist made a chicken flavored compound.  Do you know what he/she actually used?  I am having a very hard time giving my 6 year old Bengal her Prozak.  It has been 5 days and now she hates me.

Have you tried dissolving it in water and mixing it in with her wet food? I had no problem giving the med to my cat using that method.

I tried mixing it crushed with her wet food and she refused to eat it.  I have been using a pill plunger the last 4 days and now she wants nothing to do with me.  I have boxed chicken broth so I think I will try crushing it and putting it in warm broth to completely dissolve then putting it in her wet food.

They have Greenies pill pockets for cats.  I inherited my grandma's two kitties when she went to the nursing home. 
Matilda was a feral and she adored my grandma but hated all others.  It's taken her 5 years but she is happy and adjusted to life with a herd of kitties, thanks to prozac. She was a tazmanian devil at first so giving her tablets was not happening without much blood loss on my part. Those pill pockets only fooled her for a week or so but it was enough to get enough prozac in her to be able to pill her without major trauma.  She still gives me the evil eye when she hears the pill come out but takes it quite well now. :-)

Good luck!

Well, I tried everything and am back to using the pill plunger and she hates it.  So now she hates me even coming into the room to see her.  She hasn't sprayed for over 2 weeks now but she is confined to my sun porch which is quite big and comfortable.  I'm going to ask my vet if he can get the liquid form for me.  Hopefully in a few months, I can start to reintroduce her to the house and other 2 cats without her spraying again.

I have had Asia, my 4 year old female Bengal cat, on prozac for 3 weeks now for urine marking.  I have her confined to a large sunporch with a kitty outdoor screen house so she can come out or in as she likes.  She will not let me pick her up and hisses at me when I try to.  She is acting so lost and alone I don't know what to do for her.  I was wondering how long it takes for the prozac to work.  She does not want to come out of her room now at all and doesn't want anyone to bother her. She has not sprayed at all since she has been confined to the sunporch.   Any suggestions?

@2bengals My pharmacist compounds Valium (diazapam) in chicken flavor. I used it when my two indoor only, neutered male cats had issues with each other, displaced aggression, because of neighbor's cat hanging around outside. He mixes it up, I keep it in the refrigerator. Shake really well, draw up the required amount in a needless syringe and squirt over wet food. Nom, nom, nom - and it is eaten all up. No fuss, no muss, no bother. And it resolved their issues in a week. Inexpensive too, about $16 if I recall correctly.

Good luck.