spraying?

Scooter, our 2 year old male bengal, has a tendancy to spray our closet wall every once in a while. I dont understand why he is doing this. Like I said, it's once in a while that he does this. He was neutured when he was a kitten, and did not do this when he was a kitten. I will call my vet tomorrow and make an appointment because he is due for his year shot. How do you know if it is behavioral or medical? When I caught him trying to cover it up, I yelled "bad boy" at him.

Both the members on this board and my vet are recommending Feliway, which either contains or mimicks a cat phermone secreted from their cheeks that they rub around their habitat (and on other cats, you, etc.). It makes them feel more secure and reduces stress. It's not cheap but supposed to be quite effective.

The only way to tell whether it is behavioral or medical is for your vet to test the cat's urine for the presence of blood or crystals. Make sure that you tell the vet about the peeing so the vet will know what to look for.

If it is not a medical problem, let us know and we will help you figure out how to modify his behavior.

Loulou has been doing sthg similar (curtains, carpets, furniture, you name it...) for a while, and she was eventually found to have lots of crystals in her urine, so a trip to the vet is essential in the first instance.

But pls don't yell at Scooter when you catch him doing this. He won't understand why his trusted human is suddenly being so nasty to him, and he will continue to do it anyway - except he'll do it when you're not around, to avoid the risk of being shouted at.

If you do catch him doing it, just lead him away gently, or try to distract him with a favourite toy. This type of positive reinforcement will be far more effective, esp if he is sparying due to anxiety, your shouting at him will just make him more anxious. But obviously you need to rule out medical causes first.

You could try placing a dish of food near the area where he is spraying. This worked for Loulou - cats will rarely spray near their food/eating areas.

BTW, we also tried Feliway and it didn't work - but it's definitely worth a shot! You could also cover the area where he's spraying with aluminium foil, as the urine will then bounce back at him and he won't like it.

You also need to be aware that even if the original cause of the spraying is medical, it can continue even once the problem is cleared up - thereby becoming a behavioural problem. You need lots of patience with this one!