Don't know what to do about the spraying...

I'm mostly venting because I doubt there is anything that can be done in this situation.

I have an 11 month old cat named Autumn who recently started spraying when she went into heat. She's been spraying for about a month. Our flat reeked of urine until last week when I took her to get spayed and bought some biological cleaner to get rid of the smell.

This afternoon she started spraying again. I just don't know what to do. I must be having a bad day because I burst into tears when I saw her doing it because I was hopeful this wouldn't happen anymore (I read there was a slim chance it could continue). Am I doomed to cleaning up her urine everyday and spraying my carpets with cleaners?

Simple solution would be to spay her as soon as possible.

Originally Posted by hissy

Simple solution would be to spay her as soon as possible.

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She was just spayed 9 days ago. That's why I'm so frustrated.

she might be spraying cause she smells where she's marked before, and the only way to stop her spraying is to do a thorough thorough cleaning, maybe even having to replace the carpet

Michelle,
There is the remote possibility that she'll spray always but that is just that, remote.
Correct me if I'm wrong but if she was spayed she wouldn't have gone into heat again? Or maybe you meant she sprayed before the spay and now tho she's spayed she still does it.
Hmm..don't know. She either has a health problem or could be nervous for some reason.
I'd say first make sure she isn't sick (like a urinary infection) and ruling that out it should be behavioral.
What's her personality like? Hyper cats are more likely to spray than laid back ones.
I really feel for you and know how annoying it can be. I've a battery of cleaning stuff for my occasional sprayers.

Has she been checked for a UTI?

I heard that female cats once spayed early before first heat don't usually spray?

Originally Posted by momof3rugratz

I heard that female cats once spayed early before first heat don't usually spray?

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She's 11 months so probably has been in heat

I have 3 spayed females. Except for one (I am not even sure), they were fixed when they were adults. Joji, the oldest, is the one who sprays and only when she knows an unfamiliar cat has been inside the property. She started it only after her neutered brother died and took over his role as top cat. She also does it when she thinks I am not looking. She knows I will get angry.
In your case, your cat probably can still smell the areas where she sprayed. Also, her hormones have not yet settled down. Nine days is still too soon for spraying to stop. My advise, get a cleanser that works.

I agree with yayi about the hormones.
it may take awhile for them to get out of her system.

Thanks, everyone. She goes into the vet on Monday to get her stitches out (hopefully). We took her on Friday but she still wasn't healed enough. So, I'll talk to the vet about this and the possibility of her having a UTI then.

To answer some of your questions, yes, she was in heat and spraying before we got her spayed. She doesn't seem to be a nervous cat at all but she is pretty hyper.

To be honest, the idea of a UTI never crossed my mind because I thought she would be peeing outside the box, not spraying. I had no idea spraying could be a sign of a UTI so thank you for mentioning it.

We bought a cleaner from the vets office that seemed to work great. Completely got rid of the smell. I'll try to go back over everything again with it in case the cats are still smelling it. Unfortunately, getting new carpets isn't an option for us right now. We simply can't afford it.

Hopefully it's what a couple of you have mentioned and the hormones are still getting out of her system.

Thanks for all your comments/advice. I really appreciate it.

Just thought I'd mention something!

You might want to buy Simple Solution Cat Urine and Odor remover, enzymatic cleaner, (comes in a bottle and you can buy it from Pets At Home) It works really well and you can use it for cleaning the kitchen floor etc too!

When you treat the areas on the carpet, you need to ensure that it penetrates right the way through, saturating the carpet, backing and underlay - as the urine will soak all the way through and odour will remain!

Once all traces of the smell are removed, it could help with putting a stop to the marking!

You might also want to buy some Feliway spray and a plug in or two - this can help keep your kitty calm and deter marking!

I hope your vet will be able to help you solve the issue too!

We started using Feliway when we introduced the second cat. After watching their behavior when it ran out we decided to use Feliway foreeeeever. LOL

The carpets in our flat weren't actually put in very well so I am able to pull it up and use the cleaner on the floor beneath the carpet as well. I'll have to buy another bottle and go over all the spots again though.

Thanks.

Remember too that kitties can smell way better than we can. There's a spot on the carpet in my apt where a cat must have peed well over a year ago and Zissou still scratches at it, and sometimes meows at it.

I am using zero odor and I love it. I have to order more.