Spraying - What To Do?

[anne3007]

My male cat (neutered) keeps spraying. He is 8 years old and he has been spraying for a year or three. At that time I adopted a third cat and I think this made him stressed out..Though the weird thing is that they do lie next to each other, but possibly he is very insecure and does not like sharing his territory.
I have a lot of space at home and my cats are able to go in- and outside whenever they want. Medical causes are excluded by my vet. He keeps spraying in the same places and he does not even smell on it before spraying. He usually just comes from outside, walks to the tv cabinet and immediately sprays at the same spot.
Therefore, I feel like Feliway spray on the spot won't work, since he doesn't even stop and smell on it first?
Is there anything I can do for this behavior? Does someone has good experiences with a particular kind of medicine for example?
It is a cat that is quickly stressed and sensitive to stimuli. I want to keep my 3 cats and they do not have any fights or so.
But I would like to see him feeling more comfortable at home.

Thank you in advance!

 

[calicosrspecial]

If medical is ruled out then I think it is territorial insecurity. Are any intact males coming around the house? I wonder if they are spraying around the house and causing him to say "hey, this is mine!". Spraying/marking is a way to claim ownership.

Is he spraying only at the TV cabinet? Have you cleaned it with the proper cleaning products? http://www.thecatsite.com/a/how-to-remove-cat-urine Proper cleaning is very important.

How does he get along with the other cats (especially the new one)? How is his body language and theirs? Confident? Tail high, not avoiding anywhere. Or cautious?

I truly believe that play builds confidence and security and ownership. So I suggest stepping up play in the area he is marking. Really good play sessions. Then after play feed either treats or a meal. This replicates the confidence a cat builds in the wild. Hunt, Capture, Kill, Eat. That is what cats do to survive. When they succeed they "kings of the jungle".

I would also add (if you can) a cat tree near that area. Height builds confidence. If it can be near where they are marking and they can see out that can be very helpful. Being above and able to monitor a situation leads to safety and a feeling of confidence. Also, a cat scratching post is good so that a cat can scratch and get his scent on things.

Also, make sure he has plenty of warm and comfy places to hang out, sleep, etc around there. Enough so they don't have to compete for the spaces but there are plenty for all of them to share.

Finally, be as calm and confident around him as possible. When he marks don't yell at him (not saying you do) but just be calm. Cats take on our emotions so the more secure, calm and confident we are the more they will be.

Keep associating the other cats with good things (give treats together, feed them together, etc). Also, try to make sure every interaction between them is as positive as possible. So that they have total trust between them.

Don't worry, we should be able to get him out of this. If we can find the source of the issue (outside intact males, fear of a inside cat, etc) then we can pinpoint more but if we build his confidence generally we should get him to feel secure and then he will not feel the need to mark.

I hope this helps, please feel free to ask anything anytime and I am happy to help for as long as needed.

 

[anne3007]

Thank you so much for your reply and your advise! I think this is definitely helpful.
Especially the part about playing and feeding afterwards, I never thought about that ;-)

I am not sure whether it is a problem with cats outside or with my other two cats. Pim has no problems with Daisy, they do get along very well. Lily is more of a problem. First Pim was very insecure around her, since Lilly can be somewhat unpredictable . Lily sometimes suddenly chased him for example. But now, it's the opposite. Pim still seems a bit insecure around her , a bit careful and cautious..But Lily stopped chasing him for a while now and today I saw Pim chasing Lily instead. This happened earlier lately. So somehow he seems cautious around her, when I want to give treats in the puzzle feeder for example; I do that every night and Pim and Lily like that. When I put the treats in the puzzle , Lily starts puzzling and Pim preferably doesn't want to sit close to her. He needs more space in between them. But on the other hand, he is now the one who starts chasing Lily out of nowhere and then Lily seems the insecure one.

Last week I saw Pim spraying outside in the yard as well, so maybe he has a problem with another cat from outside. I am not sure whether there are any intact males in his area but this could be. There are quite a lot of cats in this area.

He isn't only spraying at the tv cabinet. That is just one of his spots. He sometimes sprays at the front door (not often though), and upstairs at the closet in two rooms , and at the attick against the wall.

I will try to be more confident around him. I never get angry at my cats or yell at him when he is spraying. I do say his name though and try to stop him by saying his name. Then he gets distracted and I can usually stop him from starting spraying.
I have quite a big house so they have a lot of space fortunately and also lots of scratching posts and blankets etc. I really have a 'cat house' haha, so I don't think that is really the problem. The only place they have to share is my bed They both sleep on my bed each night, Pim and Lily. (Daisy sleeps downstairs). I think Lily and Pim do have a sort of complicated relationship though, I really don't understand it.
But I will try the things you said, it sounds good! And I hope this problem can be solved.

Again, thank you so much for your time and your helpful advice! Really appreciate it.

 

[danteshuman]

Sometimes it can be a fox, coyote, racoon or possum in yard that is stressing your cat out. Though I would want to rule out other cats first. I wish you luck. My first thought is to properly clean your cabinet (use a black light to see where he sprays.) Then I would attach foil or something to the side of the cabinet and on the carpet below and depending on if needed the wall. Lastly I would put a litter box where ever he marks the most (again do a black light search.) That way you are saying mark your territory here. If it is strays in your yard there are things you can do to help keep them out.

 

[calicosrspecial]

You are welcome.

Thank you for the additional information, that is very helpful.

There are a few things here.

Try to associate Lily with positive things with Pim. So try to feed them near each other. If you can safely pet Pim (without you getting hurt or at risk of being hurt in any way) and get him to purr when she is near. Something to make it a positive for him and safe. Feeding also as long as they are focused on the food. Getting him to focus on play when she is near that could be helpful. Anything to associate her with good things to him and to have the interactions as positive as possible. So that he doesn't fear her.

Pim chasing her is probably a sign of a lack of security. Some cats figure to get aggressive first so as to avoid being a target. Confident cats don't typically attack or get attacked. So the more we work on building his confidence through play, food, height and love the more confident he should become and more secure he should feel (and therefore no need to chase Lily or mark).

Spraying outside and spraying by the front door does suggest that an animal outside is causing him insecurity. Can you black light the outside of the house and see if there is any marking outside?

Do you have trees that are next to the house? Is there a possibility that an animal (squirrel, chipmunk, etc) could be getting into the attic or walls? Sometimes cats mark when there is an animal that has gotten inside.

Does Lily hang out in the attic or the closet he marks?

The fact they sleep together is a BIG positive. We can build on that.

If Pim and Lily start staring at each other (or one of them does) try to distract them before it results into a stare down or a chase or anything negative. Anytime they are together without an incident it is a positive to them building trust and confidence between them.

Danteshuman gives excellent advice.

I am highly confident we can solve this. Let's work on building his confidence as mentioned (play, food, height and love) and let's try to associate Lily with positive things and try to make every encounter between them as positive as possible.

I suspect an outside animal might be contributing to the situation but the more confident Pim is and the more "ownership" he feels the less likely he will need to mark.

We'll get through this. Please let me know about the possibility that an might be able to get into the attic or walls.

We'll be with you for as long as needed. Please feel free to ask anything anytime and update us on how things are going. Happy to help.