Will my cat still mark/pee after being neutered?

[lawf]

Hi, my ~9month old male cat recently started marking and peeing little amounts around the house.  He has not been neutered yet.  I was wondering if I get him neutered will he stop the marking/peeing or will he continue to do it since I have a 3 year old male who is not neutered that he lives with?  they get along great, its just the marking/peeing is really getting bad now.  I thought it was my older boy at first until I caught the young one in the act.

Thanks

 

[talkingpeanut]

You really should neuter both. The hormones will continue to make both of them want to mark, even if they just pick up on them from the other.

You'll all be happier. You're also putting your cats in danger as unneutered toms can be very aggressive towards one another.

 

[lawf]

I'm not going to do my 3 year old.  his big balls are part of his personality and i like his crazyness and hes not really an issue when it comes to marking.  he only pees on piles of clothes but i know cats will do that regardless.  the little one is the issue with marking, but if fixing him isn't going to do anything other then make him depressed he lost his balls then I would rather not put him through that.

 

[ginny]

 
I'm not going to do my 3 year old.  his big balls are part of his personality and i like his crazyness and hes not really an issue when it comes to marking.  he only pees on piles of clothes but i know cats will do that regardless.  the little one is the issue with marking, but if fixing him isn't going to do anything other then make him depressed he lost his balls then I would rather not put him through that.

All mine are neutered now.  The last one was Harry.  He was intact for 8 years and he peed everywhere.  Once he was neutered, it stopped cold turkey (lol!)  None of mine have ever peed on a pile of clothes, not even Harry before his surgery, and none of them are depressed, either.  Ned still has his craziness intact although he is mellower than he used to be.  He still has his nightly runs through the house like a rocket cat.  I never noticed any change in Oreo except that he gained weight.  He is the alpha cat.  

 

[lawf]

My old roommates cat was like 6 years old and was neutered all his life and he still peed on piles of clothes.  I know they get over the depression eventually, but from what I've read and from what i've heard from people, more often then not the first couple days or weeks they can be depressed, which any guy would if you take away his balls.  sure you eventually get over it, but you are changed.  the younger one is young enough so that I dont think I will notice much of a change, but my older boy i would for sure notice, he never leaves my side, hes even laying on me right now

 

[czygyny]

Neutering may or may not stop the spraying. I have three neutered cats on our property and they all still spray, which is on reason only the girls can come in the house. It only takes one to start, then all think it must be done.

Of course if you have cats that pee on piles of clothes, then keep the clothes up off the ground and in a hamper. Same goes for dogs who chew shoes and steal socks, keep 'em put away and they can't do it. Peeing in inappropriate spots is often a sign of an emotional problem or even a physical ailment.

None of mine pee on clothes and only the warped, jealous one peed on me because the other cats were on the bed. She is a basket-case anyway.

 

[Norachan]

Cat's don't get depressed after they've been neutered. They don't think like humans, they don't even notice anything is missing. Even after a cat has been neutered it can take up for a month for all the testosterone in his system to disappear, so it's not as if they go through a huge hormonal change over night. Male cats can even get a female cat pregnant in the first few weeks after neutering.

One thing you do notice is a big change in the smell of their urine. Intact males have to leave a powerful signal to warn off other males and attract any females in the area. It smells really strong and last much longer than the smell of a fixed male cat.

Having two unfixed tom cats in the house is a recipe for disaster. They'll start peeing everywhere, trying to establish who is dominant, and having really nasty fights. I take care of a colony of cats, all fixed now. Before they were all neutered the older tom cat used to beat up the younger males really badly. So badly that one of them needed stitches and three had to have antibiotics for infected bites. These were his own kittens and they had all got on really well together until the younger males were about 1 year old.

Also, if your cats are peeing on piles of clothes this could be a sign that they have a bladder infection. They feel a burning sensation when they pee and think the pain is something to do with the litter box, so look for something soft to pee on. I think it will save you a lot of vets bills and hassle in the future if you get them both fixed and checked four UTI's as soon as you can. It will make your place smell a lot better too.

 

[talkingpeanut]

Agree with the above. It's the healthy choice for you and your cats, and they don't have any attachment to their balls.

 

[czygyny]

Oh, and I do agree with the other posters...neutering has many, many benefits, health-wise and behavior-wise. The become less aggressive with other cats, their pee does not stink as bad, their health is generally better. They are not constantly sexually oriented like humans. It is something they only think about when a female is in season and it is something of a torture to them at that time. Once gone, forever forgotten.

Most of my male cats in the past stopped spraying right after neutering. I have seven cats (plus one intact male stray) on our five acres and I think that the desire to be top boy cat keeps mine marking their territory. I even have trouble with the females getting into spats with one another.

We have so many because people dump them off here and it is nearly impossible to find homes for adult cats in our area, so they get absorbed into the family.

 

[detroitcatlady]

Neutering really does solve most issues with marking and other hormonal urges. In a multi cat household it really helps cats get along better. They will be calmer, will fight less and be less territorial overall.

 

[lawf]

he only pees on the clothes if i do leave them piled up, not just if i have some pants or shirts on the floor spread out so I know its not a UTI.  he's just not normal. 

but i went through with it, the young ones at the vet now.  i feel horrible.  but it will be for the better in the long run.  I have a feeling he would try to become the alpha cat and start picking on my older boy and I don't want that.  plus, he went spray crazy last night and my house stinks right now so I'm looking forward to it at least not smelling as bad

 

[talkingpeanut]

Please don't feel guilty. It's a routine procedure and he truly won't know the difference. He will, however, be happier and healthier. As will you! If you notice aggression with your older cat you should consider doing the same for him.

 

[lawf]

i hope so.  i really hope hes not all mad at me when he gets home

 

[talkingpeanut]

He may be cranky from going to the vet but there will be no lasting irritation.

 

[Norachan]

 
he only pees on the clothes if i do leave them piled up, not just if i have some pants or shirts on the floor spread out so I know its not a UTI.  he's just not normal. 

but i went through with it, the young ones at the vet now.  i feel horrible.  but it will be for the better in the long run.  I have a feeling he would try to become the alpha cat and start picking on my older boy and I don't want that.  plus, he went spray crazy last night and my house stinks right now so I'm looking forward to it at least not smelling as bad

Good job! The worst part for him really will be the trip to the vets. Neutering male cats is such a simple procedure, it won't bother him at all. Actually peeing on piles of clothes is quite a common thing. I've heard of lots of other cats that do that.

Mine have got a thing about the rubber backed bath mat. I have to make sure it's hung up after I've got out of the bath or they pee on it.

Have you got an enzyme cleaner to clean up the places he sprays? They're the best thing for getting rid of the smell.

 

[margd]

Just thought I'd mention that most male cats still have sacs after neutering - the contents are removed. So it's not a matter of cutting off his balls entirely. Some vets might do that but all my boys always had two little sacs afterwards.

 

[lawf]

I've tried a few sprays but neither worked, both were from petco.  if you have any reccomendations im all for it.

but he came home fine.  he was totally drugged up still but once he sobered up he was back to normal.  he sat on my lap and everything so were all good.  doesn't seem to have affected him so far.

thanks everyone