By Nancytoby from FT Myers, FL
Is he stressed out over something? Has something changed? Is he mad at you? We had a male cat (who was also 'fixed'). I found him when I was a teen & he was 1 day old. When I would come home to visit as an adult, he would be mad at me for being gone & would pee and/or spray my suitcase if he could get to it! He also did that around the house when he was upset with my mom sometimes. My mom had to clean up after his 'fits' with one of those odor neutralizers. He didn't start that until he was around 10 years old, did it for a year or two, then quit! He lived to a ripe old age of 19.
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How do I get my male cat to stop spraying even after he was neutered?
By Lexie
By vern I had the same trouble with my neutered male. Health ok. Could not find any help. Looked on Internet. Bought calming collar, Natures Miracle Spray and diffuser from Pet Smart.
I just got my male, neutered cat today. He is a little over a year old and was neutered 12 days ago. I think he is spraying or at least he just smells really bad! Is this due to the fact he was recently neutered and is in a new environment? Is it likely that he will stop or he will stop smelling?
By Jenny S.
I agree with muttmom. Your cat may have an infection. Get him to the Vet as soon as possible. If you let it go much longer it could be very serious. It is an easy fix if caught early.
We have two gingers, one is a neutered tom and a spayed female. The female sleeps in the lounge and sometimes comes in the bedroom to look out of the window in the morning. The tom spends the night on the bed and wakes me in the morning either yowling in my ear or pulling my hair. Now at anytime he has started spraying my furnishings in the bedroom. He is not showing signs of sickness, he is eating the same, drinking, playing with the female, and sleeping. His coat is very glossy. So why is he doing this?
By Jean
You will need to have him checked for urinary tract infection at the Vet. Then check to see if he is watching any cats outside you home that may be making him feel territorial and make him feel the need to mark his "property" (your stuff).
I am caring for an unneutered male cat for a month while its owner is away. He started off really sweet and cuddly, but then got aggressive, started scratching, and sprayed in the entire room. No way to get in there.
He is marking his territory. Clean thoroughly with an enzyme cleaner like Nature's Miracle.
I have been cat sitting for years and I have always gone by the protocol if there was any change in behavior, from the norm, I call the owner ASAP and ask 1 if they have had similar issues and what they do and 2. if not, if they will OK a vet visit and confirm the instructions that they have already given me for where to go and which vet to see. It is possible he has a UTI or something is wrong--including anxiety from the owner being away so long--best to get this checked out ASAP.
Neutering should help if it is just a phase, but that is the owner's decision. I always encourage it, but people can get quite resentful of me butting in--depends on the relationship between you and the owner.
Cleaning the mess (wait until the cat is in the crate before the vet visit if it gets OK'd--if it doesn't get OK'd, crate the cat and go in and clean).
The owner should tell you how he/she cleans messes and the cleaning needs to be done with whatever the owner prefers. Some people do not allow cleaning chemicals in their house. Some do so you have to respect their wishes for how to clean. I am anti chemical and if I have to use it per owner wishes, I open all the windows and wear a mask.
Bottom line, call or text the owner and get guidance and then proceed.
Hopefully it all will work out for you!! Post back with an update.
I have 4 male cats (all from the same litter). They have lived together for their entire lives. They are now 8 years old. One of them sprays on everything. He even does it on the extra pillows on the couch (they will be leaning against the armrest, and he'll spray a spot and it will dribble down). He sprays on backpacks, plastic bags, and furniture. He's been doing it for a few years now. We've tried everything.
We have feliway in two rooms in the house (super expensive stuff so we could only afford 2 diffusers), we use a good enzyme killer on the things he sprays, we have tried having one on one interaction with him, we have 6 cat trees of varying sizes. We clean the litter boxes daily. He's been to the vet and they recommended feliway and this calming food. We've tried both. It seems like the calming food has caused him to pee more. We've tried keeping him locked up with his brothers whenever we have company to keep him relaxed, but that usually ends up with him spraying on something. It happens instantly. We left the door open to a room he isn't allowed in, and within minutes he had sprayed on something in there. We don't ignore him, we don't punish him, we don't rub his nose in it. We clean it up and spray feliway all around, and still he continues to do it. What else can we do?
He is marking his territory. Have you tried buying a high perch for him?
I agree with the previous commenter. He is feeling that his territory is being threatened because of the new situation and the other cats. Hes spraying to tell the other cats that is his territory. He will continue spraying until he feels less threatened. I suggest that you try a Feliway calming collar. They are about $12.00, but be careful.
There is a cat litter product that shelters and fosters use for cats. It is called Dr. Elseys Cat Attract cat litter. Cats generally are drawn to it. Some will give up spraying and just use the litter. I use Dr. Elseys and it is priced fairly and is one of the best. You can buy the Attract product to put in your litter, or the Dr.
This is my only cat. He is 9 years old. I have had him since he was a kitten. He is neutered; it was done when he was 2 years old. He uses the litter box and marks. He also has access to a fenced in patio it is like a pet run. Only about 22 feet long and 6 feet wide.
There are feral cats marking the outside of the fence near a bush and he smells it and marks outside which is fine by me. But then he also does it inside.
I live in an apartment on the bottom floor; it is a cave as it is. Am I supposed to board up all the windows so he can't see the cats and never let him see the outside for the rest of his life? And I am supposed to live in darkness for the rest of his life?
I clean the areas when I find them, because they are always different spots. I use special industrial urine cleaner. So it does take the smell away from him and I, but he just marks it again or somewhere else. I even try taking him to the spot kinda like you would with a dog that crapped in the house, and let him smell it and I tell him "bad cat". I even go as far as putting him in the glass door shower and leave him for a time out.
There is no stress around here that I can think of. We are a quiet couple and we love him and spoil him to death, with treats, the good $20 dollar litter
and the good Blue food. He has fresh water all the time.
I also have a full apartment, top - bottom, with my rare international collections. I can't have him spraying all over porous materials, that I can't use the cleaners on.
He once sprayed on my rare collector baseball cards. I had to wipe them all down and store them in a air tight bag with scented baking soda.
I can't put everything up at hip level so he doesn't mark it. That is ridiculous. I am at my wits end and I refuse to give him up.
Please help.
(Yes I know I have a lot of stuff, I like it that way.)
Go to a vet to see if he has a medical problem such as UTI or diabetes. Once that is resolved, I would steam clean the house because I believe every time he sprays and re-smells he thinks it's a new cat.
You say there's no stress that you can think of??? Rubbing his nose his his urine, telling him bad cat and locking him in the shower sound pretty stressful to me! Also, yes you do have a lot of stuff and you may like it like that but your cat probably doesn't! Personally, and as a trainee cat behaviourist it looks like a very stressful environment for a cat!
I agree. Look at all of the stuff that person has! Any animal (or human for that matter) would be unnerved being a place like that all full of crap from top to bottom. Do something about the ferals on the back porch first, then address the hording issue. Holy moly.
I have 4 cats, 2 that are 10+, one that is about a year old, and one that is about 18 months old. In the last 3 weeks my 18 month old cat has started spraying in seemingly random places all over the house, and it is becoming more regular. I have looked at the reasons and how to cure it, but we have not been away for any long times, nor have there been any major changes around the house.
Please can anyone help and tell me why he is continually spraying and how I can stop him?
Sometimes cats see other cats outside that we dont see. Or they may smell them near to the house. This is often the reason a cat that has not sprayed before begins. Watch carefully out the window and look at your doors and patio doors. you can often see calling cards left at about cat level. If you cant discourage the visitors, block the view where they visit the house. Good luck
If you do not have an answer, the problem continues and you want it to stop, a vet visit might be a good idea. It is difficult to provide an answer with so little information.
My cat was neutered many years ago, but continues to spray. It has wrecked all my doors and walls. I have tried those expensive plug ins as recommended by the vet, but he still does it. Can anybody help with a solution to my problem?
By Tracy
I would make him an outdoor cat. If he has wrecked your doors and walls, despite advice from the vet, he will not stop.
I am a landlord and even though I am a cat lover, I don't allow my tenants to have cats. I have had to pt out thousands of dollars over the years to replace sheetrock, carpets and flooring. The smell never leaves unless you replace it.
I have 8 cats, 5 males and 3 females, all 5 males are fixed. The females will be soon. All of a sudden one of my males (one I've had longest) is starting to spray on my microwave and my entertainment center. I have never had a problem with it before and he has been fixed for over 2 years. Can anyone tell me why he might have started doing this and is there any way I can get it to stop?
One of my neutered male cats was doing this. Any flat surface would do..top of microwave, top of dryer, bathtub, storage box lids, etc. Took him to the vet. Turns out he had intestinal ulcers. He's now on "calmicon" and hasn't sprayed or peed on anything inappropriate since he started the tiny little pills. He gets 1/2 a pill, once a day, so the cost is about 10 cents a day.
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I have been having trouble for a couple of years with my male, neutered, indoor cat spraying around the house.
