Strategies for dealing with your indoor spraying cats (kitten, male, feline)
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All of our cats are neutered and spayed. They all come from the street and were abandoned non-ferals, only one had ever been neutered. They came here at ages from 10 months to 6 years and most were under 3 years and we neutered them immediately. They are, each one, very sweet and affectionate and get along pretty well, now (finally!).
We have 8 cats.
Before I write this, I should explain that I already paid a DVM board certified animal behaviorist from a very famous vet school for help with our spraying males. She went through all the things I should try and in the end told me I had done virtually everything possible and I don't mind advice from others here, but, trust me, I have already tried what you are likely to suggest. The DVM said there was nothing left for me to do and she had only one last bit of advice, something that I dreaded hearing but knew was true: Cats are territorial. They can run from another cat's territory, keep away from it, in the outdoors, but when you bring multiple cats into a household (we currently have 8 inside, counting our foster 6 month old newcomer kitten), the cats are forced to live in an unnatural state, i.e., not able to get away from the other cats and they must share the same territory, like it or not.
She said that the more timid cat might be more upset over the presence of other cats and I believe she is correct. We took that timid cat in from the street at age 10 months, he was promptly neutered, and he was loved and accepted by our resident senior male cat, but in those days I used to let them go out in the morning to pee outside, they'd come in from breakfast, and stay in, and then they were allowed out to go pee in the PM. I no longer do that because I wised up about safety, and they have all been inside for the past, say, 4 to 5 years, now.
So, to deal with our guy - actually, GUYS, who pee where they should not (one uses the box for #2 but never, ever for #1, the others use the box or not as they see fit (our orange guy is the 2nd worst offender, and, it happens, the second most "scaredy cat"), and, in sum, of the 8, maybe 2 occasionally offend (one offends because he watched our late, sickly dog use wee wee pads and decided that anything soft like a sheet on a bed or even an item of clothes is a wee wee pad and meant to be peed on!), and one continually offends, and one is in the middle.
So, here is my pathetic strategy. More litter boxes than you could ever imagine, in their paths, of course. For the 8 we have 11 boxes and we clean them immediately. (I will not go into that part about trying different litters, trying Cat Attract, etc., my vet soon learned that we had tried every litter, all kinds, and all sizes boxes, etc. to no avail. We now use Feline Pine, using their own special sieve boxes, which save a great deal of money by the way). Oh, yes, we used Feliway, Bach's remedy, etc.
So, my strategy is to have zero rugs in our house, except the stair runner. Then, we have this attached 16 foot by 8 foot outdoor enclosure with a window flap and the worst offender LOVES to spend all day out there. He and 2 of the other offenders then sleep in our enclosed, heated porch with lots of windows.
The sofa, wing chair, rocker, DR chairs, DR table and even coffee table and ottoman are covered in custom fitted clear plastic vinyl! I had to do that! We do NOT have "house beautiful" but it is protected from urine.
Our beds have vinyl table cloths on some of them, the ones that the cats will sometimes urinate on.
I have no answers for you but my understanding the "spraying" is not a litter box issue - it has nothing to do with their normal biological urinary behavior. My boy cats are neutered and indoor/outdoor. When I keep inside (like when I'm on vacation) they use the litter boxes properly, but that doesn't stop them from spraying on many, many vertical surfaces - usually curtains where they can see other cats outside invading their "territory". It's not that they're peeing outside their litter boxes, they're spraying - an entirely different activity. Don't get me wrong, they spray inside even when I am letting them outside, to mark their inside territory, it's just that when they're confined inside I KNOW they're using the litter box - and spraying.
I have no answers for you but my understanding the "spraying" is not a litter box issue - it has nothing to do with their normal biological urinary behavior. My boy cats are neutered and indoor/outdoor. When I keep inside (like when I'm on vacation) they use the litter boxes properly, but that doesn't stop them from spraying on many, many vertical surfaces - usually curtains where they can see other cats outside invading their "territory". It's not that they're peeing outside their litter boxes, they're spraying - an entirely different activity. Don't get me wrong, they spray inside even when I am letting them outside, to mark their inside territory, it's just that when they're confined inside I KNOW they're using the litter box - and spraying.
My apology: I didn't say this right. One of my cat refuses a litter box for urine outright. Anytime, ever. He will spray and he will urinate on a cat bed that is not being used, on the sofa (which is why we have had to have the sofa fitted with vinyl slipcovers, he will urinate a stream on the sofa, against a towel, anything he can find available. He will also spray, which I agree, is a different thing altogether.
On occasion, I have tricked him into using a litter box, but even then this trick is highly unreliable: I bought these super jumbo boxes that are supposed to be for large puppies, larger than even the largest cat litter box, and leave it on the floor in his enclosed porch, free of all litter, and he thinks it is something he can pee into because it is "not" a litterbox, he thinks, and I will find urine in it. But he continues to urinate on cat beds and cat towels, etc.
Yes, again, I agree totally: urinating and spraying are different things. However, I have 3 males who will urinate outside of the box if they get a chance to find a sweater or item lying across the DR table,etc., or will just totally soak the floor next to the door, just squat and let it all out, not spray, but urinate! It's awful!
This is not always happening with most of them, but it IS with one cat. Thank God for our enclosure. He does urinate on the ground out there, reliably. (Refuses the litter box there, of course.)
One of my cats never did get used to the idea of using a litter box, because he was adopted as a feral kitty and he lives indoor/outdoor he would always wait to got outside. If I kept him in, he would find something else to pee and poop on - a towel, a pile of clothes, a rug. Finally when I'd had enough I bit the bullet and kept him confined in a bathroom with nothing but food, water and a litter box - nothing soft to sleep on because he would just poop or pee on it. I put leaves and dirt in the litter box from our yard, especially from an area I saw him using, in addition to a little bit of litter. He howled and wanted out and hated, hated it. I would go and visit with him and cuddle with him and try to make him know he wasn't trapped or abandoned. Eventually when he couldn't hold it any more he used the box which he had NEVER done in his life!
I kept him in there for maybe 4 days to a week and every day I put more litter and less dirt until finally it was all litter and he was still using it. No more problems with not using a box. Now when I have to keep him inside for anything length of time, no more messes. If you have the space or the patience or ability to ignore sad miserable kitty wails and you think the issue is that the cat doesn't "get" what a litter box is for, you might try that.
Another idea, which your behaviorist probably already suggested, is to see if you can find ways to give your kitties access to resources in separate territories where kitties who are shyer or intimidated can get what they need without having to pass by a cat they're scared of. I don't know your set up, but I've seen houses with shelves running around an entire room near the ceiling for cats. This means some cats move across the ground, others move above, never having to "cross." Or perhaps put litter box, food and water for shy cats in one area and same for bolder cats in separate area so they don't have to get in each other's way to get what they need.
An example - my indoor girl cat has of course staked out the inside as her area as the 2 boys share the outside. She LOVES water, especially running water. I saw her see the boys come inside, she would go get a drink and then just sit by the water bowl to keep them from drinking. The boys would literally ask to go back outside to their outdoor bowl rather than try to push her. So, I bought her a fountain water bowl that sits on the counter near her food bowl. She loves it - it's her special, special treat, no one else goes near it and she leaves the "regular" bowl alone.
I think trying to help your cats stake out their own spaces could help, if it's at all possible, so that they're not trying to do it themselves.
I have had good luck with generic Prozac- I think the generic name is fluoxetine, or close. This is for my oldest boy, who was neutered when he came to me as an abandoned kitty; my best guess is that he 10-12.
He also takes a generic form of pepcid. I have to split each and give them to him daily in a Greenies pill pocket. He is very easy to dose. Of course, a treat comes afterward. He actually asks for the med (or maybe it is the treat) by jumping up on the kichen counter above which is the cabinet containing the meds and the treats.
One of my cats never did get used to the idea of using a litter box, because he was adopted as a feral kitty and he lives indoor/outdoor he would always wait to got outside. If I kept him in, he would find something else to pee and poop on - a towel, a pile of clothes, a rug. Finally when I'd had enough I bit the bullet and kept him confined in a bathroom with nothing but food, water and a litter box - nothing soft to sleep on because he would just poop or pee on it. I put leaves and dirt in the litter box from our yard, especially from an area I saw him using, in addition to a little bit of litter. He howled and wanted out and hated, hated it. I would go and visit with him and cuddle with him and try to make him know he wasn't trapped or abandoned. Eventually when he couldn't hold it any more he used the box which he had NEVER done in his life!
I kept him in there for maybe 4 days to a week and every day I put more litter and less dirt until finally it was all litter and he was still using it. No more problems with not using a box. Now when I have to keep him inside for anything length of time, no more messes. If you have the space or the patience or ability to ignore sad miserable kitty wails and you think the issue is that the cat doesn't "get" what a litter box is for, you might try that.
It was suggested to me that I do a similar thing, put him in a large dog cage with litter box, bedding, etc. and have him live there for a few weeks, a month, even, some said, it takes. But he already uses a litter box well always for #2. He'll likely shoot out of the cage to do #1. In a bathroom, he'll just go against the wall or even on the floor (#1), I am pretty sure.
Another idea, which your behaviorist probably already suggested, is to see if you can find ways to give your kitties access to resources in separate territories where kitties who are shyer or intimidated can get what they need without having to pass by a cat they're scared of. I don't know your set up, but I've seen houses with shelves running around an entire room near the ceiling for cats. This means some cats move across the ground, others move above, never having to "cross." Or perhaps put litter box, food and water for shy cats in one area and same for bolder cats in separate area so they don't have to get in each other's way to get what they need.
An example - my indoor girl cat has of course staked out the inside as her area as the 2 boys share the outside. She LOVES water, especially running water. I saw her see the boys come inside, she would go get a drink and then just sit by the water bowl to keep them from drinking. The boys would literally ask to go back outside to their outdoor bowl rather than try to push her. So, I bought her a fountain water bowl that sits on the counter near her food bowl. She loves it - it's her special, special treat, no one else goes near it and she leaves the "regular" bowl alone.
I think trying to help your cats stake out their own spaces could help, if it's at all possible, so that they're not trying to do it themselves.
One important reason we are not wanting to sell our house is because it has really good separate spaces for the cats: We have a 28 foot x 6 foot enclosed porch and one section of the porch is "his", his own corner with litter box, water, food, high window level desk against a large window which opens and closes. He also has the entire 16 x 8 foot outdoor cat enclosure which he shares only with the cats that he likes. We have a separate area in the basement with shelves and very high places for them by windows. We also have 4 other window level perches with bedding in the rest of the porch and the house.
I just had a phone session with a (2nd) pet psychic, the first Psychic wasn't helpful, to put it nicely, it was $50 for a half hour (or $30 for 20 minutes) to address Meeko's aggression towards Alfredo.
I'm stunned by the change in Meeko's behavior, and Alfredo's renewed trust in my commitment to keep him safe.
Is everything perfect now? of course not. Are we having our first peaceful night in 13 months, and are all cats in the bedroom at the same time? Amazingly YES!
I'll link her website, but I can't figure out if that counts as advertising, even though it's not My site, so if the link gets deleted, anyone who wants the info can DM me.
One important reason we are not wanting to sell our house is because it has really good separate spaces for the cats: We have a 28 foot x 6 foot enclosed porch and one section of the porch is "his", his own corner with litter box, water, food, high window level desk against a large window which opens and closes. He also has the entire 16 x 8 foot outdoor cat enclosure which he shares only with the cats that he likes. We have a separate area in the basement with shelves and very high places for them by windows. We also have 4 other window level perches with bedding in the rest of the porch and the house.
This almost sounds like cat heaven.
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