What will you do if your cat begins to mark certain spots in your home? Your cat isn’t that far removed from their wild beginnings. They have an instinctive drive to demonstrate their power by leaving their scent. While most area testing is done by rubbing or itching, problems with urinating might sometimes arise.
But don’t worry, you can teach your cat to stop using urine to mark their territory.
The significance of aroma
Aroma is the primary method that felines communicate. For example, when one feline returns home from the clinic, other felines in the household may first perceive them as an outsider due to their stench. They’ll need to be thoroughly sniffed before they’re let back into the family.
Because felines can’t be in two locations at the same time to screen their territory, they rely on aromas to leave their mark.
Checking by rubbing
Cats have olfactory organs on their faces, paws, and flanks, and when they brush against something—a door, a seat, you—they leave their scent on that item. This sends a message to other felines that they’ve been there and staked their claim. Rubbing against you is a way for them to check you as they advise other felines to back off.
In a multi-feline family unit, such rubbing helps to establish territories (at least temporarily) and relationships amongst the felines. When two felines in the home meet, they will smell each other and begin caressing and maybe prepping the other. This eases the burden between them.
Stamping by scratching
When your cat scratches anything, they are doing more than just polishing their claws; they are also leaving their scent.
Felines have scent organs on their feet, and scratching is another way they mark their territory. Try not to reprimand your cats for doing what comes naturally—just prepare them to use a scratching post and leave the furniture alone.
Pee checking has two distinct structures:
Pooping on vertical surfaces
Urinating on smooth surfaces
Showering occurs when a feline descends to a vertical surface with their tail erect and squirts urine. While bathing, their tail trembles often. Standard urination occurs when people squat to urinate on the furniture, the floor, objects on the floor, or any other even surface. The two males and females can (and do) squat and splash. Pee stamping is not a litter box problem.
Why your feline is pee checking
There are many possible reasons why your cat is peeing:
- Medicinal issues
Another explanation for pee stamps might be medical difficulties. If your kitty suddenly stops using the litter box or spends a lot of energy attempting to urinate and licking their private areas, a urinary tract ailment — or, even worse, a blockage — might be to blame. A few felines may even pee and scream straight in front of you, or attempt to urinate in the bath or sink to alert you that something is wrong.
- Mating behaviour
The need to splash is quite strong in domestic cats, and the most basic solution is to have yours fixed or neutered before five months of age, before there is ever a problem.
If you’ve adopted an unneutered adult feline, have them fixed as soon as possible. Most checking faults are understood by fixing, even in felines that have been doing it for a long time. In any event, the longer you delay, the greater the likelihood that checking behaviour will be infused.
- Stress
Felines are predisposed creatures, and many react negatively to even little changes in their environment. This may be everything from another pet or child in the home to an overseer’s absence, a strange feline on the balcony, and other ecological aspects that we don’t fully see or understand.
Your cat’s approach of dealing with stress is to check the area with urine. They are restless and are striving to ease their discomfort by defining their boundaries. Leaving their urine scent is the most emphatic way to say, “I’m pushed.”
If you see any signs of medical difficulties, take your cat to the doctor as soon as possible. Urinary tract problems are not only difficult, but they may be fatal. A feline with a clogged urinary system might die within hours or suffer the consequences of toxins developing in their structure. Urinary tract problems do not go away on their own and need careful study.
Approaches to understand stamping
- Finding the guilty party
Separate one kitty at a time to observe whether the inappropriate behaviour ceases while they are apart. This method isn’t safe, though, since if the offender’s behaviour is pressure triggered, it may not happen if disengagement has removed them from the source of stress.
Another method is to add nutrition safe bright colour to the felines’ food (one feline at any given moment). When a dark light is shone over the feline’s urine, the colour will show through. You’ve found your guilty party.
- Since we know it’s identity, what do we do about it?
Relieving your feline’s stress is simple, but it takes time and a lot of effort and understanding on your part. We offer a lot of advice to help you get your cat through their situation. Here are a few examples:
Completely clean filthy areas. Avoid using solid noticing cleansers since they may cause your pet to “over-stamp” the place.
Prepare dirty or unsightly areas ahead of time. If this isn’t possible, make an effort to shift the significance of those areas to your pet. Maintain, treat, and play with your pet in the stamping zones.
Keep demonstrations that are likely to result in stamping at a safe distance. Visitors’ belongings and new purchases, for example, should be stored in a storage room or bureau.
Limit your pet’s access to entryways and windows where they may see wildlife outdoors.
If your cat is feeling restless due to a behavioural change, a brief anti-anxiety treatment may be beneficial. If your cat is acting agitated, contact your veterinarian.
To stop your cat from bathing, use a product like Feliway®.