Ask the Veterinarian/Cat spraying

Advertisement

Expert: - 5/22/2011


Question
Hello,

I have a behavioral question about a 6 year old neutered male house cat.  Lately he has been spraying, which has been an occasional problem in the past but not a regular thing.  We had some problems when we had our son with our cats peeing but were able to resolve them with a less than ideal solution of finding new homes for 2 of our cats.  This was after we replaced carpet in the house and tried different litters, boxes and behavior modifications for 8 months.  I am pregnant again, about 6 months, and he has started spraying, which he did not do with our first child.  This time he has actually sprayed both my husband and I directly.  I do not want to consider giving up up, our 2 cats who found new homes were hard on us, and it was our last line.  Is he spraying in anticipation of the new baby? What do I do?

Thanks for any advice you can give.

Celishia

Answer
Well this is a new one on me but most cats start to spray when they feel threatened. It could be since he can sense the new child coming that he is feeling threatened by this.

Apparently this cat has been the problem all along but you got rid of the other two cats? I am confused by that. You might want to get this cat on some Amitriptyline and see if that doesn't help with this behavioral issue.

It is a very cheap drug and works for many cats that nothing else works for. I would ask your vet about this. You might also want to get some Feliway as well, which is a pheromone that makes a cat think that everything is peachy.

That is about all I can add since you said that you have done behavioral modification in the past.

You might want to consult a behaviorist and see what their take is on this.

Ask the Veterinarian

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

Jana Connell RVT, CVT

Expertise

PLEASE READ BEFORE SUBMITTING TO ME: I am NOT a vet and do NOT diagnose diseases. That is only for a licensed Veterinarian to do. I will give you suggestions and steer you toward calling your vet for help. You can call the vet's office and talk to the technician there or the vet at times. Don't be afraid to call them! If you have a serious issue with your pet please post it to one of the veterinarians in here- I will tell you the same thing in my answer. IF your pet is injured or in an emergency situation, CALL YOUR VET- Do not wait and post in here. Just call the vet's office and get them in to see the vet right away. Critical treatment time is lost if you seek answers here when you should have your precious pet at the vets!! Don't sit at home waiting for an answer when your pet is critically ill or injured!! I can answer most questions about small animal and wildlife care as well as small animal nutrition. I can also answer questions about all phases of dental care for small animals. I DO NOT answer questions about birds (unless it is wildlife or songbirds) or HAMSTERS/GERBILS/CHINS/GUINEA PIGS/REPTILES/FROGS/RABBITS/PET BIRDS OF ANY KIND so please submit these questions to the appropriate sections. I, as well as other experts in here, do NOT do homework questions- that is for YOU to do! Please respect these rules for all of us. Thanks!

Experience

I have over 35 years experience in the field of veterinary medicine. I specialized in small animals and did wildlife rehab for over 25 years, mostly raptors, squirrels and opossums. I am a Small Animal Nutritional Consultant with 6 certificates from Hills Pet Foods, CNM and Purina. I also specialized in Small Animal Dentistry which is a field I truly love.

Organizations
Audubon,World Wildlife Federation, American Society of Veterinary Dental Technicians.

Education/Credentials
Licensed with California and Oregon, RVT and CVT. Certified Veterinary Dental Technician Have over 500 logged hours of Continuing Education Credits(that means I keep up to date!).

Awards and Honors
Nominated for Expert of the Month for the last 5 years.

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.