Intact cats will mark their territory with urine. This is typically done with intact male cats, but
intact female cats can also do the same. This is an important reason to spay or neuter your cat
as this unwanted behavior unfortunately sends many cats to the shelter.
Indoor cats that are spayed or neutered can also have Inappropriate urinations in the house. It
is critical to have your cat examined by a veterinarian first to rule out any medical conditions that
may be contributing to urinating outside the litter box. I most commonly see urinary tract
infections that can be easily treated or anxiety/stress related inappropriate urinations.
Indoor cats, especially cats in a multiple cat household can develop anxiety for numerous
different reasons. This anxiety can lead to cystitis, inflammation of the urinary bladder which then
leads to inappropriate urinations in the house.
I like to try and enrich the cat’s environment to naturally relieve any stress and anxiety before
turning to behavior modifying medications.
Ways you can enrich your cat’s environment:
Make sure the litter boxes stay clean.
Be sure to have one additional litter box per number of cats in the house.
Be sure each cat gets human attention such as pets and play.
Your cat should be able to move around freely in the house without fear from children, dogs or
other cats chasing or trying to attack the cat.
Cats should not feel uncomfortable in any way going to the water bowl or litter box. It is best to
place litter boxes and food/water dishes in a low traffic area. Place multiple dishes down if you
have multiple cats.
Each cat should have their own area in the house where they can rest, sleep and not be
startled.
There should be a scratching post located near the area or areas where your cat likes to rest. When a
cat gets up from rest, they typically like to stretch and scratch. I have purchased the scratching post below for my cats and they seem to approve as they are on their 3rd post now. It definitely gets a lot of use!
Regularly replace old toys and rotate toys for play. Side note-if a cat toy has a string or strings
attached, only allow your cat to play with that toy when you are watching as so your cat does
not chew off the strings and ingest them.
Most cats also enjoy chewing on some ‘cat grass’, which is wheat grass. I recently purchased a
cat grass planter for my cats off of Amazon and my cats LOVE it.
Placing a bird feeder outside near a window where your cat can access easily is also a great way to
reduce anxiety in your cat.
Try not to change foods often and be sure to feed a high-quality balanced diet with dry kibble
along with canned food. The extra moisture in canned food is great to keep cats adequately
hydrated.
Enriching a cat’s environment can prevent many behavioral issues inside the house, be patient
and be consistent. When in doubt, reach out to your veterinarian for advice.