Cats spraying everywhere

annelloyd

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Hello, we have 4 neutered/spayed cats (2 males and 2 females) of different ages that were all originally strays.We took in 2 last year and quarantined them in a separate room for a few months while their skin healed and they had all their vaccinations were neutered etc. Our 3 year old female hasn´t adjusted to the now one year olds ( a male and a female) and reacts hysterically (hissing and attacking aggressively) particularly to the male.
On top of this we have another male who is 2 and has gradually built up spraying around the house to the point where we cannot leave bedroom, study or bathroom doors open, or even put something in a different place without him spraying everywhere. Because of this he is confined to the kitchen and living room but has started spraying on the curtains and anything we leave on the kitchen counter tops. Now we have realized that the female is spraying too! AND the young male has started urinating in our kitchen sink!!
Our patio is very small and enclosed but they have free range in and out of the house with 5 litter trays and an enormous one in the corner of the patio, all of which they use regularly.
External factors are the family next door has a lot of cats that are left to fend for themselves and so they often come into our little front garden and use it as a toilet or sit on our roof during the day, which unnerves our 2 year-old male as he just stares out of the window all day and has sprayed on the curtains there frequently.
We have tried Feliway products to reduce stress and spraying but nothing has worked.
Also, we are worried about so much cleaning as we don`t know what detergents to use to get rid of the smell but not cause them (or us) any harm.

I could really use some advice as to what to do. We know this is territory issues because of the young male/neighbor´s cats, but what can we do?

In summary:
3 year-old female cat reacts aggressively to all other cats, sprays occasionally
2 year-old male calm but sprays everywhere and on everything, seems unsettled by neighbor´s cats
1 year-old male very frightened of 2 year-old female, has started urinating in kitchen sink
1 year-old female calm and relaxed , without issues
My family extremely stressed out!
 

di and bob

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Boy, I would be stressed out too! you are an angel for trying to get this all straightened out. As you have figured out, this spraying is stress-related, both from new cats in the household (that will just take time to resolve) and the neighbors cat's coming into their yard/territory. First of all, try to resolve the outside cats from coming over. Get a couple of those sprinklers that are motion activated and set them so they will come on and scare the cats away. They hate water. Or get that smelly cat deterrent ( at any local hardware or farm supply store or online.) and sprinkle it along a line around your yard. It wouldn't be forever.
Your female will mellow in time believe it or not. Most females are VERY bossy and are the manners teachers. Hissing, growling, swatting are all perfectly normal. If she is drawing blood, THAT is a different story. Cats getting disciplined, even by their mothers and siblings, always sound like world war three. You might even try a low dose of a calming aide sold on Amazon or pet sites. The urinating in the sink usually means they need a secluded place to urinate in peace, so maybe another litter box set up somewhere. Eventually, your cats would get used to the neighborhood cats too, I had exactly the same situation. Trying to blend two families and moving where there were a lot of strays and ferals. My neutered older male started spraying and after a year DID stop. So have hope. Get a good ENZYME cat urine destroyer. it actually destroys the urine and gets rid of it with no heavy scrubbing. I use Nature's Miracle. If they keep going back to a certain spot, get some clear plastic carpet runner/protector with those little nubs in the back, cut it to fit, and lay it nub side up in front of where they are spraying. It will not hurt them, but it hurts their feet to walk on it and they will avoid the area. That is the ONLY thing that kept my boy from his favorite windows and corners. Get a black light flashlight if you want to find all the places they sprayed to put the cleaner on, do it after dark and all places will glow. But so will anything organic, so be prepared for your kitchen and bathroom to really surprise you with all the splashes and gross stuff splattered around. I was appalled! I hope this gives you a few ideas. I just wanted you to know that it took a little over a year, but finally, my cats got used to each other and teh outside cats and stopped spraying......
 
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annelloyd

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That gives me so much hope. Thanks for so many tips! I´ll definitely be using ALL of them. Fingers crossed!
Extremely grateful to you.:)
 

di and bob

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I can almost guarantee you, it is all from stress. Once they settle down and get used to everything it will all change. My cats got used to the outside ones It's a slow, slow, SLOW process, and I really feel for you. I was fit to be tied. I honestly didn't know what to do. But I knew I couldn't get rid of my babies. I was so frustrated and so sick of it all.....but it all got better, and then he was fine, and they all didn't love each other but they tolerated each other. I'm so sorry for you, but just take one day at a time, and I hope you get some more tips too! PS I would really consider some calming aides, they do help. I gave like 1/3 of the dose and it helped a cat that went completely nuts calm down at the vets. I wish I would have had it then when they were spraying!
 

LeiLatte

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I would also consider vet checkups to see if any have health issues.

I rescued an old stray in our brand new house. She had likely been someone’s pet before but had been abandoned and was very emaciated. She had litter boxes but began spraying/peeing on walls, corners, everywhere.

Turns out she had lots of health issues and we treated her, but the spraying never resolved. She was just an old lady. I didn’t have the heart to abandon her because she was so sweet and friendly, so I had to keep her confined to a certain area in the house and clean up after her every day, puppy pads lining the area.
 
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