Spraying Or Just Peeing On The Floor? And What To Do?

[Dacatchair]

I have a 6 month old kitten and a month ago I made an appointment for him to be neutered as soon as the vet can fit him in... which will not be for another 2 weeks. He has lived with me almost a month and a 1/2... He has only been outside briefly on an enclosed porch when I am out there too.

He just went to an area where the garbage container sits in my house and began spraying, but so much it was maybe just he needed to pee? But he was not squatting with a relaxed tail like he usually does when he pees in his litter box and the whole while he stood up with his tail straight up and twitching, spraying the container with the pee spraying horizontally. But it was at least 1/2 a cup which seems more like peeing than spraying... ? I haven't seen a cat spray in decades... but I thought it was normally just a tablespoon or 2? And I don't really smell anything. It seemed to only have a faint odor. It now occurs to me the container he "sprayed"? has sat out in the yard and may have been sprayed by another cat at some point in the last year... He has also been meowing loudly today which is unusual for him. And he seems more intense playing... So was it spraying or just he had an accident because he was having too much fun to go to his litter box? We have been playing for a couple hours with a new toy he really likes. (This would be the only accident in a month and a 1/2)?

I washed the area as best I could, put the containers that may have provoked this behavior outside, and brought his litter box and put it there but he has not used it yet. And depending on his motivation I am not sure if that is the right thing to do. I can't set up another litter box so there is one on both places for a few days, because I live quite a ways out of town, and I don't have the extra box and litter on hand...

He is only now getting his adult canine teeth and his baby canines are sitting alongside the incoming adult teeth so I am surprised if he is reaching sexual maturity already... And all the cats in the neighborhood that I am aware of are neutered but there is one that was intact until recently and was out and about for about a year and he may still spray out of habit or have previously sprayed that container.

Any insight into what is going on and how best to deal with it would be appreciated. The 2 weeks till his appointment to be neutered could be a very long wait if this is the start of a new behavior that is related to puberty....

 

[Dacatchair]

Using google I have mostly answered my own question.The quivering tail and squirting pee horizontally while standing is territory marking and is not a problem making it to the litter box. And the volume may be small or a lot. In this case it was a lot. Luckily he must still be young enough it doesn't smell much...

I will call the vet tomorrow and see if there is any way to get in sooner. Maybe even consider finding another vet.

 

[abyeb]

At six months, he’s already sexually mature, so he could be spraying. It sounds like spraying, with him urinating vertically, with his tail up, but it can be hard to tell, which is why I would still recommend calling the vet. Urinary issues can be very dangerous, in male cats especially.

When Physical Problems Turn Into Behavior Problems

Litterbox Problems? Here's Why You Should Call Your Vet

 

[Dacatchair]

Thanks for alerting me to the possible health issues Abyeb. I will talk to the vet tomorrow...But there is the same volume of pee balls and encrusted poops in his litter box today, as is usual for him. The spot he chose, along with his loud yowling today makes me think it is him starting to become sexually mature. (he is normally quiet and rarely even meows)

Does pubescent male cat spray start out mild smelling at first and get stinkier as they mature?

If a young male cat is sexually mature enough to be spraying, but not yet stinky, are they old enough to have a good chance to father kittens?

If I can't get him in to be neutered for 2 weeks and if he is actually sexually mature at 6 months and can become father as soon as he starts spraying, and if the breeder I got him from by some miracle happens to have a ready female, maybe I should ask if they would like to bring their Queen for a visit and maybe help them create a litter of kittens before he is neutered? To avoid possible problems I had hoped to get him neutered before sexual maturity but if he is going to be sexually mature and spraying anyways, maybe he could become a Dad in the 2 weeks he waits to get neutered? Or would that maybe just make things worse and less likely to settle down once he is neutered??

The breeder I got him from does have breeding rights, and had initially hoped to breed him, though in selling him to me as a pet, I have final say in what is best for him and when he should be neutered. He does have excellent genes that would help improve their lines... But he is still 1/2 the size of their Queens and it would be an huge ordeal/ labor of love to set this up if it has little chance of success.

I really didn't think he would start to go through puberty when he still has his baby teeth and has so much growing left to do. When he is full grown will probably be 1/3 bigger than he is now.

 

[Timmer]

He's most likely marking because the garbage can was probably marked by another cat wandering around. I don't think it's cause for concern other than it's an annoyance. If you don't have a good enzyme cleaner you might want to get one and spray the garbage can, otherwise, your kitty is going to be marking up things, especially with another male cat in the area.

 

[Dacatchair]

Thanks Timmer. I put the container outside and he seems calmer today. It is temporarily on this enclosed porch and we went out there briefly and he began intently sniffing it which I have noticed him doing a few days before he sprayed. So pretty sure that was the trigger.

The breeder said it is highly unlikely he could father kittens yet, and they agree with my descion to neuter him ASAP.

The large volume of liquid could be a serious problem even without the stink so it is important he doesn’t get in the habit... He seems to be more of a potential hoser than a sprayer. Calling the vet did not provide any insight. They just said getting him neutered should solve it and that I will have to wait till his appointment in 2 weeks.

And I read somewhere that the spray of pubescent males is a lot milder than after they mature. So that is a bit of a plus.

 

[Timmer]

What kind of a cat is he?
Years ago I house sat for a year for a family of 6 Siamese cats. Gorgeous. The "dad" of the family used to spray pretty heavily. I will never forget I was sitting on the enclosed porch swing and the cats were out there and he came up and sprayed on my calf! I guess he wanted the others to know I belonged to HIM! LOL

 

[Dacatchair]

He is an F7 Savannah, and the breed usually does have some Siamese back there somewhere. I think that breed can be more inclined than usual to mark territory with pee.

I work out of my home so at least I can keep an eye on him. He has peed in his litter box several times since I put back in it’s regular location, so hopefully we will get through the next 2 weeks. I am praising him profusely when he does, and will probably not even let him out on the enclosed porch until after he is neutered in case something he smells triggers him again.

Ewww to being peed on! I had a dog come up to me in a park and do that once. I was quite insulted as I had never even met him!

 

[Timmer]

he will probably settle down after he's neutered.
Eww...dog pee. :-)

 

[Dacatchair]

I am still waiting for his life changing vet appointment, and am now a lot more sure this is early puberty. Yowling, not being content to visit the catio and instead climbing the walls desperately looking for a way out, pee that smells like a Tom cat and another incident that was very clearly spraying the wall and not peeing. And the poor guy is still getting his adult teeth canine teeth coming in beside his baby canines, so he is teething and going through puberty at the same time!

One thing I wanted to say is I don’t think any of this is being provoked by either another Tom cat in the area or an female in heat. At least not within a couple miles. There is no longer any feral cats in this area and finding a $10 or $20 bill on the road is more common than finding someone with a litter of kittens. I have read here that many of these symptoms are unlikely in early puberty if a cat is indoor only and not exposed to other hormonal cats. Well, my kitten is going through this all on his own with no external prompts.

Two things that have helped while we wait what seems a ridiculously long time for our turn at the vet is I put a second litter box close to the area he intially peed/sprayed and kept going to and yowling and looking around. His first response was to spray the wall beside it with a small amount, in a standing fully upright position. I don’t have any enzyme cleaner on hand, and it was on hard to clean as it was on rough wood boards, so I just wiped it up and covered the area, both wall and floor with cardboard, which will be easier to clean if he does it again. But the past few days he has been yowling and then normally peeing in the new litter box rather than spraying or seeming like he is about to. So I guess that satisfied his need to have his scent more evenly distributed around the house.

And when he starts yowling I sing KD Lang’s Constant Craving to him. Maybe I am projecting but he seems to enjoy this and he yowls along with me and we do a duet... And when we get through it he seems calmer. Or at least I am!

I am counting the days till the trip to the vets...