Cats | Pet Lover Blog

The cat backs up to the door, lifts the tail and releases a fine spray of urine. Yes, your cat is spraying. You have a problem. But one you can solve.

Figures from the British Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors say that aggression in dogs and marking behavior in cats are the biggest behavior problems in the UK pet population.

Spraying is marking behavior, not a litter box problem. Sprayed cat urine contains pheromones, a substance that animals use to communicate. Combinations of pheromones work like fingerprints: they identify the cat.

A spraying cat marks his or her territory with cat urine. It simply says: ‘This is mine’. You may not like it, but getting angry doesn’t help. It may even have an opposite effect: more spraying.

Cats in heat are attracted by the odor of cat urine. For them, spraying is something like an invitation to love. The results may be there in 65 days: a nest of cute little kittens.

Cats do not only spray during sexual encounters. Some also do it during conflicts with other felines, or when they are stressed.

For people the scent is far from pleasant. Thankfully most cats spray outside. But what if you have a cat spraying inside? Do something about it! And yes, that is possible.

The most radical and effective thing you can do is neutering or spaying your cat. Most castrated toms stopped spraying from the day they were operated.

But maybe you have a reason not to neuter your cat. In that case try to find out why your cat sprays.

Maybe it sprays only when it sees another cat. Solution: block the view. Or it sprays because of a conflict with another pet. Keep them separated and problems might be over.

If you don’t know why your cat sprays, discuss it with your veterinarian. Chances are he will advice you to spay or neuter. But your vet can also check if there is a medical problem.

Anyway, do not leave this problem unsolved. Cat urine odor and stains can make your home a very uncomfortable place, and your cat will still remain a cat even when it doesn’t spray anymore.

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Journalist, site builder and cat lover Marc de Jong is the editor and owner of http://www.cat-pregnancy-report.com, a website about cat pregnancy, kitten care, cat health and other cat related subjects.

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Many cat owners experience trouble with kitty not using the cat litter box they’ve chosen for her. With a little bit of understanding about their cat, the proper cat litter box type
can be found quickly for good cat litter box habits.

For starters, evaluate the way your cat eliminates her waste. Does she stand up, or squat down low? Does she do something in between? Does she only stick her hind parts in the box, and keep her front paws outside?

By carefully observing exactly how your kitty does her business, you can make a good guess at the right type of cat litter box for her needs. And if your cat thinks the box suits her, she’s going to use it every time.

For cats who stand straight up, there are a few options. One is the covered, or hooded cat litter box. In theory these are perfect, because the enclosure captures urine that would
normally fly off into space. The one drawback is that your cat may feel too confined with an enclosed cat litter box. This could be if she’s just plain scared of that hole, or she may
be too large to comfortably move around inside the space.

The alternative is to purchase a large plastic storage container tub - the kind with a removable lid. Take a saw or other cutting tool, and hack a “U” shaped opening into one end
of the tub. The bottom of the “U” should be at least 3 - 4″ up to hold in your cat litter.

This is easy for kitty to enter and exit, and the really large ones are quite roomy for the biggest cat to move around in. You can either snap the lid in place, or simply put it aside, and leave it as a high-sided open cat litter box.

Some cats really enjoy the automatic, motorized cat litter boxes. They think it’s the greatest thing to watch that motor move the rakes across the cat litter field. But other cats are terrified of the noise and movement. Since these are rather pricey, consider your cat’s mental health and curiosity factor if you’re thinking about purchasing one of these cat litter boxes for her.

And finally, there’s the good old-fashioned open cat litter box of varying sizes and colors. If your cat squats properly to void, and doesn’t miss, this is your best option as the preferred cat litter box.

And here’s a tip if you’re raising a litter of kittens: buy disposable aluminum baking pans for the little ones. They’re shallow enough for the kittens to easily get in and out of.
This encourages good cat litter box habits forever. These can be discarded as the youngsters grow big enough to use a “big kitty” litter box!

Nancy stopped the cat urine odor problem at her home, and kept the kitty that caused it. “18 Ways to Stop Cat Urine Odor Problems” saves you money, time and frustration by solving your
cat urine odor problem - permanently.

http://www.stopcaturineodor.com

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Last week I wrote about the benefits of transitioning your cat to a raw food diet to stop feline urinary tract infections. As I also noted, some cats just won’t eat raw food. Part II gives you information about the more common diet alternative - canned cat food.

Many experts recommend you feed your kitty canned food almost exclusively to keep feline urinary tract infections from recurring. More moisture in kitty’s diet means better flushing capability by urinating more often, in larger amounts. Crystals can be flushed out of the cat when they are too small to do damage. This is critical to prevent cat urinary tract infections from happening again.

Since cats don’t lap up water like other animals, the moisture content in canned foods will offset this. Raw food (raw meat) diets also provide most of the moisture content cats need to stay healthy.

There are many different types of cat food you can purchase. It can be confusing. However, with a little bit of knowledge, you can easily determine what is best to feed kitty to keep cat urinary tract infections from happening again.

But don’t go rushing out and purchase tuna in spring water for kitty! There are several key ingredients you need to look for in canned cat food to prevent a feline UTI. Not just any kind will keep your cat’s urinary tract healthy.

Let’s go over them in a little bit of detail.

Meat or meat by-products?

When assessing the best canned cat food for your kitty, the first ingredient should always be meat. Not meat by-products, and not chicken meal, or similar ingredients. Cats are pure carnivores, and they must have a very high protein diet to stay healthy. By-products are junk for a cat.

Look for chicken, beef, lamb, turkey and duck. Many experts believe fish contributes to feline urinary tract infections, so it’s best to avoid the seafood choices you’ll find.

Rice and wheat:

These are fine, as long as they are high quality brown rice and wheat. However, if one of these is listed first, I’d put that can back on the shelf and would continue my search.

DL-Methionine:

DL-Methionine is an ingredient in both dry and canned cat foods. It’s an amino acid that helps restore the urine pH balance back to 6.0 - 6.8. Read the fine print to see if it’s an ingredient. If you don’t see DL-Methionine listed, don’t worry. You can add it to your cat’s food in powdered form.

Magnesium:

Magnesium is believed to contribute to crystal formation in a cat’s urinary tract infection. Look for canned cat food that lists the level. The magnesium level should not be higher than 0.1%, and no less than .025% in any cat food you purchase.

Cranberries and blueberries:

Although cats are carnivores, berries are a great ingredient to promote good urinary tract health. High quality canned cat food should contain either one of these, or both.

Vegetables:

I know I stated cats are carnivores. If vegetables are listed, and they’re far down the list, that’s fine. Typically you’ll find carrots, peas, squash and corn.

Armed with this knowledge, you’re now able to hit the pet food stores and easily analyze the label information on different kinds of canned cat food. Remember, anytime you’re thinking about changing your cat’s diet, please consult with your vet on the best way to make this transition. Cats are not partial to changes, and a radical diet transformation done overnight is not good for your cat.

If you’d like to read Part I, please contact me at my website.

Good luck in your search for high quality canned cat food that will keep those pesky feline UTIs from happening again!

Nancy stopped the cat urine odor problem at her home, and kept the kitty that caused it. “18 Ways to Stop Cat Urine Odor Problems” saves you money, time and frustration by solving your cat urine odor problem - permanently.

http://www.stopcaturineodor.com

advice@stopcaturineodor.com

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