When you decide to get a cute kitten, you rarely think about problems like strong-smelling marks all over the house. Kittens' urine does not have a very pungent odor, and they get used to the litter box quite quickly. It would seem that everything is in order now. But by the beginning of puberty the situation may change. You need to be prepared for this in advance. Today we’ll talk about when cats start marking their territory.
When you choose a pet
According to statistics, boys from a cat family are more readily adopted. In this case, the owner will not have unwanted offspring, which is considered a great advantage. But few people take into account that cats have a strong instinct to mark their territory and make themselves known to both surrounding males and females. When this happens in a natural environment, or at least in private gardens, the marks will be visible only to those to whom they are left. But in an apartment, a heavy cat spirit will make the space unsuitable for life. Therefore, it is important to know in advance when cats begin to mark their territory and take appropriate measures.
How to find cat marks
To find a cat's mark, you can use an ultraviolet flashlight. If you turn off the lights in the apartment and turn on the flashlight, the marks left by the cat will be illuminated with green light. Thus, you won’t have to wash half the apartment, but it will be enough to eliminate only the trace left behind, which emits a cutting, foul odor.
Traces of cat marks under ultraviolet light
Instincts, not vices of education
This is true. You and I cannot change what nature has laid down. But this is precisely what makes it possible to say quite accurately when cats begin to mark their territory. Upon reaching sexual maturity, the cat is “obliged” to inform all females and males about this. This means that this territory has an owner, and other males are prohibited from entering it.
To do this, it raises its tail and twitches slightly, releasing small amounts of urine, pheromones and seminal fluid. This scented message contains information about the cat's age and readiness to mate. If your pet constantly walks in the garden or on the street and leaves its marks on trees, then they will not cause trouble to anyone. It is much worse if he lives in an apartment. When cats begin to mark their territory, it becomes very difficult to live with them under the same roof, as well as to wean them from this habit.
Repelling with foil, sprays and other methods
If a cat is marking its territory, what to do is a question that cannot be answered definitively. There are several methods.
You can scare away your pet by using regular foil. Basically, the animal chooses one or several places for its tracks. Having found them, you need to lay foil there. Cats do not like to touch this material because the rustling sound irritates them.
You can stop your cat from marking his territory using foil.
If you don’t have time for experiments, then you can purchase a proven product in the form of a spray, which contains cat pheromones that help improve the psychological state of the animal. You can purchase this product at a pet store.
Advice! When you have absolutely nothing at hand, you can use folk remedies, for example, lemon juice or citrus-scented essential oils. Their smell has a deterrent effect on cats.
Age limits
They are quite conditional, and will differ depending on the breed, climatic conditions, nature of maintenance and nutrition. Despite this, there are average statistical data. When talking about the age at which cats begin to mark their territory, they most often mean the age of 8 months. By this time, the level of sex hormones in a young cat rises so much that he will involuntarily try all the ways to find a partner. And of course, this list will include inviting cries and odorous marks on curtains, doors, and upholstery.
It is not necessary to know exactly at what age cats begin to mark their territory. It is enough just to carefully observe your pet. With the onset of maturity, cats experience some changes in behavior and appearance. Their jaws are clearly defined, and their whole body becomes more muscular. At the same time, the cat begins to show aggression towards other cats and mark the territory so that they do not take it over.
Why does a pet mark?
The reasons why a pet may suddenly begin to mark various surfaces in a house or apartment are varied. Let's look at the three most common ones.
Instinct
A domestic cat may begin to mark its territory for natural reasons. Being a territorial predator, these furry animals have an instinct that pushes them to damage things and furniture. Thus, the animal protects its territory from the encroachments of its relatives.
This problem also arises when the animal enters puberty. Therefore, it is important to know at what age cats begin to mark. This usually happens when pets reach 7–8 months. When a cat is in heat, she may also leave marks on furniture and carpets.
You need to understand that instinct is very difficult to fight. But you can still change your pet’s behavior for the better. What needs to be done for this will be described below.
When other animals or strangers appear in the house, the cat may begin to place its marks in the corner of the room. Moreover, a neutered pet can also exhibit this behavior.
Not only a cat, but also a cat can leave these specific marks. Females, albeit very rarely, can also mark territory under the influence of instinct. This usually happens when another pet appears in the house. This way the cat shows who is boss in the apartment.
This behavior may go away on its own when the animal gets used to the stranger. Give your pet time, and he will calm down on his own and get used to the new environment.
We suggest you read: The cat’s lower lip is swollen - what could this mean?
Not all cats begin to mark surfaces when strangers appear in the house. This is usually done by restless animals that react strongly to external factors.
Illness and stress
Specific markings may appear anywhere in the house if the pet is sick or under extreme stress. Moreover, this phenomenon does not depend on age, gender and breed.
These animals experience stress when moving, long journeys, protracted illness, frequent and prolonged absence of the owner, etc. Therefore, you should always pay enough attention to your four-legged friend, since it is very difficult to wean him from a bad habit.
If the cause lies in illness, the animal must be cured. In this case, you don’t even have to dare your pet. He may well quit marking his territory after his recovery. As he gets better, the desire to leave marks will decrease. Although after treatment the animal can continue to cause harm.
If a young animal lives in the house, it will be useful for the owner to know in advance what to do to prevent the cat from marking the territory. First of all, the animal begins to perform such actions that irritate household members at the age of 6 - 10 months. Small kittens do not mark their territory until puberty. Therefore, the owner should carefully monitor the appearance of signs of puberty in a young male.
It is almost impossible to prevent the manifestation of natural instincts, but proper training of a pet from the first days of its stay in the house will help to avoid negative behavior in the future.
First of all, the little kitten needs to make it clear who is in charge in the house. An animal should not be raised in permissiveness; this will confirm the young male that he is the leader.
Having discovered that a cat is marking its territory, every owner is concerned about how to deal with it. If the animal is young, it is often prompted to leave marks by lack of attention from members of the household. Being constantly alone, a pet can attract attention to itself using a natural mechanism known to it - putting marks on furniture, household items, and the owner’s belongings. This is how the animal tries to attract attention to itself using the means available to it.
If the cause of cat marks is boredom and loneliness, the owner should make an effort and pay enough attention. In the absence of the owner of the house, it is advisable to purchase a gaming complex and leave toys for the cat.
The owner should understand that neither shouting, nor assault, nor throwing slippers and other objects at the cat will have any positive effect. On the contrary, the animal will become convinced that its self-preservation is threatened, and the actions of leaving marks will become more active. Therefore, in the matter of weaning a male from behavior that is unseemly from the point of view of household members, there should be no forceful influence.
what can you do
Some owners believe that pets have dull instincts. In fact, they are as strong as those of wild felines. This is especially true for the reproductive instinct. If you lock your pet in an apartment, it will lose weight, refusing the food offered. In addition, the animal will try to get out of the apartment, growl, and climb cabinets.
Therefore, the owner must think in advance about how many months the cat begins to mark, and by this age determine the procedure. If you plan to use him for breeding, then you need to organize free range for him, when he can fully satisfy his instincts. If this is impossible to do, and there is no one to breed the cat with, or you did not plan to use it in breeding activities, then decide on the castration procedure even before the cat begins to leave odorous marks.
Why do cats ignore the litter box during heat?
As noted earlier, a cat during estrus often shits anywhere. Ignoring the tray during sexual heat is due to the fact that she is trying to attract a partner for mating with the help of her smell.
During the period of heat, pets that roam freely on the street often disappear from home for some time. If a cat is unable to find a sexual partner outside the home, it leaves scent marks everywhere. This is a kind of signal that the cat is ready for mating and subsequent procreation. This behavior is typical not only for pets who have not undergone castration and sterilization, but also for sterilized females whose ovaries are preserved, hormones are produced and, accordingly, sexual attraction to males arises.
How else does the instinct of dominance manifest itself?
It usually wakes up in cats with the onset of puberty. Not all individuals immediately declare themselves in the most dramatic way. Some people instead rub against the upholstery, leaving their scent on it. For the same purpose, they scratch doors and furniture, as well as wallpaper, with their claws. But when the cat begins to mark the territory in the apartment, this outweighs all the listed inconveniences. Just a few days - and when you walk home, you are simply faced with an elastic stream of smell that haunts you.
Explaining to a pet that the main thing in the house is the owners, and not the cat, in most cases it will not work. But you can try to wean him from this habit. Let us note once again that this is not so easy to do. Instincts are the basis for the functioning of the animal psyche, but they do not possess consciousness.
But what should you do first after you determine that the cat has begun to mark its territory? How to understand what is happening to him? The first step is to contact an experienced veterinarian. It is necessary to know for sure whether this behavior is a consequence of diseases of the urinary system. This usually requires going to an examination and getting tested. If problems are identified, the specialist will prescribe effective treatment.
Features of behavior
The habit of marking territory is common to all predators. This helps to mark boundaries that other individuals are not allowed to enter. Your animal in the same way designates its possessions in an apartment or house, which means “I’m in charge here.”
Some owners mistakenly confuse marks with ordinary puddles on the floor. In fact, in this way the pet does not simply empty its bladder, but follows the call of nature and expresses its readiness to reproduce. Therefore, such marks contain a lot of pheromones. A pungent odor can be felt throughout the apartment.
The cat does not care at all which of your things will be damaged: expensive furniture, a blanket, or toys. If he decides to put a mark somewhere, he simply sprays the required object with a strong stream. It is difficult to predict the behavior of an alpha male.
© shutterstock
The old way
How did we all teach kittens to use the litter box when we were kids? That's right, they caught the animal and poked its muzzle into the puddle. Therefore, when choosing what to do if the cat begins to mark its territory, many people remember this method. Unfortunately, it has a number of disadvantages. Kittens leave puddles unknowingly, and they are easily detected. Usually these are transparent puddles on the floor. And, being sent to a convenient tray, in which they can also bury waste products, they quickly get used to it.
A growing cat makes marks in a different way. It approaches a vertical surface and, raising its tail, sprays onto it a small amount of a mixture of pheromones, sex hormones, urine and seminal fluid. It is very difficult to find this place, but it smells fragrant throughout the whole house. If you managed to waylay the criminal, then catch him by the scruff of the neck and shake him well. If the cat meowed pitifully, it means that he recognized you as the main one in the house. Perhaps the marks will stop.
How cats mark territory
Cats are territorial animals. By marking the boundaries of their property with their scent, they make it clear to everyone: they do not want to share this very territory with anyone.
An interesting point: any thing can become the object of a mark. Toys, furniture, a door frame, a place to sleep, even the owner - nothing will be left without a “trace” if the cat considers itself a full-fledged owner.
When many people hear the word mark, they only remember the most problematic way for mustachioed and striped creatures to defend their space. That is, about odorous, wet marks left on walls, furniture, doors or favorite things of bipeds. But this is not the only option. In addition to stinking puddles, claws, teeth, and the so touching “rubbing” of the owners on any suitable surface and place are used. For example, on the lid of a laptop or the leg of a roommate giving food.
My master, completely and completely.
Cats' scent glands secrete pheromones - signal substances that can tell a lot about the animal. Age, gender, status, mood. And of course, their habitat. These glands are located on the face (around the eyes, on the chin, behind the ears), at the base of the tail and between the pads of the paws.
This is interesting: by caressing your arm or writing figure eights between your legs, the cat is not so much trying to show affection as leaving its imprint on you. But most people don't know about it
