Changes

==Differentiating Between Elimination and Marking==

==Differentiating Between Elimination and Marking==

Once full information has been collected about the location and characteristics of each urine or faecal deposit, it is possible to differentiate between its cause.

Once full information has been collected about the location and characteristics of each urine or faecal deposit, it is possible to make a judgement abut the cause.

===Positioning of Deposits and Reaction to the Litter Tray===

===Location of Deposits===

In the case of [[Indoor Marking - Cat|marking]], the location of marks is intended to convey a signal to other cats; the function of spray marking is to maintain temporal and spatial distance between cats. Marks are therefore left in visible locations close to points of entry to an area; for example in a doorway into a room, or at the bottom of a flight of stairs. They may also be left in places where the cat is responding to an interaction with another cat; for example, by a window or on a spot where a non-resident cat has recently been seen. The act of [[Feline Communication Behaviour#Spray Marking|spraying]] also involves an element of [[Feline Communication Behaviour#Visual Communication|visual display]].

In the case of [[Indoor Marking - Cat|marking]], the areas that the cat uses to deposit urine or faeces will often be of behavioural significance, for example areas that smell of the owner or of the new cat in the household or locations which are associated with potential threat from the outside world. There is often a provoking stimulus for this inappropriate behaviour such as some disruption to the home environment or competition within the local neighbourhood and the location of the marking deposits will reflect this. Urine or faecal marks are placed strategically in order to provide a signal to other cats, which means that they must be placed in locations that are likely to be noticed. The act of [[Feline Communication Behaviour#Spray Marking|spraying]] itself also involves an element of [[Feline Communication Behaviour#Visual Communication|visual display]]. It should be remembered that odour marks are not merely of use to the ‘sender’ of the signal, who is trying to maintain distance from other cats. They are also of use to the ‘receiver’, who is equally keen to avoid direct physical conflict. The location of scent marks therefore follows conventions that allow other cats to find and investigate them easily. Such places might include on door frames, or on doors, or on pieces of furniture that face doors or windows.

[[Inappropriate Elimination - Cat|Inappropriate indoor elimination]] is not a display, and cats seek to maintain privacy whilst eliminating. Eliminated urine and faeces are therefore usually deposited in quiet secluded locations where the cat will not be disturbed. In households, common locations are quieter places like bathrooms and bedrooms. Cats usually have preferences for the kind of substrate that they will eliminate on, which may relate to their rearing environment; kittens that are reared a cage or crate may develop a preference for eliminating on bedding or newspaper because these were the first substrates they encountered. This can lead to adult preferences for urinating or defecating on carpets, sofas or bedding.

Cats with [[:Category:Urological Diseases - Cat|lower urinary tract disease]] will often have episodes of using multiple sites to urinate around the house. It is thought that pain associated with [[Micturition - Anatomy & Physiology|micturition]] in a latrine site discourages repeated use of that location: The cat chooses a different latrine site next time. This pattern of urination is often cyclical, with cats eliminating normally for a few weeks and then displaying a bout of housesoiling in multiple locations. This fits with the waxing and waning cyclical nature of feline lower urinary tract disease. With cystitis, the volume of urine found at each site is usually small, and the urine has a strong odour.  

 

 

Cats with [[:Category:Urological Diseases - Cat|lower urinary tract disease]] will often use several different sites in the house during the same period, breaking the usual pattern of the cat using only one or two latrines. This is because pain associated with [[Micturition - Anatomy & Physiology|micturition]] in each of the latrine sites discourages repeated use of the same locations. The cat associates eliminating in that place with pain or dysuria and chooses somewhere else next time. Amounts of urine found at each site may be smaller then normal and have a strong odour or contain blood. This pattern of urination is often cyclical, with cats eliminating normally for a few weeks and then suffering another bout of generalised housesoiling. This fits with the cyclical nature of the severity of lower urinary tract disease, which may wax and wane.

===Frequency of Deposits===

===Frequency of Deposits===