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'''Altering spraying sites to make them unattractive to the cat'''
* Place small bowls of food close to the marking location and combine this with an increase in the overall number of feeding stations throughout the house.
* Use plastic or aluminium foil sheets to cover flooring around the spray site, as some cats will not tread on this.
* Position a scratching post in front of the site to provide an alternative method of marking.
'''Treatment: Indoor marking'''
General changes:
* Provide additional resources around the home, including extra resting, feeding, drinking and latrine sites. These should be located so that each faction or individual cat has easy access to its own set of resources close to a location where it spends time.
* Soiled sites should be cleaned properly ''[see box and handout in the appendix]''.
* The cats should not be punished or threatened and chased when spraying, as this may increase stress or encourage the development of spraying to gain attention.
* Strategically install F3 diffusers [Feliway]
External threat:
* Install one or more coded electronic cat flap to prevent entry by nonresident cats. Transparent cat doors should be sprayed with a solid coloured paint so that they are completely opaque, otherwise nonresident cats may threaten residents through it.
* Use glass etch spray to prevent outside cats from seeing into the home through windows close to where the resident cats have sprayed, or which overlook resources.
* Install scratching posts, vantage points and latrines in the garden so that territorial control is shifted from inside to outside.
* If a stray entire male cat has moved into the area it should be trapped, neutered and homed away from the area.
Internal conflict:
* Follow general advise on resource distribution, giving each faction its own feeding stations and other resources. Consider providing an additional cat-door if one cat is guarding it.
* Introduce activity feeding.
* Use scent reintroduction and scent swapping to re-establish a group odour.
* Consider isolating and reintroducing cats in accordance with guidelines on dealing with inter-cat aggression.
* If cats have spent time away from the group, reintroduce them appropriately.
Unfamiliar odours coming in from outside the home:
* Regularly clean doorways, paths and walls where non-resident cats are spray marking [scrub with a solution of biological washing powder and hose clean].
* Fit draft excluder around doors and frames to prevent odours from coming in, and install a weatherboard to the bottom of external doors so that urine marks do not run down the door and into the house.
* Take off outdoor shoes and put them on a high shelf when entering the house.
* Apply a squirt of F3 [Feliway, CEVA Animal Health] to bags when they are brought into the house.
* Allow new furniture to air for several hours before allowing the cats access to it. This allows plastic and other odours, that may trigger spraying, to disperse. Apply F3 spray [Feliway] to the furniture regularly until cats are voluntarily face and flank marking
it.
'''Withdrawing treatment'''
* Environmental modifications that are made outside should be permanently maintained, but glass-etch on windows, food bowls that have been used as spraying deterrents and other minor environmental modifications should be gradually removed after 6-8 weeks without
spraying.
* Psychoactive drug or F3 diffuser therapy should be gradually withdrawn after 6-8 weeks without spraying or after the temporary environmental modifications have been removed. Drugs are withdrawn over a 4-8 week period depending on the duration of therapy. At least two dose
decrements are required, first halving the daily dose and then doubling the dose interval.
* Feliway diffusers are allowed to run out completely, one at a time, after drugs and temporary environmental modifications have been removed.
* If inter-cat hostility exists in the household then F3 diffusers should be continued until the cats have fully re-established their previous allogrooming and allorubbing affiliative behaviour.
'''Proper use of pheromone products'''
* F3 diffusers must be used at a rate of 1 per 50-70m2, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
* Diffusers should be left switched on at all times and must not be moved from room to room.
* They should be installed strategically, one in each of the locations where individual cats or factions of cats spend time. Installing a single diffuser in a hallway between rooms will not generally produce an effect in the rooms.
* When F3 diffusers are first installed the cats should be kept away from the diffuser for the first 1-2 hours to prevent them from spraying onto the diffuser. Being plastic, the diffusers will initially release a combination of smells that some cats may find objectionable.
* If a diffuser becomes contaminated with urine it should be thoroughly cleaned, other wise it will release urine odours along with the F3. Some diffusers may need to be thrown away.
* F3 spray can be used to spot mark new objects that are brought into the house [clothing, bags, new furniture].
* F3 spray can also be used as a deterrent for scratch marking in the home: one squirt is applied daily to the claw marking location. An alternative claw marking location should be provided nearby.
'''Cooperation between cat owners'''
* Cat ownership is increasing, which means that local feline population density may be very high, and rising.
* The problems of house soiling and indoor marking that affect one cat owner may also be affecting others.
* Indoor and outdoor environmental modification can have a much more dramatic effect on the welfare and behaviour of cats, if all cat owners in a neighbourhood make the same changes.
* Veterinary practices should encourage neighbours to work together to solve problems that arise form overpopulation and inter-cat conflict.
* Distribution of advice leaflets and running educational evening can help, and will gain good publicity for the practice.
* It can be beneficial for clients to be educated in feline behaviour, social structure and resource requirements.
==Prognosis==
Cats with a history of indoor marking are likely to relapse at some point in the future, because this behaviour is normal and situations outside the owner’s influence may create the conditions for a new bout of marking. Typical times when marking may re-emerge are after redecoration, a house move, or the introduction of a new stressor [new baby, new pet]. Spring and summer bring a social turmoil for cats, as these are times when they are most active and
territorial space is hotly disputed. The presence of young entire females may lure intact males into a neighbourhood, where they may settle and despotically wreak havoc on the local cat population.
It is possible to minimise the risk of recidivism by continuing to offer an excess of resources and maintaining a suitable core and garden territory for the cats. If a new bout of marking is anticipated, then the environmental changes and F3 diffusers may be temporarily reinstated.
'''Removing urine contamination'''
* Make up and label three plant sprayer bottles containing:
::A: 10% solution of biological washing powder/liquid in water.
::B: Plain water.
::C: Surgical spirit.
* Mop up excess urine and dry the surface using paper towels. Do not soak up urine using the cloth you intend to use for cleaning or wring a urine soaked cloth into the cleaning bucket as this will spread urine odours.
* Spray the surface with bottle A [biological detergent solution]. Mop the surface with paper towel.
* Spray the surface with bottle B [plain water]. Mop the surface dry with paper towel.
* Mist the surface with bottle C and allow it to dry naturally. Do not allow the cat access to the area for at least 30 minutes to allow the alcohol to dry.
* Dispose of paper towels to a dustbin outside the house.
Test these cleaning products on an inconspicuous area of cloth or carpet before using them more widely to make sure that no discolouration or loss of colour is likely to occur.
'''Protecting property from urine damage'''
Wooden floors:
* Seal joints and junctions between flooring and skirting boards or fitted furniture [kitchen units] with a silicone or an appropriate waterproof sealant to prevent urine from getting into cracks.
* Carefully seal joints between the panels of laminated flooring [urine ingress will cause panels to expand and pop up].
* Paint wooden floors with 2 or more coats of a heavy varnish [matt or gloss according to choice] or damp-sealant paint. If possible, extend the painted or varnished area to over-paint the sealant and thus create a complete barrier.
Concrete floors:
* Clean the floor and allow it to dry.
* Seal cracks as above.
* Paint it with several coats of a waterproofing paint.
Vinyl floors:
* Some vinyl floors are porous, especially if they are old.
* They may be sealed using specialist paints and coatings available from DIY centres.
* Cracked vinyl flooring should be removed and replaced.
Tiled floors:
* Glazed tiles are generally non-porous but grout between the tiles may absorb urine.
* Terracotta tiles are porous unless regularly sealed with a specialist coating [available from DIY stores].
* Use a specialist sealant on grout.
* Consider scraping out old grout in heavily urine-contaminated areas and replacing it with new waterproof grout.
Carpets:
* When fitting new carpet, clean and seal the flooring underneath [as above].
* Consider applying a layer of heavy plastic sheeting beneath the carpet or underlay to prevent urine from seeping into the floor.
* Protect existing carpets by covering them with heavy plastic sheeting and then cleaning the carpet underneath at least 2-3 times weekly until no further urine odour persists.
Wooden furniture:
* Where possible apply 2+ coats of varnish, especially under wooden feet of furniture [to stop urine absorption into wood grain].
* Otherwise use regular applications of a heavy wax furniture polish.
Computers and electronic equipment:
* Urine marking or soiling on electrical equipment is a serious health hazard: it can cause fires and electrical failures.
* Disconnect the equipment from the electricity outlet and clean carefully in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
* Allow to dry thoroughly.
* Dispose of any cooking equipment that is impossible to clean thoroughly [e.g. old toasters], because these represent a health hazard.
* Keep the equipment in a cupboard where it cannot be further soiled, or cover it in plastic sheeting when you are not using it [remembering the need for some equipment to be properly ventilated].
Electrical outlets:
* Urine entering a wall socket can cause a fire or shock hazard, so access to the location should be restricted.
* As an additional protection, cover the outlet with cling-film or a large flap of polythene hanging down over the socket, taped to the wall above it or alternatively use child proof plug guards.
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