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→Diagnosis
==Diagnosis==
==Diagnosis==
Diagnosis involves several steps:
Diagnosis involves several steps:
* Detail the cat’s behaviour before, during and after incidents.
* Detail the cat’s behaviour before, during and after incidents.
It is important to establish the motivation of the behaviour to be able to resolve the issue successful in the eyes of the owner. Scent is used to identify [[Feline Territorial Behaviour|territories]] as well as individuals and [[Feline Communication Behaviour#Marking|scent marking]] forms a part of normal cat behaviour, it only becomes problematic to owners when inappropriate surfaces and methods are chosen by the cat and when cats are obliged to [[Feline Territorial Behaviour#Domestic Cat Territory|share territories under domestic circumstances]].
So several scenarios emerge. If the [[Feline Territorial Behaviour#Core Territory|core territory]] is threatened by being overlooked or invaded by cats that are not part of the [[Feline Social Behaviour|group]], then the boundary of the core territory can retreat into the house and the resident cat(s) will use spray or claw marks to delineate a boundary at the edge of the core territory which happens to be within the home. These cats may end up inhabiting the upper rooms of a house as core territory and then spray marking or middening on the ground floor, but the situation often starts when urine marks appear at windows or external doors, or around the cat flap.
If the relationship between cats within the home is flawed, then, rather than one group, there may be two or more [[Feline Social Structure|factions]] coexisting within the home. They may have little tolerance for each other. Most domestic cat groups are of mixed gender and are not actively engaged in mutual kitten rearing, so that there is no positive reason for the cats to coexist other than their own individual social preferences and affiliations. The continued function of the group is highly dependent on whether present resources are plentiful enough to maintain the whole group without competition. Within domestic cat groups sharing a home, it is possible to identify patterns of interaction by analysing greeting, affiliative and aggressive behaviour between cats ''[see example diagram].''
If the relationship between cats within the home is flawed, then, rather than one group, there may be two or more factions coexisting within the home. They may have little tolerance for each other. Most domestic cat groups are of mixed gender and are not actively engaged in mutual kitten rearing, so that there is no positive reason for the cats to coexist other than their own
individual social preferences and affiliations. The continued function of the group is highly dependent on whether present resources are plentiful enough to maintain the whole group without competition. Within domestic cat groups sharing a home it is possible to identify patterns of interaction by analysing greeting, affiliative and aggressive behaviour between cats ''[see example diagram].''
SOCIAL GROUPS/STRUCTURE
SOCIAL GROUPS/STRUCTURE