Your cat Max has grown tired of stalking birds from the window sill and terrorizing your Rottweiler Sammy. Instead, Max has gotten into the spraying business. He finds a spot away from his litter box, stands straight up, and shoots a stream of stinky urine onto your floors, walls, and even your furniture. You’re not going to have your home turned into Max’s personal litter box, so you’ll ask your Jensen Beach veterinarian to give Max a healthy dose of behavioral counseling.

Get the Hormones Under Control

First, you’ve got to reduce the male sex hormones that are running Max’s life. In other words, get Max neutered quickly, if he’s still intact. When the sex hormones decrease in quantity, Max’s spraying should also ramp down. Since female cats can spray, too, make sure little Missy is spayed as well.

Banish the Urine Smell

Fermenting cat urine can permeate everything it touches, and getting rid of the smell will take considerable work. An enzymatic cleaner should help. When you eliminate urine smells on the surfaces Max has marked, he doesn’t have much incentive to spray those areas again. Applying a feline pheromone on these spots might stimulate Max to mark the surfaces by rubbing them with his face, rather than his urine. Ask your vet for his opinion and a good product recommendation.

Add More Litter Boxes

Since your intrepid explorer Max patrols the entire house, make sure he has several litter boxes along his route, hopefully giving him one less reason to spray down your house. If you have other cats, adding more litter boxes means Max doesn’t have to complete his important business under the watchful eyes of another feline.

Extra Stimulation for Your Cat

Maybe Max is just plain bored, and he needs something constructive to occupy his time. Get Max some treat puzzles that make him work for his snacks; add a few interactive cat toys to keep him mentally challenged. After all, if Max is busy trying to dig out those treats or catch that fake mouse, he’ll have less time to consider where he’s spraying next. Give Max some more daily playtime, too, as that will also help fill up his schedule.

Whatever you do, don’t punish Max, as that might irritate him further. Take your stinky feline to your Jensen Beach vet, who will address Max’s behavior and develop an effective plan of action.