A castrated cat constantly asks for food - what should I do?

1. Why do cats continue to mark even after surgery?
2. What should I do if my cat continues to mark his territory after castration?
3. Should cats be neutered?

Do cats mark in the house where they live after castration?
This question interests many pet owners who want to forget once and for all about the problem associated with an unpleasant odor from a cat in a living room. During castration, the cat's testes, which produce sex hormones, are removed, as a result of which he ceases to mark the territory in which he lives. But there are isolated incidents when an animal, even after surgery, continues to misbehave in the house, which greatly upsets its owners. So will a cat stop marking after castration ?

Why do cats continue to mark even after surgery?

Most owners believe that castration will make the cat forget about its natural instincts. Indeed, castration of cats allows you to get rid of the unpleasant smell in the apartment, but not in all cases. Sometimes, even after removal of the testes (in approximately 5% of clinical cases), adult cats continue to mark everything in the living area where they live. The reasons for this behavior may be the following:

• Not enough time has passed since castration and the animal’s hormonal background has not yet changed, and therefore the pet continues to mark its territory;
• castration of the cat took place in adulthood, when the animal had already been in contact with a female and sex hormones in its body began to be produced not only by the testes, but also by the adrenal glands, as well as the pituitary gland;
• sometimes a cat, after castration continues to mark its territory if other males of its species live in the house with it;
• sometimes dysfunction of the genitourinary system and problems with urination in a cat are mistakenly taken by the owners of the cat for the process of tagging;
• A common cause of marking in cats after castration is changes in the pet’s behavior after surgery, when he continues to mark corners, but not with the secretion of the perianal sinuses, but with urine and even feces.

In any case, if the owner of the animal sees that after castration the cat is marking in the apartment, it is necessary to immediately contact a specialist who, during the examination, will find out the reasons for the development of this condition and take adequate measures to eliminate the problem.

How does castration affect a cat's behavior?

Castration is the only guaranteed method that allows you to eliminate a cat’s sexual desire and reduce the intensity of behavioral factors associated with this instinct. In order to understand what exactly will change in the cat’s behavior, the easiest way is to consider the habits that the cat exhibits against the background of sexual arousal.

Marks are the most obvious signal from a male to attract a female. The marks are traces of special liquids (secrets) with an individual odor. Secrets may contain:

• In urine.
• In feces.
• In sweat secretions between the fingers.

Urine marks are left in a particularly demonstrative manner - the cat lifts its tail and splashes urine. Feces marks are the same piles, only more fragrant. Even when you remove everything, the smell will remain. Very often, marks with feces are misunderstood, thinking that the cat is shitting in the house. Scratching walls, wallpaper, curtains and doors is also a way to leave marks.

Note! Neutering helps eliminate the desire to mark in a cat, but eliminating bad habits can take time.

Heart-rending screams, especially at night, are also a manifestation of sexual desire. The cat waits until night and begins to scream heart-rendingly so that the cat hears his call and answers. Castration solves this problem almost immediately . If the cat was mated before castration, the process of balancing the hormonal levels can take up to 6-9 months.

What should I do if my cat continues to mark his territory after castration?

When asked what to do if a cat marks after castration , veterinarians have to answer all the time. To eliminate the problem, experts advise the animal owner to first determine the causes of its occurrence.

If the cat’s marking cannot be eliminated through castration, then the pet should be thoroughly examined. Perhaps the castration was performed in bad faith or the animal is one of the creephipt cats with testicles in the abdominal cavity. In such cases, an experienced specialist advises repeated surgery to remove the testes, which produce sex hormones.

If the reason for marking after castration in a cat is behavioral reactions, then you can try to “retrain” the animal. Currently, there are special aerosol preparations that are sprayed in places where the pet has misbehaved and cause disgust in the animal. After several such procedures, the animal forgets about its instincts and habits, which cannot but please the owners of the apartment. There are times when, it would seem, nothing will help: neither castration, nor aerosols. It is at such moments that a zoopsychologist who can influence and change the animal’s behavior will come to the aid of the owners of a problem cat.

A castrated cat marks: we understand the problem

Probably almost everyone knows that uncastrated cats mark their territory with urine. At the same time, it is a very common belief that after castration this habit should immediately disappear. Therefore, one can understand the surprise of owners when, even after surgery, their cat continues to leave odorous marks. Surely they have a question: was it necessary to carry out castration at all, is this the root of the problem? “Murkosha” hastens to dispel misconceptions and explain to owners when and under what circumstances a neutered cat can mark.

1. 1) Was castration necessary?
2. 2) If a recently neutered cat marks
3. 3) Possible health problems
4. 4) Why does a cat need tags at all?
5. 5) In what cases does a neutered cat begin to mark?
6. 6) The cat marks in a new place

Was castration necessary?

If you doubt whether it was worth castrating your cat, we can answer with all conviction: it was worth it. Animals under the influence of sexual instinct will in any case leave odorous marks. Moreover, it is a mistake to believe that this is characteristic only of cats - unsterilized cats mark during the period of heat almost as often and actively. We can say that an uncastrated cat will mark with a guarantee, while an unsterilized cat will mark with a high degree of probability. But after the operation, in most cases, the cat breaks the habit of this habit immediately or very quickly, since their main incentive disappears - after all, they leave odorous marks for a reason, but to mark the boundaries of their territory with smell (for domestic purrs, these are our apartments ) and attract a partner of the opposite sex. And after the operation, there is no need to involve anyone anymore.

With the help of castration, you saved not only yourself from odorous marks (by the way, from “night concerts” too), but also your pet from serious health problems. For example, statistics show that neutered cats have a 20–30% reduced risk of developing urolithiasis. The body of an unsterilized cat or an uncastrated cat is under the constant influence of sex hormones, which in such concentrations are carcinogenic and have an extremely negative impact on health. There is a very high risk of cancer of the reproductive organs. By the way, hormonal drugs like “contrasex”, “stop-intim” and other drugs widely used by owners to suppress the sexual activity of cats have the same properties. Unsterilized cats can develop various pathologies with age: cystic degeneration of the ovaries and uterus, mastopathy, oncology. Cats that have been “sorted” by their owners have a high chance of developing prostate diseases.

In general, castrated/sterilized animals live on average 1.5 - 2 times longer than non-sterilized ones. This is due to smoother hormonal levels and reduced stress levels.

It is equally important that by doing this you have contributed to solving the problem of homeless animals. Alas, most of the kittens born and given “in good hands” ultimately end up on the street - and die there. Sterilization of pets is the only thing that can give a chance to stop this conveyor belt of death. Thus, statistics from different countries of the world say that when the proportion of sterilized pets reaches 70-80%, the number of homeless people and those in shelters decreases sharply.

Read more about where stray cats come from: Stray cats: causes, problems, solutions

So if you have already performed this operation, then you did everything correctly, but if you haven’t done it yet, it’s time to contact a veterinary clinic for this.

If a recently neutered cat marks

If castration occurred just the other day and the cat is still marking, then it’s okay - this is quite natural in the first days and even weeks after the operation. It takes time to equalize hormonal levels. If castration was carried out already at puberty, that is, the cat was older than one year, you need to keep in mind that normalization of hormonal levels can take up to several months. During this time, the cat may mark its territory. Here you should be patient and just wait.

If the cat has already marked the territory before (that is, it was old enough), then everything is aggravated by habit, especially if it smells the marked places. In order to help your cat (or cat) quickly forget this habit, you should thoroughly rinse the marked areas, you can spray them with a spray with the smell of citrus (but not if the place is located next to the tray) - this cat smell is very strong. love.

This speaks in favor of spaying/neutering at an early enough age so that the habit of marking has not yet had time to take hold. Experienced veterinarians consider the optimal age to be 7-8 months. At Murkosh we follow these recommendations and castrate kittens at this age. But in any case, we remind you that this phenomenon is temporary, and therefore the cat should not be punished for “misconduct.”

If a cat castrated before one year marks at home for more than a month after surgery, consult a veterinarian. In rare cases, a cat may retain one testicle, which did not descend into the scrotum and therefore was not removed during castration and continues to produce hormones. This is a medical problem that needs to be solved with the help of a repeat, already abdominal, operation.

Possible health problems

It happens that a sterilized cat marks due to health problems. As a rule, this is not marking in the literal sense of the word - that is, the cat does not seek to leave scent marks. She may simply be having difficulty urinating. In fact, it’s quite easy to distinguish a trip to the toilet from a desire to put a mark: in the first case, the cat seems to sit down, in the second, they stand up to the place they want to mark with their backs, lift their tail (at the same time it seems to shake) and release a short stream urine. At the same time, pets prefer vertical surfaces to mark - they serve as analogues of trees, bushes, stones, etc. in the natural environment.

But if your cat begins to experience pain when urinating, she may try to do so as if she is marking territory. If she does this near the tray, then this is an argument in favor of this particular version. In any case, you need to show your pet to a veterinarian, he will confirm or deny the presence of the disease, and, if necessary, prescribe treatment. Remember that the sooner you start treating the problem, the greater the chances of getting rid of it without serious consequences.

Read more: https://murkosha.ru/nashi-stati/lechenie-i-profilaktika/priznaki-nezdorovogo-kota

Why does a cat need tags at all?

If the problem is not a disease, the animal has been castrated/sterilized, and a lot of time has passed since the operation (or if the pet stopped marking after it, and then suddenly started again), then the reason lies in fears for its territory.

In fact, it must be said that absolutely all cats and females mark – both neutered and non-neutered. It’s just that in most cases this is not done with the help of urine, and therefore a person does not attach importance to it or even does not perceive it as marking at all. But this process is extremely important for cats; they simply cannot live without it. With the help of marks, the cat spreads its scent to the territory that it considers its own. She marks the boundaries with marks, as well as everything important within them.

By doing this, the cat declares rights to the territory, leaves a signal to itself that it is safe here, and warns its relatives that the place is already occupied. With his marks, he seems to be saying to other animals: “Stop! Then everything is mine!” In other words, marked territory = own territory, and vice versa. And your own territory is an opportunity to hunt effectively, hide from predators, and leave offspring. In general, nothing was more important for cats in their natural habitat. The importance of territory (and, accordingly, scent marks) was deposited at the level of instincts.

However, a cat can leave marks not only with urine. A cat's scent glands (which are responsible for leaving marks) are also located on the cat's cheeks, chin, paw pads, and sides. In this case, the marks turn out to be less “catchy”, signaling rather to the cat itself, but when nothing threatens its territory and the sexual instinct does not come into play (it is precisely this that forces one to leave the most odorous marks - and this is only possible with the help of urine), the pet this is enough.

If you have a cat living with you, almost all the things in your apartment are probably already marked with the cat’s smell: walls, furniture, carpets, litter box, bowls and toys of the cat itself, clothes and shoes of the owner. And the owner himself. Yes, the cat also perceives the people with whom the cat lives next to as part of its world. That’s why cats rub so hard against their owners (that is, they actually mark them), and some also show affection to guests, as if expanding their own domain. A cat can mark in the following ways:

• - touching the muzzle;
• - rubbing cheeks;
• - kneading the owner with his paws, like a bed before bed;
• - raising the tail and clinging to the owner’s legs;
• - as if scratching the owner’s gums, etc.

In such simple ways, cats mark territory, people, and your other pets, if they get along with them.

In what cases does a neutered cat begin to mark?

Such an idyll (in addition to sexual instinct) can only be disrupted by encroachment on the cat’s territory. More precisely, if it seems to him that someone else is laying claim to his possessions, he will begin to feel insecure. And to reinforce confidence, the pet will begin to mark, as if saying that this territory is still his. In this case, even a neutered cat will mark.

Most often this happens when another animal appears in the house. Here the reason for the unrest is clear: before, the entire apartment was the “property” of the cat, but now it must be shared with someone else. But sometimes a pet's anxiety can confuse the owner. However, there is always a reason: perhaps the owner brought the smell of another cat on his clothes, or your pet saw a competitor on the street. It also happens that your neighbors have a dominant, uncastrated cat who strives to spread his scent as much as possible (especially if he is let out for a walk) - as a result, your pet senses his marks and begins to mark in response. His actions are clear: he wants to protect the territory.

Sometimes a cat’s insecurity can be caused not by animals, but by some sudden changes: the appearance of new people in the apartment, frequent visits of guests, noise, a serious change of environment, new smells that are unpleasant for the pet, even not associated with other animals (the owner’s perfume, for example). , – however, this rarely happens). What can you do, cats don’t like sudden changes.

In the above cases, you need to show your pet your concern, convince him that the territory is still safe, and you still love him, in general, that there is no reason to worry. The best way is games. A neutered cat loves to play just as much as before, contrary to the persistent stereotype about giving up an active lifestyle after castration. Through play, the cat shows its hunting habits. It is play in home life that forces a cat to express itself in accordance with the nature of a predator. To achieve a clear effect, you should play with the cat in the morning and evening, and so that he gets tired at the same time. After playing, the cat must receive his morning/evening portion of food (=prey). This way you will encourage activity, prevent your pet from getting bored and bolster his self-confidence. When he realizes that there is nothing to worry about, that the territory is still safe, the marks will disappear.

Read more about the importance of games: Why do cats play and how to do it correctly with them?

You can also place several scratching posts in the main places where the cat marks his territory to give him an alternative. The simplest cardboard models are suitable for these purposes. Volunteers at the Murkosha shelter advise sprinkling their surface with catnip to attract the cat’s attention. It is also desirable that the pet has its own house or corner, which will be something like a shelter for it. Keep in mind that cats that do not have their own shelters and personal belongings (houses, beds, scratching posts, toys, etc.) are much more prone to stress and fighting for territory, which means they are much more likely to mark.

Read more about cat houses: https://murkosha.ru/nashi-stati/soderzhanie-i-ukhod/domik-dlya-koshki-balovstvo-ili-neobkhodimost

The cat marks in a new place

Separately, it is necessary to say about the move. Everything is simple here: the cat’s previous territory abruptly disappears, and it finds itself in a completely new, unfamiliar, unknown territory. It is quite natural that in such conditions both a sterilized cat and a neutered cat will begin to mark. Just to lay claim to “nobody’s” possessions and surround yourself with a familiar smell. However, it is not necessary that the marks will be using urine.

The owner’s task is to make sure that the changes for the cat are as abrupt as possible. Then she will think that it is not necessary to mark the new sofa with urine, just rubbing her muzzle against it is enough.

The first thing after moving is to unpack the cat's things (remember: they must be there!) and place them in a separate room or in a small confined space. The bed, toys, scratching post, bowls and tray - all of this smells familiar and, as it were, tells the cat that the territory is safe. Gradually expand the boundaries and allow the cat to explore the entire apartment, after leaving her things in different corners. Make sure that in the new place she has everything she needs: a bed in a secluded place, a scratching post, a convenient tray not in a walk-through area and away from sources of noise (an anxious or simply modest cat will definitely appreciate a closed toilet-house), free access to clean water and regular meals.

And of course – games, games and more games. During the first time after moving, you can also give treats more often, and also use drugs like Feliway to reduce stress levels.

So, marking territory for cats, even neutered ones, is natural. But in a calm situation, the cat will not mark with urine. A cat needs a particularly strong and persistent smell (which is what urine gives) in, by and large, only two cases: to attract females and to protect his possessions. With the first, only surgery will help (the effect may not be immediate). In the second case, you need to show the cat that he is not in danger. To do this, he must have his own shelter corner with his personal belongings (bed, scratching post, toys), plus he must play with him for at least 10-15 minutes in the morning and evening.

Should cats be neutered?

Cases where a cat continues to mark after removal of the testes are rare. And if animal owners want to quickly and permanently get rid of the marking problem in their cat, experts confidently advise them to castrate. For some reasons and personal beliefs, cat owners may refuse to promptly resolve this issue. Therefore, sometimes veterinarians have to give advice on how to get rid of a bad habit in an animal without castration.

So, what to do besides castration if the cat is marking its territory?

1. Try to apply simple rules for teaching cats order. To implement the method, the owner needs to follow the cat and, waiting for the moment when he is about to mark the corner, grab him by the withers. Lift it up so that the animal assumes the pose of a small kitten, and then hiss at it threateningly and hit it on the nose several times with your finger. Naturally, a single practice of this kind will not give a positive result. But if such actions are repeated daily, then over time the cat will stop marking in the apartment.
2. If the owner of the animal begins to doubt whether castration will help when the cat begins to mark , then you can resort to medication to correct the problem. Veterinary pharmacies stock medicines for cats based on tranquilizers and female sex hormones, which suppress the marking instinct in males and relieve animal owners from an unpleasant odor in the living room.

A little about castration of cats

There are 2 sterilization options:

• complete removal of the testes (orchiectomy);
• ligation (vasoresection) or cutting of the spermatic cords (vasectomy).

In the second case, the testicles continue to produce testosterone. This hormone is responsible for sexual desire. The animal is infertile, but shows interest in females, continues to walk and look for a partner for mating.

After an orchiectomy, the cat becomes a good-natured homebody. Urine stops emitting a sharp, specific odor, and nightly serenades and territory markings stop.

Castration eliminates hormonal surges and reduces the likelihood of inflammatory diseases and malignant neoplasms of the genitourinary system. Reduces the risk of injury and infection from contact with stray animals.

Can a sterilized cat go for a walk and why?

Estrus and the desire to find a mating partner can be observed in a sterilized cat. Veterinarians identify the following most common reasons why an animal walks despite surgery:

The problem may appear if the animal has a thyroid disease.

• A poorly performed operation. Most often, estrus occurs if the ovaries or uterus have not been completely removed. A piece of an organ can grow in the cavities and end up hidden by a kidney. An active search for a partner begins in the first 30 days after surgery.
• Disruption of the endocrine glands. With pathologies of the hypothalamus, adrenal glands or pituitary gland, the concentration of biologically active organic substances in the blood is disrupted. It is especially dangerous if the failure is caused by malignant tumors in the kidney area. Imbalance of hormones is sometimes a side effect of thyroid pathologies, after which sterilized cats return to walking with cats.
• Hormonal imbalance due to a stressful situation. Excess cortisone and other hormones produced by the body of a sterilized cat due to unfavorable external conditions can trigger estrus.

How to distinguish a neutered cat from a cat?

This question confuses many, because the main sign - “male virtues” - is missing. In this case, you can try to determine the sex using indirect signs - character and color, and also still examine the structure of the genital organs. A castrated cat, despite the absence of testes, still has a round urethral opening. There is a fairly large distance between it and the anus, whereas in a cat the vulva has the shape of a slit and is located close to the anus.

You should also pay attention to the behavior of the animal. A castrated cat loses the need to mark its territory, behaves very calmly and does not show any specific interest in individuals of the opposite sex, since after such an operation the animal’s hormonal levels change

Their natural curiosity is often replaced by a passion for food and reduced attention to what is happening. Thus, castrated pets can sleep and not react at all even to strong sounds, while their “full-fledged” counterparts pay attention to any, even the slightest, noise.

About sexual desire

Castration itself is primarily aimed at:

• depriving a cat of the opportunity to reproduce;
• correcting the behavior of overly temperamental pets.

In the vast majority of cases, surgical removal of the reproductive organs reduces sexual desire to zero. However, there are exceptions. Some cats even after castration behave exactly the same as usual. Although even in such cases, the animal’s activity is still significantly reduced.

Why is this happening? It's simple. If a cat managed to taste carnal love before castration, then his body begins to produce special sex hormones. Moreover, their production is carried out not only by cut off testicles, but also by such a part of the brain as the pituitary gland. The latter remembers the sensations received and synthesizes the necessary substances. All this leads to the fact that the sexual instinct is preserved.

Castration of a cat and caring for a pet after surgery

Castration surgery can be performed both under general anesthesia and under light sedatives in combination with local anesthesia. Before the operation, the animal must undergo an examination by a general practitioner and an anesthesiologist-reanimatologist in order to identify latent diseases and determine anesthetic risks. From a surgical point of view, this operation is quite simple, does not take much time and is in-line.

Postoperative care is simple. In many veterinary clinics, owners are offered to place the animal in a hospital for preparation for surgery and observations in the postoperative period. But sometimes owners cannot or do not want to leave their pets. In this case, before leaving home, you need to stay in the clinic’s waiting room in order to quickly respond and provide assistance to the animal recovering from anesthesia.

At home, you need to prepare a special place on the floor, equipping it with a soft bedding and a warm heating pad. If the animal lies on a bed, sofa or chair, it may be injured after an unsuccessful fall, since in the process of awakening from anesthesia it may experience impaired movement.

Warm water heaters or plastic bottles with warm water (35-40°C) are needed to protect the cat from a drop in temperature after surgery. If owners are skilled in rectal thermometry, periodic temperature readings will be helpful. The normal temperature of a cat is 38-39.5°C.

Sexual urges after castration

One of the main reasons why cat owners choose to neuter their cat—besides the obvious benefit of preventing unwanted reproduction—is to eliminate unwanted sexual behavior in general. In fact, mating and other expressions of your cat's sexual desire can be problematic and can be a source of real frustration. However, while castration can help with this, it is not a foolproof solution to the problem.

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Neutered cats tend to lose most of their sexual drive, but some cats may continue to show signs of sexual desire; ranging from collisions with inanimate objects and ending with a cat. If your cat falls into this category, it can be quite a shock and you may even wonder if the procedure worked. The good news is that persistence of sexual desires is quite common and does not mean that castration has failed.

So why do some cats retain sexual desires even after spaying or neutering??

In the early stages, the most likely explanation is that sex hormones remain in your cat's body for some time after surgery. In fact, it can take up to 12 weeks for all the hormones to disappear . Therefore, if your cat has been neutered within the last 12 weeks, this is most likely the reason for this behavior. On the other hand, most behaviors should gradually decrease over this three-month period.

Additionally, your cat's age at the time of spaying may also play a role, and is the most likely explanation for situations where sexual behavior continues even after the first 12 weeks after surgery. Simply put, the later in your cat's life the procedure is performed, the more likely she is to retain some of her mating instincts. This becomes especially likely if you spayed your cat after one year of age.

There are many reasons for this. By one year, your cat has already reached sexual maturity and may even have first-hand sexual experience. Meanwhile, some sex hormone-related behaviors, such as hormonal movement, are more difficult to completely eliminate because by this point they will become habitual behaviors. Of course, the sterilization process can reduce this behavior, even if it is not completely eradicated.

In the most extreme circumstances, your cat may even retain enough sexual urges to try to mate with the cat. Fortunately, as a result of sterilization, he will not be able to produce offspring.