Cats present a variety of elimination behaviors. While kittens depend on their dam to stimulate the anogenital reflex, they also depend on their dam to teach them some of their feline behaviors. Around four weeks of age, kittens can be seen playing in and eating their litter or dirt. This is a normal exploratory phase occurring a few days prior to their appropriate use of the litter box. Litter box use is generally regarded as learned by observing the queen's actions.

Adult cats have two normal elimination postures. In most instances, the cat assumes a deep squatting posture, almost a sitting position, over a shallow hole it just dug in soft dirt. The tail extends behind the cat but slightly off the ground. Urine or feces is directed downward. When urination or defecation is complete the cat will stand, turn around, and rake dirt back over the area. It is felt that earth raking, when once learned, is evoked by the odor of excreta.

A second adult posture is used for spraying urine onto vertical objects. In this case, the cat backs up to the object to be sprayed, extends its tail upward, often quivering it, and slightly extends its rear limbs before urinating. Although spraying is used more by tomcats, females and neutered males will also use the behavior if there is a strong territorial threat.

Housesoiling is a major complaint among cat owners and the history can be very important in differentiating what is occurring. In all cases, there are some facts which owners should know because they can help prevent the problem from becoming worse. Be sure not to clean soiled ares with ammonia or ammonia based products since its smell is the same as the ammonia of urine. Because of the cat's keen nose, it is also important to emphasize that cleaning will not necessarily eliminate the total urine or feces odor, just the part that is objectionable to humans. Another factor involves the duration of the problem. The longer the housesoiling has occurred, the more difficult it will be to correct. And finally, punishment for the deed must occur within 30 seconds of the act to be effective.

When housesoiling occurs as defections or squatting urinations, other questions become important. Did the cat ever use the litter box? If not, success in teaching it to do so is unlikely. Is the cat using the litter box for either defecation or urination but not both? This positive piece of history will often imply that some form of mild pain may have been associated with a problem elimination such as cystitis or mild, undetected constipation. Apparently, cats associate pain with locations and will often move to a new elimination spot, often near the old one. Was the cat accidentally prevented from getting to the box such as when a door to the bathroom is closed for a few days? The cat may then pick a new spot for elimination and stop using the old one. Move the box to the new spot or place a second litter box at the chosen site. Eventually, the new box can be relocated, a few inches per day, to a new, more acceptable location.

What if the cat is using a spot beside the old box? A box that is outgrown can cause the animal to miss the litter. A larger box, higher sides, or an enclosed box, will usually stop the problem. An unclean litter box can also have this effect. It is interesting to note that some cats are so fastidious that any urine or stool is enough to cause them to break training. For others, you wonder how they stand such a messy box.

Has there been a recent change in the type of litter used? For many animals, the chlorophyll litters have a repelling quality. If the number of spots used are too many to allow a litter box for each, other techniques may be used. Physical barriers can prevent them from getting to a spot. Food bowls are also used to change behavior, because cats seldom eat where they eliminate. A food bowl on a soiled spot may be enough to discourage use of that spot.

In long standing problems, the cat may literally need to relearn use of the litter box. Granted, the following procedure is extreme, but often is the only alternative to euthanasia. The cat, food, water, bed and litter box are confined to a small room such as a utility room or bathroom. At first, the entire floor, except where the cat eats and sleeps, is covered with a light sprinkling of litter. The cat has to go on litter. After a few days, one fourth of the floor is uncovered. As the cat consistently uses the litter covered area, the size is gradually decreased until only the litter box remains. Gradually, the cat is then reintroduced to the rest of the house.

A behavior change such as spraying urination usually indicates a local frustration such as a new cat, dog or person, and problems of this nature are more common in the spring and fall when the tomcat population is most mobile. Ideally it is best to remove the source of frustration; however, this is not always practical. Urine spots near windows or doors generally indicate a problem outdoors. Roaming cats, recent confinement to the house, and new dogs are the most likely "challenges" to the cat's territory. Since this type of spraying tends to be more seasonal, confining the cat away from the area where the invaders may be is often sufficient to stop the problem until the factors are no longer present.

Spraying urination which are not located near doors or windows are usually associated with stresses within the house. The person who collects cats may actually be able to have several animals living peacefully but when one more is added, spraying starts. An older house cat which has never had to live with other cats may start the problem when one is added. Eleven cats may be peaceful until number twelve arrives. This type of social pressure can be countered in several ways. The added cat can be sent away, and thus the source of the problem is eliminated. Since "crowding" is a problem with cats, isolation of the newcomer in a room of its own may allow the group to become accustomed to its odor before confrontations are severe.

When spraying is associated with the articles and locations of one specific person, another type of stress occurs. Have the person feed or positively interact with the animal. Negative behaviors like spraying tend to widen the gap between the person and the pet, and that, in turn, tends to complicate the problem.

Anti-anxiety tranquilizers can be useful in some situation to minimize the behavioral "anxieties" of the cat. These are not successful as permanent forms of therapy. A cat may also relax with a paper bag or box in which to hide when it feels threatened.