Cat Behavior
Cat behavior problems: 3 real -life problems and its solutions – Modern cat
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Last update: June 18, 2025
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Michelle Simpson illustration
As The founder of one of the first exclusive behavior practices for cats, which works with thousands of cats for three decades, discovered that most feline behavior problems are completely soluable. Cat’s behavioral problems often come from a mismatch between the evolved needs of the cat and its environment; internal or external stress factors; underlying physical conditions; or a combination of these influences.
Cat’s behavioral problems often come from a mismatch between the evolved needs of the cat and its surroundings.
Many cat owners who come to us believe they have tried everything to solve their cat’s behavior problems. However, they have often not addressed the root cause. After working with our clinic, they get a deeper understanding of why your cat behaves in a certain way. Beyond simply solving your cat’s problem, they also appreciate your cat’s wild instincts that improves the human animal bond. Let’s take a look at three cat behavior cases that we solved successfully.
Michelle Simpson illustration
CAT studies: 3 real -life behavior problems and its solutions!
Case study #1: Rival cats and spray (also known as urine marking)
Marzipan, a five -year -old, was caught in the spot: walls vertically marked in spray near windows and doors as if he were labeling his territory where an intruder could enter. Its owner was deadly and immediately called us. What could have caused Marzipan to begin to suddenly mark his territory?
Marzipan, a five -year -old targeted, was caught in the spot: walls vertically marked spray near windows and doors.
The answer came during a zoom video appointment. From his new favorite window hanger, Marzipan now had a front row seat for a street cat that occasionally wandered around the front courtyard or hung on the other side of the street on the neighbor’s entrance road. Even the brief sightings of this outer cat were enough to make Marzipan mark several times a day.
From his new favorite window hanger, Marzipan now had a front row seat for a street cat that occasionally wandered around the front courtyard.
Behavior solution
To solve the problem, we suggest a two -pointed approach: cat’s disjiones activated by the outdoor movement to keep the street cat out of the front courtyard and the ice cream window tense to block Marzipan’s cat view when it was on the other side of the street. We also caused the owner to clean all areas marked with urine with a special urine cleaner, we recommend zero smells of multipurpose smell, to erase the aroma and advise him to discontinue with any householder in the home containing ammonia.
The result
In two weeks, Marzipan retired from his career to mark spray. He just needed to believe that his house was safe from any external cat competition.
There are only a few reasons why a cat will mark vertically, and most of the cases we see are simply due to external cats.
Lesson learned: Marzipan did not tolerate the competition, even when he was on the other side of the street. Protect your cat’s territory and protect its walls. Vertical urine spray marking is a very black and white behavior problem when it comes to cat’s behavior. There are only a few reasons why a cat will mark vertically, and most of the cases we see are simply due to external cats. Once this instigating factor is addressed, the urine brand can be one of the easiest behavior problems.
Eric Iselee/Shuttersock
Case study #2: Pica or simply hungry? Cat eating non -food items
Meet Luna, a short domestic courtesy of two years with a curious appetite for … upholstery, socks, plastic and the occasional fleece blanket. Its owner was horrified when finding Luna chewing and then ingesting pieces of the sofa and feared that it had a rare case of pica, a behavioral disorder where cats eat non -food items such as fabric, plastic or paper. Was Luna condemned to a life of fabric buffets? Not quite.
When Luna arrived at Cat’s behavior clinic, we noticed something: it was thinner than its owner realized. A fast dietary analysis revealed that Luna was being fed with less calories than he needed for his current weight. She also needed to win two pounds. Essentially, I was not eating the sofa because it loved the modern design of furniture: I was hungry and had been slowly losing weight over time, and the owner had not noticed.
It turns out that most of the “pica” cases that we see are not true, but the cats that try to tell their owners: “I am starving here!”
The behavior solution and the result
We advise the Moon owner to increase their food portions to meet their caloric needs. In several days, the couch was sure, and Luna was happily eating her food. It turns out that most of the “pica” cases that we see are not true, but the cats that try to tell their owners: “I am starving here!”
BODNARPHOTO/BIGSTOCK
The conclusion? Before assuming that your cat has an exotic condition, check your diet and weight twice. Sometimes, the answer is as simple as feeding your feline the right amount of food.
Even if your cat does not have itchy, we recommend that all cat owners visit our Clinical Nutrition Section and use the veterinary nutrition calculator provided to see if their cats are feeding with the correct amount of cat food.
Case study #3: Sandbox deterrent. Cat suddenly urinating off the sand box
Oliver, to three years old tabby, had to reputation for be perfectly trash box trained from he was to Gatito, up to one day he It wasn’t. He had decided that urinous occasionally outside his box was he new vibe. His owner was embarrassed. That had change?
For Oliver, this configuration was less “spa retreat” and more “dark alley.”
Enter the sand box investigation. Rounds outside, the owner had recently changed Oliver’s garbage boxes of discovery Sand boxes with hoods because she had Read the preferred cats privacy. She too hidden one trash box behind to bathroom Door and The other inside a cabinet In laundry room. The owner had Also recently involved Cat size tickets at each door that leads to The garbage boxes. For Oliver, this configuration was less “spa retreat” and more “dark alley.” Cats like to feel safe when they do their business, and Oliver’s private and closed configuration made him feel that he was about to be ambushed by a predator, or a rival cat. The garbage boxes also simply became less accessible.
Luchepruch/Adobestock
The behavior solution and the result
Us Suggested elimination he box cover and relocation he boxes to further open spaces where he No have to get into to little cat door. Oliver Not only thank he Changes: made a beeline for he new configuration and He never looked back.
The cat should see its surroundings and not feel trapped or cornered while in the sand box.
Cat behavior advice: Trash The boxes can be in private or low traffic areas, but the cat must see their surroundings and not feel trapped or cornered while in the sand box. In nature, cats do not urinate in hollowed trunks or hide behind a tree to do Your business. Cats are survivors and come with evolved behavior features that help ensure that they have a good escape potential and that are not trapped by a Predator or Cat competitor.
*Male Nagelschneider He is a pioneer of the specialty of cat’s behavior, an author of Cat Sciences and host of My hell cat The most watched cat behavior program in the world with more than one billion viewers. It has spent more than three decades helping cat owners to understand and improve the behavior of their cats. His experience is widely recognized in the field of animal behavior and his book of cat behavior sciences is used to certify other cat experts that you see today. For more information and tips on CAT’s behavior, visit the Mieshelle Nagelschneider website thanbehaviorclinic.com.
This article originally appeared on the award -winning Modern cat magazine. Subscribe today!
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