My 7-month-old male cats are spraying. Should I get them neutered?

It's likely that getting him neutered would help - "spraying" or urinating on objects in the house and wanting to roam outside are both very normal behaviors for intact males, so this is definitely the first thing I would suggest. These two things are the main reasons that almost all indoor male cats in the US are neutered :) Since he's almost two years old, there is a chance that neutering may not resolve these issues completely - behaviors like this can become a learned habit if they go on for long enough, so I would recommend having the neuter done as soon as possible.

If Tango is not neutered, this needs to be done. Males who are not neutered spray to mark territory and neutering them tends to stop the behavior. Some neutered males do still spray and this can be related to infections in the bladder or stress. Veterinarians will examine the urine of these cats to look for infection and provide correct treatment. There is treatment available for infections and stress but you have to determine which one is the cause. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

It certainly might. Urine marking is a normal and expected behavior for intact males, so neutering is one of the first things we recommend if your cat is doing this. The earlier it's done, the better - this is because the longer this behavior continues, the more it will become a habit that may not resolve after the neuter. It's important to realize that urine marking can also be related to stress or anxiety, so if this is the case, these issues would also need to be addressed in order to resolve the behavior.

Intact male cats often spray in the home due to elevated testosterone. Instead of isolating him, which will only make him more anxious and likely to spray more, I would suggest getting him on anti-anxiety medication through your vet. Fluoxetine can work well for cats that spray in the home and can be used up 1-2 months after his neuter, which is the typical time it takes for all the testosterone to diminish in the body. You can also consider moving him neuter surgery to an earlier date. I hope this helps and best of luck getting Mochi to stop spraying in the home. Take care.

Although it is possible that having Meeser neutered will not completely eradicate this behavior I still think it is worth going forward with the surgery. It is a very brief surgical procedure in cats and they usually recover very quickly. It may take awhile before the testosterone is completely gone, but there may be an improvement in the spraying behavior. I would actually recommend having both cats neutered if you are not planning to breed them as the other cat could start with this behavior at any time.

Unfortunately, this can still happen after neutering. Sometimes it is related to stress, sometimes to competition, sometimes a urinary tract problem (less likely since all of them are doing it). Feeding them separately and providing a litter box for each cat (if they are indoors) can help decrease stress. You can also try vinegar and water to remove the smell. Best of luck to you and the cats!

This can happen from stress, and also because Onyx isn't neutered, he may be doing this to show the home is his territory. I'd definitely have him neutered, and use a Feliway diffuser in the home to see if that helps settle him. Cleaning up the marking areas is tough, but I recommend using Skout's Honor cleaning products to get rid of the smell. I've found them to be effective. You can get them online or at a pet store. I hope this helps!