Do female cats spray? If they do is the odor as bad as males?

Answer 1

I have had cats all my life. I have never had a female that sprayed.
I just had to add that some one said that a neutered male will not spray. Well I have had a neutered male that does spray. I used to think that they didn't. I had a rude awakening "smell" one morning. LOL yuck.

Answer 2

ANY cat can spray (or pee in appropriate places). Whole males more than females and the male is stinkier, but cat pee is cat pee and still stinks, too. If a female cat is not spayed she is more prone to do this when she is in heat. Cats will also spray or pee in inappropriate places when they're under stress, such as new cat in the family, new dog, new place to live. This is comforting to them (but not to US). If you clean up the place with an enzymatic cleaner such as Simple Solution or Natures Miracle, the cat is less likely to go back to the same place. Don't use ammonia because the smell is similar to cat pee (to a cat). If you clean it up and can't smell it, that doesn't mean the cat can't, because their sense of smell is so much better than ours.

Most of the time neutered males stop spraying, but sometimes they don't. Female cats will sometimes stop if the offending situation goes away. Then again, some female cats have perfect manners and never "go" where they're not supposed to.

Sometimes just cleaning it up is not enough. You have to try to figure out why they're doing it (females). Males do it instinctively before they're fixed.

Questions regarding this subject are one of the most often asked in this forum, and one of the most difficult to resolve.

Answer 3

Female cats can and do spray. They will do it less than males, and less if they are fixed, but it is a natural instinct for them to mark their territory as well as males. They will mark with a few drops of spray/urine and it does not have the musky scent of the male cat spray.

If you goggle female cat spraying you can read a lot of information on this.

It will happen if you move or change furnishings, or if there are other changes in the household.

Answer 4

Not as a normal mating ritual, but, if you have a female that has been around males, they can pick up the habit of doing it. They don't spray the scent that males have but if they do pick up that habit, it is just urine that comes out, and yes, the odor is bad but it is just urine. Interesting enough I have even had spayed females that do it just because they picked up the habit from seeing the male cats do it. I have even had neutered males that do it even after they have been neutered just because they did it before, it becomes a habit.

The best way to avoid this in the future is to have your cats neutered before they become sexually mature, that way they don't have the instinct to do it. If you have them neutered afterword they can still do it (only then it will be urine coming out), again, out of habit.

Answer 5

Female cats can spray, even if they're neutered. The odour of female's urine is as nothing compared to an uncastrated Tom though, believe me. Unneutered male cats secrete a hormone in their urine to attract females, and it STINKS. Neutering them at any age eliminates the smell because it removes the hormones, and neutering a male or female cat young (5 months) reduces the likelihood of them developing the spraying behaviour at all. That said, my female cat was neutered as a kitten and she sprayed her whole life, but outside so it didn't matter!

Chalice

Answer 6

As odd it may seem, yes they do. My friends' cat is a female and it sprayed the other weekend when I was over there. But the stinch is definately stronger in the male as opposed to the female.

Answer 7

People would never have problems with cats spraying if they did one simple thing

Male or Female.. get it fixed by 6 months of age

No spraying probblem. tada!!

speying and neutering is the only responsible thing to do.

to answer your question though, a female usually only sprays (if she does) when she's in heat

She never goes into heat if she's speyed, though.

Answer 8

Female cats do not spray, but they do get pregnant. Take her to a low lost spay and neuter clinic before she reaches 6 months old. If she's older, go ahead and make that appointment today for her.

Answer 9

Yes! My female can was not spayed because I mistakenly thought that females do not spray. Boy - was I surprised and yes it does smell - not as bad as the male version but it does smell.

Answer 10

female cats don't spray and neither will your neutered male. They do mark and so do males by rubbing there chins against furniture and even you. If the female has a health problem she may not use her litter box for urinating...see the vet. my ebay store www.2008ebooksplus.com