AffectedAnimals:
Any cat that is at least six months old, the age at which most cats reach sexual maturity. Unneutered males are most likely to spray. Neutered males, unneutered females, and neutered females also may exhibit this behavior.

Overview:
A very common behavioral problem of cats, urine marking accounts for 40 percent of the feline cases brought to veterinary behavioral specialists, according to a recent study. Cats "spray," or conduct in urine marking, when they deposit their urine on prominent objects in order to communicate with other cats. Characteristically, while urine marking, the cat assumes a standing posture and squirts a horizontal stream of urine onto a vertical surface; thus the term "spraying." This behavior, which is normal, is considered problematic to owners when the cat marks indoors, since urine ruins walls, furniture, carpets, and floors; outdoor urine marking, however, is an expected behavior. Male cats that have not been neutered are most likely to urine mark -- and unfortunately, the urine of a male cat is especially pungent and resistant to odor removers.