Nature created predators as conquerors. And even a pet can do nothing with instincts. In turn, this feature of feline behavior gives the owners a lot of trouble and can even lead to parting with their beloved animal. To avoid this, a person needs to outwit the animal instinct of a cat.
Why do cats mark territory?
Cats have a highly developed natural leadership instinct. First of all, this is expressed in the fact that the older and most important individual marks the territory with its smell. Smelling it, other cats will know about the local "Marquis of Karabas".
Being in an apartment, surrounded by the general affection and helpfulness of the owners, the cat will certainly begin to feel like the leader of the territory. He perceives the apartment as his possessions, and himself as an unconditional authority.
Often, this leads to the appearance of marks. Moreover, if in kittens this problem can be quickly eliminated with the help of castration, then for adults this option does not work.
Also, the reasons can be repair, redevelopment and any other radical change in the surrounding space. Often, the sharp appearance of marks is associated with health problems of the pet, so the first thing to do is contact your veterinarian.
Struggle for leadership - what not to do
In the event that your pet has no health problems, you should enter into a struggle for leadership. Having found tags in the house, you should not poke the cat with your nose, let alone beat. The pet will perceive a cry and even the slightest physical impact aggressively. According to the rules of nature, animals are not punished for tags, so the cat will not understand human emotions. Here you need to act according to animal rules.
Alpha male at home
We need to demonstrate to the cat that he is not the alpha male of the territory. To do this, you need to grab the cat by the scruff, raise it higher and gently wave your hand in its direction several times, imitating the cat's movements. It is important not to hit the cat hard, but to show with a movement that he, like a kitten, receives a slap in the face from his “mother” for a misdeed.
The signal that the cat has perceived the impact is its posture. Ashamed and frightened, the cat bends its back, squints and tuck its tail to its stomach. At this moment, he can meow, and it is important that he does not scream indignantly at the owner - in this case, he perceives the actions of a person aggressively, and meows begging.
Further, the owner should hiss properly. In this case, it is important to imitate the aggressive cry of the cats themselves and look directly into the eyes of the animal. It is necessary to hiss loudly and several times in a row.
You need to remove the tag with the help of cleaning agents so that even for the cat's sense of smell, there is no animal secret left in this place. It is best to do this several times with plenty of water. And after that, you need to take some of your worn thing, which you will not mind throwing away later - a home T-shirt, socks, tights or underwear. With this thing, you should carefully rub the place of the mark dry and, possibly, leave it there for a while. So the smell of a person is fixed on the spot.
Educational process
Cats perfectly sense falsehood, so if the animal does not believe in the seriousness of a person's leadership intentions, then the efforts will go to waste. The position of the leader must be maintained. You should ask your family to always be as affectionate as possible to the main alpha male in the house, not to shout or swear in his presence. Such a home show, repeated from time to time, will let the cat understand that this tribe already has a master.
