Cats don’t willfully misbehave out of spite, anger, or stupidity. Many owners assume their cats are deliberately scratching the furniture or eliminating outside of the box just to be spiteful, but the reality is that those cats are trying their best to come up with a solution on their own.

Many behaviors that we label “bad” are really just natural cat behaviors. The problem occurs when we don’t understand or provide appropriate outlets for cats. Take furniture scratching for instance. Your cat doesn’t claw at the sofa because he wants to cause damage that will, in turn, evoke anger in you. He scratches the sofa because scratching is a natural and necessary behavior. The cat looks for the most convenient, appealing, and sturdy place to accomplish that goal. If the scratching post you bought isn’t effective, then kitty looks for the next best location.

The same theory applies to other behavior issues. Your cat doesn’t wake up and decide to urinate on the carpet just so he can get you mad. He urinates there because he feels he has no other choice. The cause may be due to a medical condition that is making him experience pain, or it may be due to unpleasant litter box conditions, or the result of a stressful change in the household.

Before assuming your cat is merely misbehaving, carefully examine the conditions surrounding him in his environment and what you might be able to do to reduce his stress and entice him back toward a behavior more acceptable to you.

For more information, refer to the book Starting from Scratch.

© 2009 Cat Behavior Associates, LLC