Normal Elimination Behavior

Normal Elimination Behavior

By: Dr. Nicholas Dodman

Each day, cats normally drink between 200 and 400 milliliters of fluid to maintain health. Half of this will end up as urine, which serves as a vehicle for dissolved end products of metabolism. This process is obligatory and fundamental to the maintenance of life.

Defecation is equally important to get rid of digestion's waste products. Sometimes it only becomes apparent how important these processes are when they go wrong.

In cats, like many other land mammals, excretion of urine and feces has been adopted as a marking behavior, and transmits social and reproductive signals to other members of the same species.

Feral cats and domestic house cats generally follow a specific behavior pattern when eliminating urine and feces. They normally seek sites where the ground is loose or sandy, which, in the case of indoor cats, involves the contents of a litterPerfect Litter Alert
Pet Ecology Perfect Litter™ outperforms all other litters in every way. Our Patented formula is ultra lightweight - up to 70% lighter than regul...
box.

Once a suitable substrate has been found, the cat sniffs the area and scratches or digs at it with its front paws. Having made a small depression, the cat turns, squats, and deposits her waste. The final phase involves the cat covering up her feces or urine and then moving on to other things.


Content Provided By

This article was excerpted from the CD entitled "Behavior Problems in Cats - Etiology, Diagnostics and Treatments" by Dr. Nicholas Dodman, Professor of Clinical Sciences at Tufts University, School of Veterinary Medicine, © 1998, Trustees of Tufts College. To buy a full copy of the CD, contact
www.tufts.edu/vet/mediaservices .

 
Printable Version
 
Have a Pet Question?
Send Your Pet Question to Dr. Jon
and His Staff of Veterinarians Ask Dr. Jon
Dr. Jon's Newsletter
Yes! Send Me the Latest Health Information, Pet Tips, Pet Stories and more...
 
 

Related Articles

  • 1 Feline Urine-Marking

    Urine-marking can be a troubling behavior and is the most common form of inappropriate elimination. It's the number one cause of surrender of cats to shelters and pounds, which often results in their untimely...

    Read MoreRead More
  • 2 Scent Marking by Cats

    The olfactory sense, or sense of smell, is an extremely important means of communication among cats.

    Read MoreRead More
  • 3 Inappropriate Elimination in Cats

    You love your kitty and so far you’ve enjoyed a purr-fect relationship. But suddenly he can’t seem to find his way to the litter box. Nothing can be quite so distressing, but here are some things you can...

    Read MoreRead More
Related Articles
  • 1Scent Marking by Cats

    The olfactory sense, or sense of smell, is an extremely important means of communication among cats.

    Read MoreRead More
  • 2Feline Urine-Marking

    Urine-marking can be a troubling behavior and is the most common form of inappropriate elimination. It's the number one cause of surrender of cats to shelters and pounds, which often results in their untimely...

    Read MoreRead More
  • 3Inappropriate Elimination in Cats

    You love your kitty and so far you’ve enjoyed a purr-fect relationship. But suddenly he can’t seem to find his way to the litter box. Nothing can be quite so distressing, but here are some things you can...

    Read MoreRead More
 

Over 10,000 Veterinarian Approved Articles

Related Articles
  • 1Scent Marking by Cats

    The olfactory sense, or sense of smell, is an extremely important means of communication among cats.

    Read MoreRead More
  • 2Feline Urine-Marking

    Urine-marking can be a troubling behavior and is the most common form of inappropriate elimination. It's the number one cause of surrender of cats to shelters and pounds, which often results in their untimely...

    Read MoreRead More
  • 3Inappropriate Elimination in Cats

    You love your kitty and so far you’ve enjoyed a purr-fect relationship. But suddenly he can’t seem to find his way to the litter box. Nothing can be quite so distressing, but here are some things you can...

    Read MoreRead More