Male can urinates around house

Question
I have a male cat that's 7 months old and had neutered at 5 months old due to he started spraying. He is peeing on the bathroom rug, in my sons room and peed all over my son's bed. The only answer the vet that neutered him could give me is that it'll take awhile to get the spraying out of his system and to take him in to make sure he doesn't have a uti. That's crap cause it's not all the time and the litter box is kept clean. He doesn't even sneak to do it, he's done it right in front of me before. Is he jealous of my son who's 4yrs (that cat is my son's and has been since the cat was 10 wks old). What can I do?

Answer
Hi Vicky, Thanks for the question. I would have to agree with you that the answer the vet gave you is incorrect. If a male cat is spraying because he is a tom cat and marking his territory for sexual reasons that doesn't even start until the cat is about 18 months old! If your cat was spraying at 5 months then there is something else going on. There is the possibility that he has a urinary tract infection. You can get him checked for that or you can try to look for symptoms at home first. Use just a small amount of litter in his box and when he urinates see if it when it dries it looks like dried salt water... kind of crystally?! You can also check where he is spraying in the house if it is possible. Also see if the urine has a pinky tinge to it or if it is quite dark yellow. All these things will indicate there is something wrong with his urine and you should get him checked.
NOW>>> if that is not it and it is behavioral then you have a bigger job on your hands ! If he is urinating on your son's bed that is usually a sign that it is behavioral !! If he is doing bowel movements in the litter box then he is aware that that is where he should be urinating also.
First step: get rid of the bathroom carpet. If it is rubber backed cats want to pee on them.. I don't know why! But they do! Get a carpet that is all cotton with no rubber backing. Also do not leave plastic bags around or anything else with rubber as cats can mistake the rubber smell to be a urine smell. Now, with your son's bed. I would clean everything really well and in the rinse cycle of your laundry use a pet odor remover. These are available at pet supply stores. I do not want to recommend a brand here but just ask for help when you go in. They are called odor neutralizers and they work fabulous ! They help take the smell out of fabrics. Sometimes you may think that the linens are clean but the cat can still smell a lingering odor and will re mark. Use this product on the mattress and use it in the rinse cycle of the linens. THEN>.. this is the tough part. Try to keep him out of your son's room for a couple of days to break this cycle. Then let him in for 10 minutes. While he is in there lavish him with praise !!! Don't stop petting him and even put a small dish of his favourite treat food on the bed for him to eat. A cat will not soil where they are eating !!. Then remove him from the room for another day. Gradually increase the "visits" to 3-4 times a day. always feeding him, even if it means withholding food from him for the rest of the day. Make the bed his "eating" place. Then gradually make the visits longer and longer and still use as much praise and attention that you can. Try not to lavish your son with attention when the cat is in the room. Save it for later !
This is a tough habit to break and I know these recommendations are not easy BUT you caught it young!! so your chances of breaking the cycle  are good. Also has anything else changed in your house?/ie furniture moved around ?? try not to do any changes over the next couple of weeks. This should take about 2-3 weeks to correct. Please write back and let me know how things are going or if you need any more help !Teresa