ritchie21

Having lost my beautiful Rottie, Thunder, in March this year, we decided that we wanted pets again but couldn't bring ourselves to get another dog just yet.

About 5 weeks ago we adopted two rescue cats who we believe may be mother and son. Not too sure. Jim is 15 months now and Rosie is 3. They have settled really well and occasionally have spats (her having a pop at Jim mainly) but on the whole get on really well.

Until today! We were finally able to let them out today and up until it started raining, they were in and out, venturing only out into the back garden and back in again. They know this is home and seem to be building up their mind maps.

The help I need is this. Since they have been out, Rosie is continually attacking Jim and I mean seriously attacking him. The poor bugger is hiding in our bedroom and I just don't know what to do. I've never owned cats before and don't understand why she's turned as bad as she has since they've been out. She is usually very chilled out whereas he is the more adventurous one - he's extremely curious!! They are both beautiful cats, but I don't want this to become a permanent behavioural issue.

They were in the the vets for 6 months and then the animal sanctuary for a month before we adopted them. Jim would only have been 6/7 months when he was rescued and we don't know why they were rescued. I don't know if this has any bearing on her behaviour or not.

Can anyone offer me any advice please?

Thank you in advance!

Laura

Jay Cartay

iTrader: (3)

You might have to keep them separated for a bit and reintroduce them. You could try getting some Feliway diffusers. They are a bit lie Glade plugins for cats and give off pheromones that calm them down somewhat.

They can be a little costly though, but they also do a spray that you can spray in various areas they go.

Might help.

Also if you are keeping them separated, try letting them see each other at feeding time as that reinforces positive associations with the other cat.

ritchie21

Thanks Jay. They are separating themselves at the moment. They always eat together and never fight then.

Thanks for the advice. I've seen the feliway advertised so will give that a go. Thank you!

RS_Matt

We've had a few not get on, even tried Feliway. Had to sell one as she was weeing on the carpets.

We have two males at the moment and one of them whacks the other every time he walks past him.

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

There is a tv show called "my cat from hell". And it's about someone who shows people how to get their cats to be normal. He deals with situations like yours so I suggest you watch some of the shows and I bet you can get your cats being normal.

thenewgalaxy

I'm assuming both cats are neutered?

Domestic cats are quite independent creatures and although they can form complex social interactions between each other (and us of course) they usually prefer to be alone and do not take well to sharing a resource with another cat.

There are lots of different types of cat aggression, but one really stands out and that's territory-based. Cats are excellent fighters and can tackle other animals many times their size but prefer to avoid getting into scraps with each other. So for such a violent fight to take place, I suspect the issue is space and territory, though it could be down to an important resource such as food.

My advice would be to ensure that both cats have their own spaces and share as little as possible e.g. separate food bowls, places to sleep etc. You may even have to separate them while you are not around and then gradually reintroduce them over time, supervising them when they meet. Breaking up any fights with a water spray will provide a deterrent as will hissing at them. With any of these things perseverance is key.

You have also mentioned this problem started since they went outside? If one of the cats is returning with the scent of another cat (or animal) this could be winding the other one up also (and causing a perceived territorial threat).

Turbohot

Laura, take note of Mr. thenewgalaxy's post. He's excellent at advising on cats.

I had similar experience with my already existing cat and my new kitten. He was merely 2 months old, I think. The one we already had was about 3 or 4 years old, then. The good thing was that the little fatty was/is very thick-skinned. He would just walk away at her hissing and snarling, and would loiter about confidently away from her in the same house. When we went for work and left them locked in, we never found any blood shed on our return. They were always found curled up in different rooms comfortably. He never got traumatised with the older one's constant bullying, it was in fact the older one that was behaving aggressive due to the trauma to her territory. They still maintain distance from each other, although I've occasionally seen them playing happily outside in the garden. The closest I've rarely found them is as curled up on the same bed at least 2 feet away from each other, and that was surprising. He's good natured and would like to be friends with her, but she'll never have that. We have no choice but to accept it.

Hope this issue with your cats settles for you. Good luck.

ritchie21

Thanks for all the advice guys! Yes they are both neutered - it's done by the animal sanctuary and is part of the adoption fee.

They already have separate eating and sleeping areas and separate litter trays.

They have been out this morning again and she has settled down a lot from yesterday so will see what today brings!!

Thanks again guys and gals!

f1_fan

iTrader: (9)

Laura,

The 'problem' here is one of territory. When you let them out you gave them new territory and one of them will have 'claimed' it or the majority of it. The other is now probably claiming territory inside the house as the boundaries have moved hence the argy bargy.

Don't worry as it will settle down and you will doubtless eventually observe what territory belongs to each cat!

I have two cats and the older one 'owns' the garden, but the younger rules the house. They each let the other occupy their territory, but one of them is definitely 'the boss' in each case. Occasionally they have a spat, but generally all is well these days.

Good luck and hang in there. They are fascinating and complex creatures, far more so than dogs ... and no that doesn't mean I am saying they are better than dogs, just very different!