Two Cats Won't Get Along?

Question

I have to cats called Princess and Perry, bolth of them are spayed and nutered. Perry is a nutered male, Princess spayed female. Princess is sometimes pushed around by Perry, this morning she was growling and tried to hide from Perry. I'm not sure what to do. It is not that serious, but I need some advice on what might cause this, and how to stop it. Thanks!

Answer 1

I had the same exact problem with my cats.. male and female. My female hated the male and would never be in the same room as him. Got to a point where she was only staying in my daughters room under the bed and wouldnt come out even to eat. My vet said I needed to reintoduce them. I kept the male in one part of the house and the female in another for a few days. Then I switched there places. Then slowing started bringing them in the same room as each other. There is also a natural flower extract that calms the cats (i used it in the introduction phase with my female). It took a while but eventually they learned to tolerate it. They didnt fall in love with each other but it was nothing like it was at first. Talk to your vet too. She/he may ahve some other ideas that may work.. Good luck.

Answer 2

There are a couple of possiblities. I'll assume you didn't get both at the same time, and that they are not from the same litter. Male cats (Perry) can be more terratorial, even if they were the second cat in the house. I'm guessing thats what most of the pushing around is. Perry is trying to assert his dominance over Princess.

If one of the two was recently added (within the past week or so) to the house, then you can try to give the new cat a room of their own that the other cannot go into (even if it means closing the door. This will give the new cat space for itself, but allow the two cats to get used to each others scents. If you can't close one in a room, perhaps a large pet carrier will work so they can see and smell, but really not fight.

Answer 3

You didn't mention how long they'd been together. All my cats hated each other at first. It's a territory thing as in, Hey, who's the boss here? But you know what? After a while, they'll be inseparable. When my oldest cat was dying (old age, of course) my Siamese wouldn't leave him. And when he died, much as they fought, and all the territory games they played with each other, I had to take her to the vet because all she did was sit and howl and look out the window as though she was calling him to come back home. The vet said, You have one of two choices. Put her on "kitty meds," or go to the shelter and adopt a kitten. She's not sick, she's grieving!" So don't worry about it unless they're gashing each other's faces open. It's going to work itself out. It's all a game of, "Whose territory is this, who's the head lion here?'' After they sort it out, they too will be inseperable. And yes, by the way, I did go get another cat from the shelter. And they too fought to the point where I thought they would kill each other with all that hissing and howling. But most of it's just a show. And now the two of them are inseperable. Just give it time. I mean, think about it. You have a baby. It's used to being the only one. And then another comes along. Rivalry, jealousy. It's typical.

Answer 4

Hi there...kristinj78 suggestions are excellent. It will help Perry and Princess feel they have some control of their personal space. In addition whenever you find the two beginning to have a conflict try also distracting one of them with a fun interactive toy. This sometimes helps a cat to relax their aggression and focus on something that is more worthwhile. If one cat engages in the play and the other wants to as well, allow them to take turns by moving the toy in far apart directions so they don't feel they are overcrowding one another. Playing with an interactive toy over a lengthy time has shown to help cats become more tolerant of the adoptive feline friend. Have some patience as every cat relaxes sooner than others.

Answer 5

well for one thing the fact that its a male and female doesn't help i found that getting cats all one gender makes things more tolerable for them they kinda form a little clan with one as the alpha male. they may be trying to establish territory which is different for both animals. It can also be a fight for attention, if they are new to each other it may take a while for them to get used to each other also if they are not declawed they can hurt each other so it may be a good idea to have that done so they can't cause harm to u or themselves and make sure u spend equal amounts of time with both so they feel loved

Answer 6

I like to remind owners of cats that in nature our cats like to be loners. They dont hunt together, they dont even raise their young together. There are pure loners, and they need to do so in order to hunt successfully and survive. While growing up, at a certain time, they are programed to hate each other and want to get away from home and their brothers and sisters.

If you have two cats that are great together, dont separated them for a few days. If you board them, board them together, not in separate cages. Otherwise, when they reunite, they may hate each other for reasons stated above... it is instinctive, and it is hard to fool Mother Nature.

If you have cats that get along, it is a blessing. Not all cats are born with the same "dose" of instinctive information that makes them want to be alone.

Answer 7

Get a pet behaviour/ cat psychology book from the library, believe me they exsist and discuss solns to all sorts of issues, it can be as simple as making sure they each have their own areas where they feel secure (different rooms to play in), supervise feeding times so neither feel threatened and separate them for a bit then slowly reintroduce them and monitor their interactions

Answer 8

There are two Bach flower essences indicated here:

1. Larch for Princess to increase her self-confidence
and help her stand up for her rights.

2. Vine for Perry the bully.


Ask another question about Bach essence use for cats or email me at: [e-mail] and I will tell you how to use them.

Answer 9

Mostly all these answers are good. My only other suggestion is to get them to play together (if possible) with you. Entice them with a string or ball. My cats like to play with a fishing pile type toy that has a toy mouse on the end of it. Let one play with it, then let the other. Supervise their time together. Good Luck.

Answer 10

They probably just need time to get familiar with each other's presence.

I had the same experience, but a month or so, my two cats are now bestfriends. Try introducing the two cats to each slowly.

Good luck.