I have a cat conflict?

Question

I recently brought home two kittens that i saved from my friends mother who was going to have them put to sleep. I have two older cats also.

There is a male kitten and a female kitten. Both of the others LOVE the male kitten but the female gets them all riled up.

So one of my older cats particularly hates the female kitten. About a week ago they had a brutal fight (with blood) and i stopped them before they caused serious damage. Now they fight a lot and the older cat has started peeing in the house. I think she is trying to mark her territory but im not sure.

its really gross. does anyone know how i can get them to stop fighting?

Answer 1

I'm afraid the folks are right who suggest that mainly the passage of time will calm them down. Sometimes it takes awhile for everybody to settle down when you inject new cats into the mix. Over the next six months or so, the situation should slowly (but steadily) improve. They'll settle down.

One important thing: make sure you pet everybody, as this helps to dampen the hostilities. And don't yell at them, as this only injects energy into the system and makes them crazier than they are already.

And keep an eye on how they interact: if one cat seems to be an outcast relative to the rest of the group, that one may need extra petting. Check the group dynamics every six months or so -- keep tabs on who's being left out (and therefore needs extra petting).

We learn what others are all about by watching closely how they relate to the least powerful among us. So, congratulations on stepping in and saving the kittens' lives. That reveals you to be an uncommonly kind person -- a person of conscience.

Answer 2

I have a cat and its not easy to get them to stop fighting. My mums friend came over once and brought a cat that she found in a drain. My cat went crazy. Its probably just natural for them to mark there territory. The older cats where brought up together so its easy for them to get along. But when a new kitten/cat is introduced or in your case it is probably not gonna settle down. My verdict get rid of the younger ones even the male(give away both because they were brought up together) and keep the older ones. They deserve the right to stay in your house they were there first.

PS.And yes the older cat is marking its territory.

Hoped i helped!

Answer 3

Did you introduce the kittens to the home gradually or did you just throw them in the room with the older cats and let them sniff each other out?

Your older cat is acting up out of resentment. Peeing over the home is a sign of emotional issues and the obvious marking of territory.

Are you older cats spayed or neutered? If you do this, it will relieve the aggression...as for the fighting behavior, you should consult an animal behaviorist.

Answer 4

First thing the cats will get used to each other. It will take a few months. as far as the peeing, the pet store has a spray to get rid of odor and to help stop the peeing. it takes time for cats to get used to other cats espcially when they didnt grow up together. they same thing happened when I brought a kitten home. My cat was unhappy, although she didnt pee anywhere, but they fought like crazy. They just have to fight to establish whos boss. Dont worry the kittens will be okay. just look after them and keep them away from the other cats and when the older cats see that the kittens are not going anywhere they will lay off. If will take awhile for them to get along, if they get along at all. They might just fight for the rest of their lives. Kind of like brothers and sisters.

Answer 5

We had the same problem when we got our second cat. Our first one would purposely go into a room to beat it up. We mentioned it to the vet who (this is where it sound crazy but seriously) suggested we see a pet psychologist. He came around and told my mum that there are a few things we could do:
1. get rid of one of them (or in your case, the problem kitten)
2. try them on medication - a calming one for the fighter (oddly enough prozac in cat doses...) and a 'courage-giver' type one for the one always getting beaten up.
3. get another cat to dispell the tension.
4. leave them to sort it out

We weren't going to get rid of any.
We left it a month but during a fight my hand got in the way and thus required stiches so that was out.
We tried the medication but it didn't really do that much
Then a new cat came into the neighbourhood and 'adopted us'. It really did dispell the tension because this cat just doesn't care about anything and has the memory of a goldfish (and the attention span to add). It just annoyed both of them so they gave up and all is now happy...

Answer 6

If the two older cats are female then there is your problem. You have a young one taking their turf. They don't mind the male, for that reason, he is the new young stud in the house. The female kitten is seen as competition, but she doesn't stand a chance against the older and bigger adults. As far as stopping the fighting, keep them in opposite ends of the house if possible. I wish you good luck. You might also want to talk to you local vet. Maybe they might have a solution.

Answer 7

I think at this point there might not be a chance to stop them from fighting. Usually if older female cats are not spayed (sp?) then they have a tendency to be more aggressive to other female cats that are new to them. Once they fight though that means there's not much that we (as owners) can do to stop them, and if the aggression doesn't stop between them I don't think it ever will. You cannot force animals to be friends, and yes the peeing every where would be your cat marking her territory. I suggest finding a new kitty or spaying your cat to make her less aggressive.

Answer 8

Make sure u get them all spayed/neutred. And try and spend as much supervised time with them as possible. Sit with them and allow them to smell oneanother and intervene when they begin to fight. Also make sure u give them all equal amounts of attention and dont favour one over the other (jelousy makes u nasty!)
If it is in any way possible keep the cats that fight separate to oneanother when u are not at home- cat fights can be bad and i have seen many serious injuries from that- the kittens are especially vulnerable, you could come home to a dead kitten soon if u dont try and sort this out. As one said- in time things will also hopefully get better. Give them each some catnip to play with, it should make them more loving and distract them from one another!

Answer 9

How you introduce the kitty to your home makes a big difference. You need to keep them seperated and introduce them a little each time. When you put them together put the new kitties in a pet taxi (add some Feliway to the area) and let them get to know each others smell.
Now that they have been allowed to fight it will take even longer for them to get over the trauma. With alot of patience and work it can be accomplished. Give them lots of treats and tell them they are good kitties when they are not hissing at each other.

Answer 10

biting the lower back of the neck is a demonstration of dominance, not kill. Biting the front of the neck, that would desire to be a different tale. Isolate the kitten. positioned it in a room with nutrition/water/muddle/mattress/toys. Apologies to the resident cat regarding the interloper basically showing up, yet clarify the hot kitten needs a house and it can be quite beneficiant of him (?) to teach the hot kitty the ropes and allow him to stay. compliment the resident cat while ever he walks via the room the kitten is in and would not growl and hiss. after a pair of days, get rid of the kitten for a jiffy and allow the resident cat to examine the room - lower back praising for any advantageous or impartial habit the cat shows. If he gets dissatisfied (hissing, spitting, and so on) basically say no in an business enterprise voice and remind him that we attempt to be advantageous to the hot kitten. if he's dissatisfied, it somewhat is going to take longer, extra journeys interior the kittens room, extra compliment and treats, and so on. If he ignores the fragrance of the kitten, then you definately are arranged to reintroduce them in a impartial section removed from muddle containers and nutrition components. compliment the heck out of the resident cat and actually overlook regarding the newcomer. if all is going nicely, return the kitten to it somewhat is room and do it lower back later. enable the visits to be longer and longer till you experience mushy allowing the kitten around the homestead without direct supervision. I additionally distinctly advise the e book Cat vs Cat. It facilitates lots with examining what the cats strikes truthfully mean