What is the best way to get cats to be friendly to each other?

Question

Four months ago I adopted a male oriental flamepoint kitten from the animal shelter, he is 7 months old now. I have a female 5 year old cat that I adopted 3 years ago as a stray. She is extremely sweet. My 7 mo old kitten attacks my 5 yr old cat all the time and bites and scratches her. I'm afraid what would happen if I didn't intervene. So I keep them separate if I'm not home. Someone said I'm going to have to let them "fight" it out to see who ends up the dominant one, but I'm afraid one will get injured. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

Well, let me start by saying to you what my vet said to me when I brought a new kitten into my home where I had an older cat already in residence. Cats are not herd animals and they don't necessarily like to have other cats around. They can be very independent and many don't want another cat coming into their territory.
If this is the case, there is nothing you can do but love each cat individually and let them work out their living arrangments.
However, from what you are saying I don't think you really have as much of a problem as you think you do. What you are seeing when the cats are biting and scratching at each other is that they are actually playing together. It may not look like fun to you, but that's how cats play. They love to bite each other. My two cats really love each other but at times you would think it was World War 3 over here. one will pounce on the other,take a huge bite and run away and hide. Meanwhile the other will then go on a search and try and attack with as much force as possible, thus forming a kitty ball of a great amount of fur (2 long hair cats) and they will bite and scream for a short while, they get up,lick themselves and go theier own ways as if nothing happened, or lie down next to each other and purr. your cats sound like they are actually fine. You should stay out of it and let them find their own way to forming a friendship and don't think you need to seperate them as long as you don't see one really trying to KILL the other, and you would know that one quickly.

Answer 2

Well, I've heard this from many people: introduce the cats to eachother. First thing they're might be is a little hissing and growling-- which is normal. Then, you seperate the cats into two different rooms. Each day you let the cats meet eachother and then put them back into their rooms. This will work for a couple of days until the dominate cat realizes the new cat is staying. Just try keeping an out for fights with the dominate cat-- after all he was in your house first. Pay attention to both cats equally, and possibly more to the dominate cat as he might feel a bit let down, and jealous. Good-luck!

Answer 3

Let them fight it out. If you notice that things are getting a little too rough spray a little water (from squirt bottle - you can find one in the cosmetics section of Target, Walmart, or Kmart).

Keping them separate while you aren't at home is a good...for awhile anyway. If you can, experiment a little bit. Try leaving them alone together while you cut grass, go to the mailbox, or even to the grocery store. If you go to a place of worship allowing the two to be around each other then might be good for them as well. Eventually, you should be able to let the two roam around all the time while you aren't at home.

My parents took in a kitten last May and she immediately took upon herself to mess with Spiffy, the other cat. Spiffy is 12 (now) and treated Itty-Bitty very well. He played wih her and taught her some stuff. Now that Itty-Bitty is bigger Spiffy is a little more rough with her but still gets along with her.

My cat, Princess, has a case of 'the only cat syndrome.' She doesn't like sharing her humans with others (whether it's a person or another furry animal). Spiffy and Princess are both used to being the alpha cat and didn't get along when they first met. In fact, Spiffy wanted to be friends. Eventually, the two got to where they could tolerate each other and spent time in other parts of the house. When there paths did cross there was always a wide girth. The last time the two were around each other they got along a lot better. Of course, the new kitten may have been a reason for that. Itty-Bitty wanted to play with both cats but only got a playful response from Spiffy.

Some cats get along with each other the instant they meet, some may weeks to months before getting along, and some may never get along. I wouldn't worry about it too much unless they start harming each other (pulling out other's fur, etc.) or themselves (not eating, always hiding, biting out fur, etc.).

Answer 4

i feel your pain.

i have 3 cats. two of them are fine together, but one is locked in my bedroom most of the time, because one of the other two cats, taco, likes to fight him. she mauls him. she attacks me when i try to break them up. so im in the process of declawing the aggressive cat. that way, they can fight, but the more dominant cat wont be able to harm the other one very badly.

declawing isnt inhumane, unless youre doing because you dont like the cat scratching the couch lol. declawing is saving my cats life.

but good luck -- maybe you can buy some cat claw covers from petsmart or petco and put them on the fighter cat. then he wont be able to harm the other kitty! good luck :)

Answer 5

one this is, there bonding to each other. two, ur male is frisky. he might not know exactly what hes doing, but hes doing it. even. if u get him fixed hes still will do the male thing, its natural. but ur 5 yr. will eventually get him back if hes gone to far don't worry. cats seem sweet, but they can fight back right? its okay to stop them once and a while, but u have to let them deal with it 2

Answer 6

it would look to me there is the possibility the boy cat is after the lady cat, yet i've got lived in situations with the two woman and male sibling cats and non-sibling cats the place there often isn't a undertaking interior the domicile. the female cats i've got lived with have all been spayed, however. one among them will possibly no longer experience properly, or perhaps they're merely style of irking one yet another proper now. perhaps provide them the possibility to be off someplace with the help of themselves for a on a similar time as and enable them to consume one after the different; and that they could cool down. in view that they have been ok interior the previous it is not as though they could desire to get to renowned one yet another. They extra could desire to renowned the different could desire to no longer be bothering them for now. i've got had cats that get alongside so properly its surprising. Non-kinfolk participants will lsit collectively and snuggle. A male cat might back up from the foodstuff to enable the lady consume, etc. on the comparable time, i've got these days had 2 woman cats. One did no longer do something, on a similar time as the different might on occasion desire to bypass look at the pinnacle or tail of the "passive" one, and then there may be a speedy hissing/hitting subject for a minute. i'm guessing with the boy and female this could no longer be a one-time factor, even if it may additionally no longer replace right into a everyday and non-give up factor the two. merely separate them. Any time animals are frazzled with the help of something or somebody they experience extra suited in the event that they are able to bypass off and be by myself for a on a similar time as. the different factor is that in case you calmy tell them no and do what it takes to chop up them (devoid of, of direction, harming the two of them) the aggressive you will learn to no longer do this, and the least aggressive one will learn which you will take care of it. My female cat (who merely died) might wait until eventually I stood on the sting of the "course" she had to stroll from the door to the kitchen because of the fact she knew that meant the extra youthful cat would not harrass her as she walked with the help of (and had to prepare her back on the extra youthful cat).

Answer 7

Get the male cat neutered asap.If he's already neutered, change his food and spend time with both cats to socialize him.

Otherwise, you may have to put him up for adoption. Your existing cat shouldn't have to fight to survive, and cat fights can go on for years with no apparent victor.