My Cats Are Fighting

[SoDesuKa]

I've had Otis, a 4-yr. old male since he was six months old. I just got Gracie, a 3-yr. old female, as an adult a week and a half ago. They have been exchanging hisses since Day One. Gracie is now emerging from the corner of the spare room where she's been lurking.

The cat fights are brief but noisy. Neither animal gets hurt, but I wonder how long this goes on. Gracie still hisses when I approach her, although she maintains a respectful silence when I put food in her bowl. Smart cat, that Gracie.

When can I expect something of a detente between Otis and Gracie? I've heard that some cats keep it up for years. Both animals have been neutered.

[Iris]

1. My cats fight for fun.

But your cat fights sound kind of scary.

[grasswire]

2. feliway

It's a product recommended by veterinarians and animal behaviorists. It comes in a spray or a plug-in like an air freshener. The scent replicates certain calming feline hormones. It will help with territorial issues or peeing issues or fighting issues. You can get it at pet stores or at the vet.

Good luck. I once had a cat who had to be separated from another cat for three long years -- serious fighting. That was a real pain. It resolved spontaneously without any explanation.

[SoDesuKa]

7. Four Week Supply

They're selling Feliway on eBay for $30 for the plug-in dispenser. The refills are about $10-12 apiece and they last four weeks. I didn't price the spray stuff.

Price is less of a concern when cats have been peeing on the sofa. The stuff is said to help calm the animal when being transported in the car. Sounds worth looking into for that reason alone!

[Dangerously Amused]

3. I've introduced many cats to each other. Three months has been about the average

..amount of time it took them to tolerate each other's presence without displays of hostility.

[SoDesuKa]

9. Three Months

Thanks for that information. I'll expect the fights to end some time in the middle of June. The hot weather will knock the starch out of them, too.

Looking forward to peace and serenity in my apartment. I won't miss the growling and the yowling.

[GreenPartyVoter]

4. My old kittehs are littermates and they have their hissyspit fits now and then. Usually because

Pickles gets mad at Pretzel because he:

A) Played too rough
B) Tried to take something of hers (like he got on _her_ shelf)

It'll take some time for your kittehs to tolerate each other or even become friends. I'm a little concerned that Grace hisses at you too, but to me that just says she's got some major anxiety right now. Have you spoken with your vet about this?

[Orsino]

5. By next week, you might be able to sneak up on them...

...and find them cuddled together in the same bed--whereupon they might start a fight to save face. Or it might take many months or years to achieve peace. They have to work out their dominance issues.

If each has a semi-private retreat, so that neither has to look at the other all the time, that might speed the diplomacy.

[SoDesuKa]

6. Aren't Cats Great?

they might start a fight to save face

Yup. That's just what cats would do. They each have a room to retreat to - she has her own bed, bowl, water, litter box, and scratching post, and so does he. Neither of them has to encounter the other, except in the middle space, where the friction occurs.

Actually, they do try to avoid hissy fits. They are both apartment cats, well used to living indoors. They have undemanding lives, spending most of their time sleeping. They make a big deal about their dignity because they can. I think cats are great. I suspect that these two are already sending mind signals to each other about me. At the present time, they're not doing it in front of me.

[Greyskye]

8. kitteh fight!

[applegrove]

10. My big male was hissing at my little twilight when they moved back in together.

Took about a week for them to be back to their old relationship. I don't think cats have a very good episodic memmory. Give it time and they both may soon forget they hate each other. You'll know if they ever start to lick each other that they are truly friends. Mine still fight on occassion. Sometimes it is play; sometimes one of them just has a bee in his/her bonnet and attacks the other one.

I hope it works out well for you. Try putting them on either side of a closed door and get a cat toy that you can shove under the door and move it back and forth. If they are both playing they may just connect.

[Fredda Weinberg]

11. Sounds like love in the making, not war n/t

[drmeow]

12. If you didn't do this, I don't know if it is too late

you really should have introduced a new cat slowly.

Here's some recommendations.

http://cats.about.com/cs/catmanagement101/a/introducecats.htm

[PeaceNikki]

13. This is the right answer.

When not done properly, some cats will develop serious behavioral issues - up to and including irreversable "bathroom" issues.

[Cabcere]

14. *raises voice* Otis! Gracie! Knock it off, you two!

:P Well, it was worth a shot, I suppose. ;)

My family has two cats - Phoenix, the male, is about seven years old, and Isabel is about five (one of my dad's employees found her during the hurricane of the same name, and we took her in because we already had cat stuff for Phoenix). They still get in fights sometimes - like you said, brief but noisy, and neither one of them gets hurt, but it's still kind of annoying. Phoenix almost always initiates the fight, but he'll usually back off if one of the humans yells at him or if the dog starts to come investigate. Otherwise, it just sort of ends on its own, with both of the cats hissing and being kind of wary around each other...for a couple of minutes, and then they're fine. Most of the time they get along pretty well, so unless your two cats are really going at it all the time then I'd imagine they will probably be OK after they get used to each other. :shrug: I'm no vet, so I don't really know the answers, but it sounds like your situation is similar to when we first got Isabel. Hope everything works out with your fur-kids! :hi:

[SoDesuKa]

15. Blessed are the Peacemakers

I got Gracie as a companion for Otis, who used to plop himself down on the desk in front of the monitor and make a nuisance of himself. One time he hit the ESC key with his foot and I lost the paragraph I was inserting. He still hangs out on the desk, but I'm not responsible for his entertainment.

So far, getting a second cat has paid off. Otis now has something to occupy himself when he gets bored. He's more engaged, and when he's not huffing about the indignity of sharing the apartment with a stranger, he seems happier. I got Gracie from a family who took her in when she was pregnant, although they already had a cat and a dog. I think she still is somewhat feral because it's taking her longer than usual to warm up to me. (She was supposed to find me lovable right away!) They kept her for a year and I think they felt overwhelmed with three animals in a small apartment.

I do scold the cats when they fight. They both have this unrepentant look on their faces because the other one started it, y'see. Most of the time they sleep, and they're usually not active at the same time.

[TexasBushwhacker]

16. Try Feliway (Comfort Zone)

It might help them mellow out:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2755197&keepsr=0