Dominance... aggression?

Alrighty.

It wasn't until I was talking to another volunteer about this that it clicked.

I have 5 cats, all male, all neutered.

They used to always get along. BEFORE Cappy came along. The 4 boys would pile on top of each other and groom each other and no one ever fought.

But since Cappy has been about... maybe 7 or 8 months old, I can't remember when it started, he has been really mean with the other cats. I always thought that maybe it was because he didn't have a feline mom to show him not to be too rough.. but he played fine with the cats previously. (Cappy and his 2 litter mates came to me at 12 days old, I hand raised them and found the other 2 homes)

Anyway. Now I'm thinking he is fighting to be the top cat int he household.. that is the only explanation that I can come up with. He will stalk the other cats.. mainly Orion.. who seems to be the lowest on the hierarchy.

But he makes the other cats scream and hiss and fight back to a point. But he never lets up. We have to remove him from the situation he started. Then usually that gets Gordito riled up and he starts picking on the other cats.

I want to try the feliway.. but at like $60 for each diffuser (I'd need at least 3. maybe more), I can't put out that money at this very time. I want it, but it will have to wait a little while.

Is it a dominance thing or is he just being a brat?

Should I be separating them or let them stick it out? I just can't stand listening to poor Orion howl as Cappy, who is smaller than him, pin him to the ground and hurt him.

I'm not sure if it's dominance or what, but you can get the Feliway diffusers on Amazon for only about $21.00 each.

If I am recalling correctly, Feliway costs mega $$$$$ in Canada.

What about Rescue Remedy?

That goes right in their water, correct? Te dogs would be drinking it too, would it have a similar affect on them?
Apollo can sometimes get a little rowdy and chase the cats and snap at them.. wonder if that would calm him down too.

I'll have to see where I can find some of that.

Thanks for the suggestion!

Yeah, I can't order online, otherwise I'm sure I could find the feliway cheaper. In petsmart it's going for around $60 I think.

It can go right into their water, or you can put a certain amount of drops on their tongue, either works. I imagine it would work on Apollo as well...

I would say it is a bit of both, bratty and dominance testing, he is seeing how far he can go with each kitty. You probably will notice that he doesn't push his limits with the dominant cat, who most likely watches him torture and annoy the others almost entertained ! He is most likely looking for the interaction he had with his siblings in the other cats who are not interested. Stalking is a common play behavior mimicking the instinctual hunt, it's Maia favorite game! Peek-a-boo, we play it every day! My suggestion would be try playing with him more, find games that he enjoys, toys he can pounce on and that distract him from focusing on the other cats.