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Pack of Cats

post #1 of 12
3/15/10 at 7:00pm
Thread Starter 
Dose your cats act as a pack?

How many cats total?

Who is the boss?


Total cats, 3, act as a pack, one is in trouble 2 are there to back the other up. Leader, Bubbles.

Examples, All 3 cats laying down stairs, we got our puppy, and all 3 cats ran up stairs to safety (they hate people) anyway, Taffy came down stairs after a while, thinking all was back to normal, but the puppy came bouncing to say, hi, can we play? Taffy ran back up stairs, went in my room, Bubbles came right out and ran downstairs, saw the bouncing puppy and ran right up to him, the puppy was like, yay play, then bubbles swiped him, over and over, now as soon as the puppy sees bubbles he backs off and sits in the corner.

Taffy is happy now if the dog is still. If the dog moves, he dose his hiss and a stay away meow, the next thing I know, the other 2 are infront of taffy and cornering the puppy, allowing taffy to go in and swipe him. although he runs off, the other 2 have allowed taffy to feel safe again.

If I force the puppy to stay still, and not play, taffy will come really close as I am there to protect him, Am i part of the pack?
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post #2 of 12
3/15/10 at 7:56pm
The original three (of five) do, they don't exclude the other two as such, they just don't have the same bond as the ones that have been together for 8+ years, but the leadership role seems to change with mine - I guess I just don't have an alpha.

I dont think they see us as part of the pack completely, they just learn that we will protect them
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post #3 of 12
3/15/10 at 10:53pm
Mine don't. I have between 5 and 7 here (sometimes I have my brother's cats, he has been working out of state). They don't act as a pack.
Sneakers is a senior and she doesn't like anyone else. The other cats (and the dog) all know to stay out of her way because she will hiss and swat them. Then come Church and Roxy who are about the same age (2 1/2) and grew up together. Finally I have the four littermates who are 1 1/2 years old. I raised them from babies and bottlefed them so they think I am their mother cat.

I do not think cats really form a pack per se. They may develop social hierarchies but I don't think it is a case of a linear pack. In fact research has shown that dogs also form a more fluid group dynamic than what was thought in the past, the whole "alpha" thing is not entirely correct.
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post #4 of 12
3/15/10 at 11:05pm
In the closer confines of a home - yeah, they're pretty pack like. Six of my seven are pretty much always together. The seventh isn't too far behind though she keeps herself apart. If something happens to one of them, the others all come running - ready to defend/help/etc. There's no clear dominate/alpha cat.

DH and I are not left alone in this house. Any attempt to close the cats out of the room will be met with meowing and the cats trying to force doors open. If I make any sort of distressed pained noise or start coughing my cats will also quickly come to investigate. They always greet us when we come home and seem generally happy/excited that we've returned. So I'm not sure how we factor into things.
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post #5 of 12
3/16/10 at 1:21am
A pack of cats? It is non existent in my house. They respect the alpha who is pretty contented being by herself. They form a friendship with the ones they grew up with and mostly ignore the rest.
As for the human role, they treat me like their mom/maid/protector.
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post #6 of 12
3/16/10 at 2:25am
na i only have the two, but Sooty knows his place and Flash tells him his place so funny watching her tell him off for doing silly things, but mostly they just act like brother and sister, they play and fight together haha, so no pack with mine either
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post #7 of 12
3/16/10 at 5:57am
Well my 8 seem to have their social groups for sure but no real pack although Imhotep seems to be the alpha. Shadey is constantly challenging him though and THINKS he's the alpha.

Shadey and Elliott are best buds.

Imhotep, Cleo II and Osiris get along very well, but Cleo II and Osiris are siblings and Imhotep is Cleo II's boyfriend.

The 3 youngest, Nova, Azizi and Teyah LOVE each other and enjoy playing and tormenting all the other's. They always act like typical teenagers.
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post #8 of 12
3/16/10 at 6:46am
When Banshee was alive, she was definitely pack leader in the house. She knew how to keep the other cats in their place and, frankly, it didn't bother the other cats. She was the Queen and that was that. It was an accepted thing by everybody, including DH and me.

The other kids knew that I was exclusively Banshee's and that they could interact with me only with her approval. I know how crazy that sounds, but it's the truth. If Banshee didn't want the cats on me, she'd tell them and they'd leave.

We wondered what would happen when Banshee went to the Bridge; we wondered if another cat would try to take over. Nobody has. They all get along very well (well, four out of the five are related and have been together since the very beginning) and there are virtually no arguments. BooBoo is the resident feline male; the other four are females and BooBoo seems to like being the only boy.

I don't know what's going to happen when we bring Mollipop home. She's so very young that I hope they won't see her as a threat to whatever hierarchy is in the house.
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post #9 of 12
3/16/10 at 7:39am
They really used to be when Raven was still alive. He and Nabu had a bond that was something else. Once we stayed at my in-laws for a night before moving. Raven and Nabu came down the stairs side-by-side, one looked left at the bottom, the other looked to the right. When the in-laws' cat would try to get them in trouble, one always backed the other up. When Stimpy came along, they allowed him in (I was so afraid they would gang up and exclude him) but he didn't have that same "back up your buddy" response. I always wondered if it was because Raven & Nabu were littermates. Nabu is still with us, but it's like his twin is gone.

Our current group, Nabu will hang out with both Lola & Nabu. Stimpy is more selective, but he and Lola had a bit of a rough start---Stimpy didn't want a kitten. they are coming around though, I see them laying on the bed & couch near each other (sometimes touching) a lot more.
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post #10 of 12
3/16/10 at 7:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by littleraven7726 View Post
He and Nabu had a bond that was something else. Once we stayed at my in-laws for a night before moving. Raven and Nabu came down the stairs side-by-side, one looked left at the bottom, the other looked to the right.
Male lions will bond that way - especially brothers. Maybe the better term here would be pride-like?
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post #11 of 12
3/16/10 at 8:22am
Fatman is the sissy of the house content to be left alone but constantly tormented by the other two. GiGi and Herc are coherts and constantly attack everyone play chase and are a general nuisance. But those two are so cute together boyfriend and girlfriend sleeping together, giving each other kisses and ganging up on Fatman and Franklin together!
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post #12 of 12
3/16/10 at 5:10pm
When Speedboat was alive, he was the man. The other two cats knew it.
Now Muffin, a 10 year old male and Mattie, a 6 yr. old female are trying to figure out who is in charge. So yes, they are swatting each other and each one is trying to be the leader.
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