My cats, iiko (female) and mizu (male), pretty regularly engage in what I'm pretty sure is "play fighting". It starts out with one of them going up to the other and licking them, and soon it turns into a wrestling match with some neck-biting on both sides.
My concern is that their personalities make their fighting sort of dangerous. Mizu seems to have issues with not knowing when to stop being aggressive. He's bitten and scratch both my boyfriend and I pretty hard when we're playing with him (we are both very gentle with him - he just gets excited easily and starts nipping). He's never broken our skin with biting, though he has given us nasty scratches with his back claws.
Usually, at some point in the fight, iiko will start screaming, separate herself from him, and hiss. However, after that, he'll keep stalking her and attacking her (except when she goes into the kitchen to eat, which encourages me that he is not being malicious).
A little about their backgrounds (they are both from the SPCA):
Mizu (3 years old) was raised from a kitten by a few college-aged girls. At some point in his life, something happened to his tail (it is crooked - the vet thinks he may have gotten it slammed in a door). His owners dumped him at the SPCA after the landlord in their new apartment did not allow cats (how irresponsible of them- it infuriates me!). He was at the SPCA for about 5 months before I picked him up. He is very sweet, but he does get a little violent in play.
Iiko (4 years old) was a stray picked up by the shelter, so I don't know anything about her history except that she was at the SPCA for about 4 months. She is a calico, and she has an extremely sweet personality. She is cuddly and loves to be near people. She is also very vocal and responsive, which I think contributes to her tendency to get vocal during fights. She can be pretty sensitive and timid when she feels threatened (like around dogs at the vet), but she is generally pretty confident and curious.
I got them both in August at the same time, and they live with me in a pretty spacious apartment. I was letting them outside during the warmer months, but it gets very cold here, so they are indoors now until at least April.
They are both about the same size. They often sleep next to each other and eat together.
The main bit of advice I am looking for is whether or not I should take any action here. Even though I consider this playful behavior, I'm very concerned that iiko is getting hurt by either mizu's biting or kicking with his back paws. He can be relentless once they get started, and I worry that she has no way to escape when she needs to.
My concern is that their personalities make their fighting sort of dangerous. Mizu seems to have issues with not knowing when to stop being aggressive. He's bitten and scratch both my boyfriend and I pretty hard when we're playing with him (we are both very gentle with him - he just gets excited easily and starts nipping). He's never broken our skin with biting, though he has given us nasty scratches with his back claws.
Usually, at some point in the fight, iiko will start screaming, separate herself from him, and hiss. However, after that, he'll keep stalking her and attacking her (except when she goes into the kitchen to eat, which encourages me that he is not being malicious).
A little about their backgrounds (they are both from the SPCA):
Mizu (3 years old) was raised from a kitten by a few college-aged girls. At some point in his life, something happened to his tail (it is crooked - the vet thinks he may have gotten it slammed in a door). His owners dumped him at the SPCA after the landlord in their new apartment did not allow cats (how irresponsible of them- it infuriates me!). He was at the SPCA for about 5 months before I picked him up. He is very sweet, but he does get a little violent in play.
Iiko (4 years old) was a stray picked up by the shelter, so I don't know anything about her history except that she was at the SPCA for about 4 months. She is a calico, and she has an extremely sweet personality. She is cuddly and loves to be near people. She is also very vocal and responsive, which I think contributes to her tendency to get vocal during fights. She can be pretty sensitive and timid when she feels threatened (like around dogs at the vet), but she is generally pretty confident and curious.
I got them both in August at the same time, and they live with me in a pretty spacious apartment. I was letting them outside during the warmer months, but it gets very cold here, so they are indoors now until at least April.
They are both about the same size. They often sleep next to each other and eat together.
The main bit of advice I am looking for is whether or not I should take any action here. Even though I consider this playful behavior, I'm very concerned that iiko is getting hurt by either mizu's biting or kicking with his back paws. He can be relentless once they get started, and I worry that she has no way to escape when she needs to.
