On the Subject of Cat Fights...

I have 2 cats, one male, one female, both neutered, both about 7 years old. They are both rescued cats and they have pretty much grown up together.

The problem is this: when they spar, my male cat who is heavier than my female usually goes overboard. He will end up pinning my female cat and biting her until she screams that high pitched scream. He doesn't stop biting her until I break it up. He then chases her all around the apartment. I know cats play like this, but I can't have him hurting her. And I always wonder - what happens when I am not around? Again, they have been together since they were both kittens. They are great companions.

So I guess my question is "Should I continue stepping in like I do now, or are cats just being cats?"

Yes! Do keep stepping in and breaking up the fights. But, keep in mind that this is probably not an attempt to hurt the female...instead, your boy is showing his dominance. You might try to find some other ways to make him the official king of the house so he no longer has to attack the female in order to show her who's on top.

For example, if you have perches of differing heights, this will likely help. This way your male can always take the highest perch to show his dominance. Also, at feeding time, always feed the male first and play up his role as king. Greet him first and play with him first. The main idea is to cut down dominance behavior by helping him prove to the female that he's top kitty!

BTW....if you go to a place where many strays/ferals are living, you will almost always find perches of one sort of another of different heights. It seems that by having these varying height sitting spots, aggression within the colonies is virtually eliminated!

Good luck!

I already feed him things that she won't touch, making it seem like he is getting preferencial treatment. I can try the perches and greeting him first. Most days she greets me at the door and demands attention which drives me crazy. It probably drives him a little nuts, too.

Great idea about the perches, Lotsocats. I am on the verge of building a sort of outdoor system of boxes up high, so the cats can be secure from dog-intrusions when they feel like a snooze. I will rethink my designs. I want to put a system of boards across the branches of the big pine trees and the olive to offer secure and cool perches, and these will naturally be at varying heights.

Thanks for the tip.