Nightmare after cat grooming

I just need to vent. I have 2 Siberian cats from same litter, male and female. They just turned 5. I brush them regularly but they will still develop some matting especially in the rear by the tail and their bellies where it is hard to brush. We had previously taken them to a groomer for a "sanitary and belly shave" and it worked out fine having taken them both at the same time. So as the hot weather approaches we decided to do it again hoping we were helping them out.

We had to use a new groomer who was recommended by the old one. Well after careful instruction about what we wanted we were shocked when we picked them up. She had mistakenly give both of them a full "lion cut"! They both have always had beautiful bushy tails and now they were completely shaved including their tails except for a ball of fur on the end. I was livid! I had specifically told her not to cut the tail fur and only do the belly and butt area.

But what was done is done. Now I get them home and unlike before when they were fine they now are very skittish and unhappy. They keep trying to smell each other and cannot seem to figure out who each other is. That turns to hissing and some slight aggression. We keep an eye on them and hope a little time will solve this. Last night, about 24 hours later, the female looks down from the cat tree at her brother and just like that decides to attack him.

They often chase each other while playing so at first I think this may be ok. But I hear screams and rush to see what happened. She had chased him under the bed and was attacking him with all the ruckus and horrible noises that accompany it. We separated them and put her in another room to cool off. But now as soon as we let them both out in the house she immediately attacks him again! I am talking full speed viscous attack with all the snarling etc. The male runs for his life and flies under the bed at full speed knocking over anything in the way. I am so afraid he will get hurt.

The last attack left my wife screaming like she was witnessing a murder and we decided to keep them separate. Problem is that with our open floor plan home the only place to get isolation is in a 10 x 10 bedroom. So one cat has the whole house while one is stuck in a small room. The female is pacing and stalking the house, constantly looking in the direction of where he is and now after a long period of quiet from the male, he now cries to be let out of the room.

So now I cannot sleep because of worry and the stress of knowing I have to leave them separated all day while we both work. And I feel so guilty about traumatizing them. If I could only turn back the clock and never had taken them for grooming! I feel sick inside. I am already considering finding a new home for the female which would break my heart. Their fur will probably take 6 months to regrow. I hate how they look and I think they do too. They are both very mushy with my wife and I but can no longer be in the same room with each other.

My nerves are shot and I am at my wits end as what to do. I have read that long term bonds between cats can be broken forever over something like this. Thanks for letting me vent.

I'm so sorry you've been placed in this position. The groomer should have listened to what you wanted - its hardly rocket science! I'd be livid too in your position.

Don't give up on the cats just yet. You're dealing with redirected agression. This can be worked through - you just have to go back to square one and introduce the cats as though they've never met before. Feliway diffusers would be a great idea if you're not using them already. Composure liquid or treats may well help too. I'd also suggest you look into Jackson Galaxy's Spirit Essences range - I've had great success using flower essences with animals in the past, as have many other members here.

Yes, the two cats need to be separated right now, but that doesn't mean they can't each have freedom to roam the house - you just need to use site swapping. This is where the cats take turns to be in various parts of the house. Just make sure they don't accidentally meet at change overs.

Interactive play (with each cat on thrir own) is vital at the moment too. It drains their energy in a positive way, and also helps build confidence - particularly important for your boy, by the sound of things. Recreating the hunt-kill-eat cycle will make the play even more satisfying for both cats.

I hesitate to suggest this (I'm a very non confrontational person), but I would consider going back to the groomer to complain. Yes, what's done is done, but you deserve an apology at the very least. In my eyes, it was negligence, plain and simple. She didn't listen to your (perfectly reasonable) request. That's inexcusable.

These articles may help (I know there are a lot, but it really is worth looking at them all):-
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/re-directed-aggression-in-cats
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/breaking-up-cat-fights
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/six-surefire-strategies-to-reduce-stress-in-cats
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/you-your-cat-and-stress
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/the-ultimate-yet-simplified-guide-to-introducing-cats
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/introducing-cats-to-cats
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/the-multi-cat-household
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/playing-with-your-cat-ten-things-every-cat-owner-needs-to-know
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/cat-play-the-rules-of-the-game

I have 2 Persians who also have the beautiful, bushy tail. What the groomer did to their tails is exactly the part of the lion cut that i don't like. I would be beyond livid if it were me and would demand a refund as the groomer clearly ignored your wishes. Rescue Remedy is an option also. Amazon sells it. I'm sorry to hear about this. I guess in a strange way I am lucky that the diva sisters are so bad at the groomer's that they got 86'ed. 

Well after a few hours of fitful sleep I now have to try to deal with this situation. We borrowed a large cage from a friend and put the male inside with all his needs and put the cage in the main area of house. At least he is not locked in a room by himself. Both cats hissed at each other but we expected that. No attempts to attack through the cage. Spoke to our vet who suggested that the aggressee be put in the cage for now. We will attempt to allow him equal access to all areas of the house at different times so no one feels punished more than the other. It is just so heartbreaking that we have to deal with this. The female slept with me for 3 hours this morning. This is unusual behavior for her. She is the independent on and both are more attached to my wife than me (figures). So I know they are both way out of sorts. The smaller female is also the more aggressive one overall but in the past he would dominate her more often during play due to his size. But for 5 years they never ever hurt each other. This peaceful house is a war zone right now and I have no idea how they will act when we try to let them be together outside the cage. I will update when possible but I still welcome comments and suggestions. It definitely helps to know we are not alone.

It has been widely reported when cats go to a vet or a groomer they lose the scent of the household and pick up the scents from the vet so the cats don't recognize each other.  Weird.  Start scent swapping.  In a few days I'm guessing your household will return to normal.

I am a groomer and can't understand why you got lion clips when you asked for sanitary clips.  It must be a novice groomer that didn't understand the term "sanitary."  I don't know.  Lion clips are a lot more work...did he/she charge you more?  Also, in order to execute a lion clip the cats have to be bathed which is why they lost all of their scent.  Were the cats matted any other places than their behinds and bellies?  If a cat is matted sometimes we have no other choice than to shave them and start over.  Cats have very sensitive skin so dematting is difficult to do without hurting the cat.

The groomer was an older woman who came highly recommended. As mad as I am I do realize it was an honest mistake. Its just hard to feel forgiving right now with all that we now have to deal with. The cats were slightly matted in the area of their butts and bellies and they did not like when we tried to brush them and snip the mats in those areas. We had good luck with the sanitary cut last year but unfortunately that groomer retired. We paid 60.00 per cat and I just paid and left, I was too mad to even think straight. Our vet also suggested the Feliway so I got a diffuser and spray last night. We are alternating having 1 cat sleep with us at night in the master bedroom and the other one gets the rest of the house. We have the big cage in the living area of the house but both of them hate it. They have been nose to nose while one is in the cage without hissing today but we have not as of yet put them together outside the cage. We are still traumatized from the violent chase that happened two days ago. We will try later but I am dreading it. I will update after we try it. Thanks all who responded.

Imo, it doesn't matter how experienced the groomer is, or how highly she was recommended. You are the client. You asked for one type of clip, and she did a completely different one. You deserve an apology at the very least. If you'd gone to a hairdresser asking for a trim and had come out with a crew cut you'd (I assume) be furious, and the knowledge that the hairdresser was very skilled wouldn't make you feel any better! That's the point.

Good luck with reintroductions later. I hope it goes well. No hissing is a good sign.

Oh wow.  I am so sorry that this happened to you and the cats!  This would have been bad enough if all you had to do was sit back and stew about the look until the fur grew back.  The aggression problems make this an absolute nightmare!  What a ridiculous and unnecessary situation.

Good luck with working this out and reclaiming your peaceful home!

If its any consolation, they do look cute after grown out a bit.  I hope the situation is remedied very soon.  I would definitely give the groomer a call and ask her why she did what she did.  She needs to know that she misinterpreted your instructions.

Update, The cats are sloooooowly getting closer to each other. So far on day 4 there has been no hissing. They have been nose to nose a few times and they smell and then back off. We have had them both free in the house most of the day today. If we cannot observe them we separate them. If one goes into the master bedroom one of us will walk in and close the door without making a fuss and then we can do whatever we need to and not worry about what they are doing. We make sure they both always have access to food, water and litter. Tomorrow we are both off of work and can spend the whole day with them. The problem will be on Tuesday when we both go back to work. Not sure what we are going to do yet but we are thinking of alternately putting one in a room until we get home. It's hard to trust them right now since the attack came out of nowhere. I am so afraid of either getting hurt. It does seem like they want to get back to normal but they keep watching each other and its hard to tell their intent. But like I said, so far so good. It is interesting how the female especially is so much more loving and mushy towards both me and my wife. She has been sleeping with me for hours which is not her normal routine. She is usually way more independent. She is the one who did the attacking so I am not sure if that means anything. I also do not know if the male remembers the attack or even thinks about it in that way. Maybe he doesn't trust her or isn't ready to forgive her. Not sure if cats even think like that. We are both so exhausted by this and are hoping for a break through. We are using Feliway diffuser and spray and doing tons of scent swapping. Both cats have shown no aggression at all to my wife and I. In fact they couldn't be more loving to us which make the scent swapping easy and frequent. We are updating our vet frequently so we are well guided. I initially thought we were dealing with redirected aggression but I think its is actually non-recognition aggression. Not sure if that make difference. I may be reading too much on the Internet because I have read where cats sometimes never get over this but our vet feels that is rare. She claims she has seen a lot of this and it always turns out ok in her experience. She said that she has never seen this type of situation end with a cat being fatally injured. I hope we can get some rest because we are both shot physically and emotionally right now. Wish us luck. I will update again.

I suggest complaining to the shop, I worked at a grooming shop and for both of your cats to have the wrong cut done there is a major communication breakdown. Did you speak with the groomer or with a receptionist that puts in the grooming order. I can understand one cat mistakenly being cut wrong but for both of them to be done that way either 1.) the person wasn't listening to what you wanted and just did what the common cut is for fluffy cats, 2.) the wrong cut was put down or 3.) they mistook your cat for another (which of one cat I've seen happen but 2 that's crazy). Also did the groomer knew it was wrong or did you have to tell her it was wrong? I'm not sure the shop you went to but I know the one I worked at was mostly pointed towards dogs and the groomers were "dog groomers" who would do cats when they had to and because of that I saw so many cats just quickly done and not done that great so I would go and finish the job myself. I was just a bather but I cut some of my cats hair so I knew what I was doing. Used to always do a hair cut during hotter months for my mom blue diamond Siamese before she passed away. I'm so sorry they got the lion cut I can't stand that cut on a cat and no offense to people that like it, it has just always looked funny to me haha I'd rather have them shaved. But regardless I would make sure the owner of the shop or manager at least knows of the issue just so they can figure out why it happened so that it doesn't happen again to anyone else. Did the shop off any type of discount or reimbursement because of what your having to go through now?

I think you're making real progress with them :nod: No hissing this soon after the attack is great, and bodes very well for the future. It sounds as though your boy's confidence hasn't been shaken too much by the attack too - if he'd been really traumatised by his sister's actions he'd be slinking around acting like 'prey'. This, for sure, would have precipitated further incidents.

It sounds like they'll be able to reintegrate and, in time, they'll be as close as ever. Your vet sounds great. You're lucky to have someone who knows your two who is also experienced with this type of situation to guide you.

By sniffing and then retreating, your cats are both agreeing to respect the other's space. I sometimes describe it as 'if you ignore me I'll ignore you'. That is huge, considering that you're only 3 days from the incident. Go cautiously, but I suspect it won't be long before you can just let them both have the run of the house. You've done fantastically, and so have they.

The only thing I'd say is that it sounds like you free feed. Giving timed meals can really speed up introductions /reintroductions (as well as being much healthier for them - cats aren't designed to graze, rather to hunt and eat several times a day). If they only get food when they're near each other it creates a strong positive association, making them accept each other much more readily. If you're dead set on free feeding, then you can give treats or a wet food meal once or twice a day to create a similar effect. It works so much better without free feeding though - that way, the only time the cats get to eat is when they're together, and that's a stronger message.

If you want to consider moving away from free feeding (and maybe even kibble), then these articles are useful
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transitioning-free-fed-kibble-kitties-to-timed-meals
http://www.thecatsite.com/a/transit...-to-a-new-type-of-food-canned-raw-or-homemade

Update. We had a good day on Monday. Cats would sniff noses and back off but no hissing. Throughout day they kept getting closer and for longer periods. Continued scent swapping and praising the good behavior. By evening thing seemed to be going so well that my wife and I agreed to try keeping both cats free in the house overnight to see what happens. Once we got in bed, within a half hour both cats were on the bed with us and slept in our king size bed with us all night although on opposite sides. Once, the male went over to her and she held up her paw and he went back to where he was. But no hissing. Luckily their claws are trimmed really short right now. This morning they seemed ok and even played together a bit. Even a little bit of chase play. They normally do that and its actually funny to watch one chasing the other in one direction and then coming back with the other chasing. Hopefully we are not too long from seeing that again. They even ate off of the same plate at the same time for a minute. We felt good enough to leave them both free in the house for the day while we worked. We were originally going to leave one locked in the master bedroom until we got home but we decided locking one up again at this point might be going backward so we chanced it. When I got home tonight both were sleeping in different areas of the house (which is not abnormal) and neither appeared to be stressed or have any injury. I hope this holds and only gets better from this point. So what has worked so far was patience, keeping ourselves calm, scent swapping and slow re-introduction and observation. Also maybe the Feliway helped. I appreciate all the advice I got here and also the moral support. I NEEDED IT. Thanks again to all who responded. I will update again in a few days or sooner if anything goes in a bad direction.

Oh...good news.  Glad to hear you are getting back to normal.

I'm so pleased they're settling down so quickly. Hopefully they'll be 100 % back to normal soon

Yay!  This is wonderful!

I'm sure that very soon it will be like this never happened....one all the fur grows back that is, lol!

So happy things are going good it's horrible when things aren't good between two kitties. After my male got lost for two weeks and we found him knocking on deaths door it took a min for his "wife" our female to get along with him. He was so skinny when we found him he looked nothing like himself and I'm sure he smelled diff to her, so she would just hiss and attack but after a while they got along again. Let us know more updates maybe a pic? I'm sure we'd love to see them getting along