New cat is a bully! And other problems...Please help!

I'm having some BIG behavioural problems with my cats. This will be a long message (my apologies). My husband and I adopted Allie while we were working in South Korea in 2014 and brought her back to Australia with us. She is almost 2 years old now, and at the time we found her she was a street kitten so is now quite stunted (only weighing about 2kgs) and only has one eye. Previous to bringing her back to Australia she was amazing around strangers, but since we've returned she hates everyone who isn't us. I think she's traumatized from the trip (the Korean vets put her in a regular sized crate instead of a travel crate for the 30 hour trip, which we weren't aware was not standard, and she arrived home a month before us and stayed with my parents - she had never been without us before) but we really don't know how to fix this. As we are expecting a baby, we wanted to get another cat to keep Allie company and to help with the transition of not getting as much attention from us (as she can be quite needy at times). We adopted Saff, who is 3 or 4 years old, from one of my husband's work colleagues after being told she was great around people and children and he no longer had room for her. And she is positively sweet! But she's terrible to Allie. Allie took to Saff well, and I believe if it had been up to her they would already be friends, but Saff won't have anything to do with her. We tried introducing them slowly, through scent and positive association (such as feeding times/treats/play) but whenever Allie got close Saff would attack her. Initially Saff was quite afraid of the new space and it was difficult to coax her out from under our bed. Now she is overly confident and attacks Allie when she is completely unprovoked and chases her. Allie often doesn't even know Saff is watching her because she's only got one eye, so she now lives in fear and basically either commando crawls around the house or hangs out on top of the TV unit (or hangs out near her litter tray ) while Saff dominates the floor space. Allie has such a big personality and she's completely withdrawn into herself now, which makes us sad. In addition, she attacks me all the time now, which I think is because she's frustrated and redirecting her aggression towards an 'easier target' - in other words, my feet. The funny thing is, she doesn't attack my husband - he really has to be stirring her up or rough-housing with her in order for that to happen, which I strongly object to since I feel it teaches her that biting is okay, and I'm always the one to cop the brunt of that behaviour. We really like Saff and don't want to get rid of her, but she has become a terrible bully towards Allie, and we don't like the behaviour we're seeing in either of them. I could go on for hours - there is so much more to say - but essentially, we are completely lost. I do not know what to do (and I say 'I' because although my husband lives in the same house, he just hopes 'they'll work it out'. I disagree). Please help! 

How long have you had Saff? She may just need some more time to adjust to Allie. All cats adjust at different rates.

A couple things you can do that may help - try to make Allie a safe spot somewhere in the house, preferrably somewhere that you and your husband go often but that Saff isn't allowed into. Let her go there if things become too much so she can relax and feel more comfortable. I've never had to create one of these for an issue between 2 cats (though my cat Maya has a permanent safe spot away from the dog that she has access to at all times) so I'm not sure of the best way to manage to let Allie in and keep Saff out but hopefully somebody will chime in who has an idea or you can find something.

Also make sure you're giving both of them individual playtimes and attention times. Getting them together is important as well but reserving some time for just one of them will help bonding all around. It will help Allie become comfortable in her home again and be more confident, help Saff bond to you, and help both of them learn that they have one-on-one access to you, which may help Saff's aggression problem.

Is there any pattern to Saff's attacks? Do they seem to be mostly centered around mealtimes or playtimes or when you come home or anything like that? That could give a big clue as to why she's attacking and therefore how to fix it. I would also talk to her former owner about her background and if she's ever lived with other cats before (if not she may be unsocialized to them and unaware of how to act towards them) or had any issues with them.

We've had her for about a month now LykaKitty, and as far as I know she did not live with any other cats prior to being with us. I can understand how she would be finding it difficult to adjust, but actually Allie has never lived with another cat either - she's just naturally fearless I guess (or, she WAS before Saff started beating her up). It is true I may just have to give her more time...but with a baby on the way I hope it doesn't take too long!

Allie does have her own spaces at the moment, although they've obviously diminished from having the run of the house. She climbs her cat tree up to the top of the tv unit where I've made a little bed for her in a wicker basket. She also sleeps on top of the washing machine in the bathroom, and at nighttime she is allowed in the bedroom with us but Saff stays out. This is really the only true reprieve she has I suppose.

Thanks for your ideas on the play time though...I had been playing with both of them and giving them treats when they were doing 'okay' with each other because I felt bad about leaving one of them out all the time. But you make a good point about bonding with them individually as opposed to together. Especially with Allie, whose confidence has plummeted. I think I will try to implement some special time each day with just Allie (Saff usually gets more than enough one-on-one time with me because she 'owns' the space in the house now and always comes over for cuddles). I'll see how I go with this. Thanks!

And anyone else who has any tips for these two little monsters, they are most welcome lol.

I think you may have rushed their introduction slightly. I would start over, so both cats have the confidence they need in their shared space. Each cat gets a safe room and they aren't allowed to see each other at all until they have calmed down. One is allowed out while the other is in the safe room. They should be fed on opposite sides of a door and you move the dishes slowly closer on either side. Then you repeat with a covered gate or screen, then an uncovered gate or screen.

Jackson Galaxy explains this very well in his videos. The idea is that you go completely at their pace and don't move on to the next step until both are 100% comfortable.

Good luck! I think they'll be fine.

talkingpeanut I agree with you on that. I do feel that their introduction was a little more rushed than I would've liked. The problem we are having at the moment is that my sister currently lives with us in the spare room and definitely does not want a cat in her room. That leaves the bathroom, which is way too hot (I live in Cairns and the summers here are killers), or our bedroom. We had Saff living in our bedroom initially, but my husband got sick of having the cat litter in there with us, understandably, and she was sent to live out with Allie. And they have just never worked it out.

I'm a big fan of Jackson Galaxy and watched heaps of his videos prior to getting Saff in preparation for her. I even got a baby gate and we did the whole 'put a towel over the gate while they're eating' thing. I think they were making some progress until Saff got sent out to live in the rest of the house. Now Allie is afraid of her and squeals at her when she comes near any of her 'spaces'. I totally agree we need to start again though. My sister is (HOPEFULLY) moving out very soon and we will have a proper room to keep Saff in for a while.

Thanks for your help!

It sounds like you have a good handle on the situation and just need a little more space to adjust. Maybe your husband can deal with the cat litter until your sister moves out?

Let us know how it goes!