Are drugs the answer?

Hi everyone,

I'm very new to this site, and I have learned much from all of you so far! I am now hoping that I might find out a little bit from some of you who have used behavior meds.

I have two 8-year-old female littermates that are not getting along. Bela has been diagnosed with "redirected aggression" (I took them to a behavioral vet about 2 months ago). I have been patiently following the re-introducing procedures, and I purchased Feliway too. Unfortunately, once I think that the re-introduction process is working, my little Bela has a "relapse" so-to-speak. My other car, C.C., doesn't seem as stressed as her sister, but she definitely reacts to her aggressive sister.

So, I guess my question is: has anyone else medicated their stressed-out kitties, and does it work? I'm desperately trying to get these sisters back together again. I've had them since they were 6 months old, and it makes me sick to think that I might have to find a new home for one of them. I was hoping to avoid drugs, but as I said before, I'm losing hope that anything else will work.

Thank you!

we had to resocialize molly. there are trials and things we still hav to deal with. I have a couple questions. What caused the relapse and how long ahve you been using the feliway plug in? I'm sure that more people will have more to say, but I thought this ifo was helpful to have. the feliway works better over time, so the longer you have it going, the better. make sure it's in the room the cats interact in, or the one the agressive cat spends the most time in.

Thanks for the question -- I should give the Feliway more time. I've had it for 2 weeks. Per the vet's suggestion, I swap their living area every 24 hours so they don't get territorial. I have the Feliway in the back part of my place, and this is the area that both cats least prefer, mostly because I spend more time in the front area. I think I may buy a second Feliway for the front part of the house.

Also, I really don't have a "neutral" re-introduction area. Would that be a good idea?

Have you ever try to use SpiritEssences for Cats ? Many people are using them for their cats . Here is a link for you to check it out .

http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.ph...g&category=fec

Jem, we have a behaviour expert on TCS and your situation sounds like something he may be able to help with. You might want to PM Jackson (LittleBigCat) and direct him to your post.

Thanks for all of the great suggestions! I will be unable to access the web for a few days, but I will check back in and take on your suggestions.

Just thought I'd check in on this one!
In my work, I've had to deal with a lot of redirected aggression cases. Of course, I prefer a holistic approach, using a combination of behavior modification and natural modalities like my SpiritEssences that were mentioned. That being said, sometimes we have to reach for something else in the toolbox, and medication can be very helpful. My philosophy is that medication such as Elavil, Prozac, Busbar, etc., is available to help the cat who's fight/flight response is on high alert 24/7, and get them back in their skin. Once they can psychologically breathe again, so to speak, we wean them off, because we are at that point more effectively working a behavioral plan of action.
Of course that's not to say that cats can't have chemical imbalances that would require more long term medication, at this point usually Prozac or Paxil. To a certain degree, that's unchartered territory, in that we don't know how these drugs effect cats' livers and kidneys over long periods of time.
The key to drug therapy in behavior mod is the same as in humans- they need to go hand in hand. That seems obvious, but we are in an age of "throw pills at the problem and see if it goes away," so forgive my broken record-ness.
Also, make sure that you're taking the slow but sure reintroduction technique for these two. See my article at our website- it's for initial meets but it will work fine for this purpose: http://www.littlebigcat.com/index.ph...tintroductions
Stay patient, and remember to measure your progress in moments, if that makes sense.
Best to all of you!