cat hates kitten

seaotters

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I have 2 cats and 1 kitten. One cat (Lily) is about 3 yrs old and the other cat (Ozzie) is 1 1/2 yrs old before are females and have been fixed. The kitten (Tini) we got in June and is about 7 to 8 months old. Ever since the first day that I brought Tini home, Ozzie has been hateful towards Tini. Ozzie has always tried to attack or go after Tini. Lily is very easy going, she took her time warming up to the kitten, just as she did when Ozzie arrived, but she plays and has a blast with both of them. Ozzie is fine with Lily, as she seems to think that she is her momma, but with Tini we can not leave them unsupervised as Ozzie always tries to attack Tini. Tini is pretty quick and has always gotten away from Ozzie every time. We tried keeping Tini away and out of sight for the first month or so but then tried bringing her back into the "family life" but Ozzie can not stand Tini at all. We are continually telling Ozzie that she has to be nice to the baby and that they could have lots of fun together but Ozzie acts as though she would rather hurt Tini. Tini has adjusted fine to everything, she has even learned that when in a certain part of the house that if she hears Ozzie coming to get in the dining room window and Ozzie never sees her there. Lily has started chasing and running off Ozzie when she see Ozzie going after Tini, Lily doesn't give up easily, she usually corners Ozzie and sits and stares at her, when this happens Ozzie will cry. But no cat/kitten should have to be afraid in their home life. Does anyone know what may cause this hatred/attacking and what we should try to do to get them to get along. Keep in mind that I treat all my cats extremely well and they are very very very spoiled.....if you ask my kids I treat the cats better than them
Any information or help would be greatly appreciated, as I am getting very sad that Tini has to hide around the house and the bully Ozzie (is living up to her name).
seaotters
 

seppolina

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Cats live in a matriarchal society, so when you have a two females & add a female kitten, there is likely to be squabbleing over the hierarchy. It sounds like Lily, as the established alpha kitty, warmed up quickly to the new baby because she is clearly in charge (evidenced by how she corrects Ozzie for abusing Tini) and is not worried that Tini will take her place. Ozzie, as the #2 kitty in the house, obviously IS threatened by Tini and is worried that the baby will take her #2 place in the household. Unfortunately there's not much you can do; the ladies are going to have to figure this out on their own. You can always try something to calm Ozzie down...some people have luck with Feliway, a cat-phermone spray designed to calm your kitty. It also comes in a plug-in diffuser, which I have heard good things about. My female "bully", Pete Pete, does not respond well to Feliway, but every kitty is different. I've had success with Pete Pete using a Bach flower essence combination called "Peacemaker." You can add it to their water or use it topically; it's very simple & safe to use. And Pete Pete does not abuse her sister and is far more loving towards Mom & Dad, which is a side effect we love
If you're interested, you can find it at www.spiritessence.com. Good luck with your girls!
Amanda
 

ollyextra05

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Originally Posted by Seppolina

Cats live in a matriarchal society, so when you have a two females & add a female kitten, there is likely to be squabbleing over the hierarchy. It sounds like Lily, as the established alpha kitty, warmed up quickly to the new baby because she is clearly in charge (evidenced by how she corrects Ozzie for abusing Tini) and is not worried that Tini will take her place. Ozzie, as the #2 kitty in the house, obviously IS threatened by Tini and is worried that the baby will take her #2 place in the household. Unfortunately there's not much you can do; the ladies are going to have to figure this out on their own. You can always try something to calm Ozzie down...some people have luck with Feliway, a cat-phermone spray designed to calm your kitty. It also comes in a plug-in diffuser, which I have heard good things about. My female "bully", Pete Pete, does not respond well to Feliway, but every kitty is different. I've had success with Pete Pete using a Bach flower essence combination called "Peacemaker." You can add it to their water or use it topically; it's very simple & safe to use. And Pete Pete does not abuse her sister and is far more loving towards Mom & Dad, which is a side effect we love
If you're interested, you can find it at www.spiritessence.com. Good luck with your girls!
Amanda
Wow! What a great, comprehensive response!
The only thing I would add would be to reconsider how you introduced them all, and possibly even re-introduce them after separating them for a few days. There are great articles and a sticky thread on the site about kitty introductions which I found helpful when introducing my two.

Also, everything takes time, and some cats move more slowly than others to accept newcomers. We've had Emma since March and the two of them really only started being super-friendly (cuddling, following each other around) about a month ago.

Also, like people, some cats personalities just never gel. Over time, they will learn to avoid each other and just let the other one be, but might never be best buddies--a possibility though not necessarily what the end result will be.

Take a deep breath, and relax--kits can pick up on your stress, and if they sense their behavior is a "big deal" to you, they'll react differently than they would if you were calm.
 
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