sudden cat fighting

Hey I am new here but have read thru this site many times and found alot of helpful suggestions. Now I am having a problem that I can't seem to find a similar situation.

I have two cats, male and female. I have had them right at a year now. They are only 1 month apart in age. They have both been fixed. They have always gotten along since the day we brough them home together. They groom each other, sleep with each other and love to play. They have 3 litter boxes to use and they will eat from the same double sided bowl for their wet meals and don't mind sharing a dry food dish or water bowl.

Well yesterday my male got outside for alittle bit, little stinker got out by about an inch raise in the garage door. Anyway ever since he came back inside the female has been fighting with him. She will hiss and hold up her front paw and growl at him. Then there is the chase around the house. My male doesn't know what is going on, he keeps looking at me to explain to him.

My male is usually the one to sleep with me at night, on occasions the female has but most often she is on the floor. Well last night she slept with me all night and my male was no where to be found. Then early this morning he comes in there and snuggles with me, all the while trying to make sure that he didn't wake her up, he is really scared of the way that she is acting. But once she did wake up and noticed that he was in there, he went to her to love her she hissed and he ran back to me. She gets down off the bed. My male went to where she was sleeping and laid there and she jump back up on the bed near my head. We all went back to sleep and when I woke back up my male was on a chair in the room and the female was back in her spot on the bed.

It is just really hard for me to see them like that. I can't seem to understand what brought this on. Do you think that I should give the male a bath, maybe he has a smell on him that is upsetting her since he went outside. He has gotten out a few other times before and she didn't act like this though.

Also I should meantion that she isn't a few loving cat. She doesn't like to be held or petted for that long. But she loves to be laying near to wear you are. She just adores my son and he plays with her alot. He has been gone to my Mom's for a week now. But he has been gone for that long before at Spring Break and she didn't act like this. But maybe she is missing him and wanting my attention so fighting with the male. I just don't know...please help is there something that I can do to bring back the harmony in my house again.

thanks christy

You have to get them to smell alike again - put a drop of pure vanilla extract on each of their chins, between their shoulders and at the base of their tails, then they'll be ok again (or should be).

thanks, I tried that but it doesn't seem to be working yet. But on the upside they do smell good!!
christy

My cats have done that when one has had to go to the vet and his smell has changed or become unfamiliar to the others. What has worked for me is to just keep them separated for about 24 hours, with short intervals together. When together, I take a toy to let them all play with it together, keeping their minds off each other and on the toy. I also have taken 2 separate socks and rubbed each of them, especially around the face and placed it with the other, so that the smell can become more familar.

Hope this helps.

cats can be scared if smells they dont know or recognise. your female has never been out so does not know the outside world.

when your male went out he woudl of been experiencing the world for the first time too. rubbing against all sorts of things, picking up weird and wonderfull smells. your female cat will be able to smell these smells on him, and will not know what they are.

smells of other cats, smells of other animals etc.

you need to get a strong smelling cat champoo, one with teatrea or eucalyptas is good. and give the male cat a bath, making sure to really clean the chin and neck areas.

then dry him in a towel that has been slept on by the female of dry with any towel but finish off rubbing the cat dry with somethign smelling of the female.

hopefully this will help. it isnt that he dosnt smell liek her any more.

its all the new smells on him that are scaring her. adding the vanillia is just going to stress her more, becasue not only does she now smell diffrent, but the vanillia is just another smell added to all the other scary smells on the males body.