My tortoiseshell cat constantly hisses, growls and literally will attact my Dad. She seems to not like men whatsoever. She is fine with me although at times she does bite me but it's more play biting. She doesn't let me pet her for more than a minute before she starts biting. The odd thing is she gives me kisses on demand. Everytime my father walks into my room she goes into attack mode towards him - same if she goes near him. Sometimes she bites him so hard he bleeds. I don't know why she has this extra aggression towards men or an aggression in general. Does anyone have any suggestions on why this might be or a way to calm her down? Do you think the Feliway Difusser will work?
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My cat can be nasty...
- Thread starter jackiet387
- Start Date
I would try the Feliway plug in. It won't hurt any. Also is she spayed? That can make a world of difference in attitude. We had a torti cat who was just like that. She could be the meanest little cat. We didn't have her spayed until she was over a year and when we did, the vet discovered that she had cysts on her ovaries. It was most likely causing her pain and so that was why she was so mean. As soon as she recovered she became the sweetest cat ever. So even if yours was spayed, there could be a medical problem making her in a bad mood all the time because she may be in pain.
Did you get her as a kitten or adult cat? Some cats that have been abused by a certain sex will react that way.
I'd just confine her when your dad's around. It would be safer for both of you.
I'd just confine her when your dad's around. It would be safer for both of you.
"My feelings are Hurt" - talks about a similar situation. Some of those replies might help you, too.
My sister had a tortoiseshell cat that had a reputation for being a mean, nasty cat. That was because it never let anyone but my sister touch her and would hiss at any company.
But... the cat loved me sister and my sister loved that cat. She died a few years ago of renal failure.
But... the cat loved me sister and my sister loved that cat. She died a few years ago of renal failure.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #6
She is spayed and I've had her since she was about 8 weeks old. I got her spayed as soon as she met the requirements. She is almost 3 years old and she has been acting like this for probably 2 of those 3 years. When she was a kitten she would constantly bite me, I thought it was from her teething and after her teeth grew in she still continued to do that. When she went for her checkup at the vet last month I asked if there is a reason why she might be like this. She said its just the attitude of torties and they are very temperamental.
Hey, Jackie - I wouldn't let that "explanation" stand - really - maybe another vet's opinion or? .... I have a Tortie - first time mama to a female, and really first time for a Tortie (Dah!)
Gloria
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #8
See I am not quite sure if there is anything wrong with her for the mere fact that with me she doesn't behavior bad like she does with everyone else in my family. Last month I went on vacation and she stayed at a Kennel for a week and a half. When I went to pick her up they referred to her as the mean cat because she kept hissing and growling at everyone there and they actually sent me to take her out of her cage because no one wanted to. She was such a sweet heart to me she let me pet her for what seemed like forever and all she wanted to do when she got home was be with me. Even my dad went to pet her and she had nothing to say to him. She let him pet her till he got bored of it. This lasted for alittle more than a week and unfortunely she is back to her mean self. Maybe it's just her personality but I am definately going to consider another vet visit.
Well, that behavior sure is curious!
Mayber her "hissing" means something different than what we're all led to understand as defensive behavior.?
My Phoebe isn't usually "verbal", but when she's wrestling around with Simon or KiKi, she makes so much noise - hissing, growling, yelling I think she's in trouble.
One afternoon she & KiKi were wrestling around. I began paying more attention to them because she was making so much noise.
KiKi is so much bigger than she is. I think he had her "pinned". She was hissing, growling, yelling so much I pulled him off her, picked her up and started carrying her to the cat tree. BUT, that's when she meowed at me, I didn't let her down, just tried to console her as I was taking her to "safety" - then she took a swipe at me!
You see, (because of the "slap") I now think I was mis-reading her yelling, hissing, growling as being in "stress" when maybe these "verbals" were just part of her play?.
I still pay attention when they "get into it", but basically, she's on her own now, yelling, hissing and growling all the time. Her other actions at other times looks like she loves KiKi, - they spend a lot of time together in fact. (All three are very loving to each other) She picks on KiKi, he picks on her, I'm just not as concerned as much now.
I've come to believe that this is just part of her personality - like some little girls run around screaming at a high pitch - they're okay - they're just having fun.
I've got to get to bed, I'm brain dead right now, but hope what I've offered makes sense
Gloria
since tortioseshell is just a color pattern, i dont see how that could affect a cats personality?
