I have two indoor cats, a 12-year-old female named Willow and Gizmo, a 7-year old male. Both are neutered and have lived together peacefully for about six years. Gizmo sometimes jumps on Willow and they occasionally have minor face-offs where one takes a halfhearted swipe at the other, but overall things have been great. They usually play, use the same litter box and even groom one another. I had multiple boxes for awhile, but they always used the same one anyway so I opted for one big box for ease of cleaning.
Last night I went out for a few hours and came back to what looked like WWIII in the living room. Things were knocked over, there was poop on the furniture, and Gizmo was hiding behind the couch. I managed to coax him out enough to see he wasn't seriously hurt, but as soon as he spotted Willow from across the room (who was not behaving aggressively) he screeched loud enough to wake the dead and shot back behind the couch. I thought he just needed time to cool off, so I cleaned up the mess and left him alone overnight.
Got up in the afternoon, and he's still hiding behind the couch. I coaxed him out again, picked him up and as soon as he saw Willow it was back to screeching and hissing. Then SHE started screeching and hissing. I didn't get clawed or bitten, but Gizmo did pee down the side of my shirt, which was lovely. I tossed him in the laundry where the litterbox is located, gave him some food and water and closed the door. That's where we are now. I've set up another box in a spare bathroom for Willow to use.
They were fine yesterday, but now they can't stand the sight of one another. They've had the occasional minor spat in the past but this is the first time anything like this has happened. I live in an apartment and the only changes I can think of is a pair of swallows have started hanging around my front door. They built a nest in the corner last year and made a huge mess, so I'm going to ask the apartment manager to put up bird spikes on the light fixtures where they perch. Gizmo saw them a few days ago and now tries to make a break for the door to get the birds every time I open it.
How can I get back to a harmonious household?
Last night I went out for a few hours and came back to what looked like WWIII in the living room. Things were knocked over, there was poop on the furniture, and Gizmo was hiding behind the couch. I managed to coax him out enough to see he wasn't seriously hurt, but as soon as he spotted Willow from across the room (who was not behaving aggressively) he screeched loud enough to wake the dead and shot back behind the couch. I thought he just needed time to cool off, so I cleaned up the mess and left him alone overnight.
Got up in the afternoon, and he's still hiding behind the couch. I coaxed him out again, picked him up and as soon as he saw Willow it was back to screeching and hissing. Then SHE started screeching and hissing. I didn't get clawed or bitten, but Gizmo did pee down the side of my shirt, which was lovely. I tossed him in the laundry where the litterbox is located, gave him some food and water and closed the door. That's where we are now. I've set up another box in a spare bathroom for Willow to use.
They were fine yesterday, but now they can't stand the sight of one another. They've had the occasional minor spat in the past but this is the first time anything like this has happened. I live in an apartment and the only changes I can think of is a pair of swallows have started hanging around my front door. They built a nest in the corner last year and made a huge mess, so I'm going to ask the apartment manager to put up bird spikes on the light fixtures where they perch. Gizmo saw them a few days ago and now tries to make a break for the door to get the birds every time I open it.
How can I get back to a harmonious household?