Any idea what could be causing this?

[cheshireneko]

I have a 1 year old male, neutered indoor cat.
He's always been very playful and excited but he's become weird lately.
He often becomes really angry for no apparent reason. It happened about once or twice a week in the beginning, but now he does it a few times almost every day, during any moment of the day or night, but mostly at night. His ears get down, his eyes have an angry look, the hair on his back is up and he growls and hisses very loudly, as if he were fighting with another cat. Sometimes he'll bite his tail, and it looks like it's some kind of redirection of his anger. When I get close to him or pet him while he's angry, he doesn't seem to care, so he's not aggressive towards me. It lasts about a minute or two, and then he's calm again, but it often happens again a few minutes later.
I have another cat (spayed female) but she usually isn't anywhere near him when it happens. And I don't see any triggers, he doesn't act in a special way before it happens, and it happens anywhere in the house.

Any idea what could be the problem? Or could he just be playing?
I'm thinking of trying feliway, maybe it would help if it's a hormonal problem. If not, I'll definitely take him to vet but I would like to have your opinions, maybe there are things I haven't thought about.

Thanks!

 

[ducman69]

Is he looking outside first? Lots of people let their cats out which roam the neighborhood at night, and can trigger a defensive response from your cats. Mine both turned into giant arched poof balls when I noticed the neighbors cat in our back yard again, and it wasn't obvious at first as they weren't anywhere near the window.

Otherwise might be a response to pain.

 

[gloriajh]

Read your post - sorry, sounds very unusual to me, too.

I agree - a vet visit is the best solution - sounds like he'll require some testing for sure.

Sorry that this is happening, be sure and let us know what you find out.
g

 

[cheshireneko]

Thank you for the replies.

He doesn't look outside, no. My cats have reacted to other cats outside before, but this happens away from any window and he often moves around, irritated, to different areas of my home. I haven't noticed any noise, object, scent or movement that could upset him either.

I just hope he isn't in pain... But I don't think it's the case, since he isn't aggressive towards me when I get close to him. I have tried petting him, touching his paws, abdomen, head, picking him up, while he was in his "angry moments" and it didn't make him more upset or aggressive. He usually tries to bite and claw when he doesn't want to be touched or picked up so I think if he were in pain he would react more when I touch him.
Also, playing with his toys usually distracts him and he becomes calm again after the play.

 

[carolina]

He might be sick... Any sudden change of behavior like this should be investigated by a vet - it is often a sign that there is something going on health wise.

 

[tink80]

I agree. There may be an internal issue that is causing discomfort and so it can't be seen but he could be experiencing something internal. I'd do a vet check too just to rule that out first. Good luck, I hope it's nothing serious or something easy to fix.

 

[mrblanche]

Discomfort from constipation can cause this behavior, if I recall what I've read before.

 

[csteen85]

is he ever near a window, or oven door, or any reflectove surface when he does this?

my guy would suddenly get like for no reason, but he was actually catching his own reflection and thought it was another cat. LOL.

also, sometimes he chases his own shadows cast by his ears or tail. At first I thought he was chasing ghosts, haha.

but also, he was seeing his reflection in a window from waaaay across the room while standing on the arm of the sofa, and puffing up just as you described.

also, could you have any insects or rodents in the home? Mine has a strong prey instinct and would do this if he saw a fly or moth.

I hope it's nothing serious, but it could be play-related.

 

[my4llma]

You should call the vet, just to make sure he's not sick. But could he be seeing another cat outside?