Concerned About bullying

[kikki722014]

Hey there i am having a problem here with my cats, i have 6 cats it started with 3 until we saved 3 kittens at the time, we saved them from outside on June 19th 2013 they are half siamese, when we got them one of our 3 cats we had first would hiss and slap at them this has
Been going on til now, well that one cat that starts it is really picking on the youngest one most of all to where the youngest cat is scared of her she now sits by the back door wanting to go outside, im worried that her mental state is messed up, she is always looking around for her she is even afraid to play with the others because the other cat chases after her and attacks her. When i go in my room or into a bathroom she runs to get inside, she now likes to play alone in the bedroom with me, she still plays with her sisters when we put them into a room at night, when we go to bed we do that because of the cat that fights with them and so nothing gets demolished. The cat just isnt what she use to be now since she was little and it concerns me alot so if there is any advice i would appreciare it alot! The other cat does pick on all three of the ones we saved but not as much as she does the younger one. Thank You

 

[petcrazy76]

Did you separate them at all when you first got the 3 new cats to slowly introduce them? If not you may want to separate them now and slowly reintroduce them. I would start by doing some scent swapping. Iknow there I a good link on introductions but I can never find it on my phone. I'll look for that when a computer is free.

 

[kikki722014]

a question to ur thread, its been 7 months since we found the kittens do they need to be reintroduced? and we only had them locked up in a room bc when we found them they was flea infested badly then after tht we let them out, we didnt knw about introducing them so thts where we messed up at, thank you for help.

 

[mservant]

That sounds so hard to watch, I am sorry your household is going through this. I do not have experience of introducing new cats in to an existing group but did have 2 cats, one of which bullied the other and I failed to notice until the behaviour was quite extreme and one of my girls spent a large part of her life very nervous as a result of something I could have helped with had I known better.  I hope you manage to get the advice you need here.  Going through at least some of the introduction strategies may help but hopefully others who have more experience with this behaviour in multiple cat households will be able to give you advice from their experience.  

I hope you manage to find a solution to this and your youngest cat can find a better place in your group and find happiness there. 

 

[kikki722014]

I thank you for your concern i hate watching it, it breaks my heart. I hope to get what i need from this site to help resolve this sad problem. Im not sure about reintroducing them because wouldnt they already know each others scent by now? The younger kitten is playing when the other cat that picks on her is laying down so im constantly watching so she doesnt run after her. I dont know if its because she is younger or what but she hoes hiss at all three of the cats that we found though, i think becuse she only wanted the three cats that we started out with but that may sound crazy though. Any advice will help so thank everybody.

 

[jennyr]

I have had this problem ( I now have 11 cats, 3 of them being kittens that were abandoned at my place during the last few months). One of my elder ones, who can be a bit aggressive and dominant anyway, chased the youngest one and made her life a misery. The others then began to join in. I isolated the aggressor at night so there would be no trouble. What I then did was put the kitten in a large cage in the kitchen for two weeks, letting her out in the evening when she usually came onto my lap for protection. From there she could see what was was going on, and the others got more used to her being around and her smell. She is now out of the cage, though I still feed her in it so she doesn't have to fight for her food. At feeding times she goes straight into the cage and waits for her bowl! And she often uses the litter tray in there, though she is beginning to use the communal ones too. But the fighting has decreased enormously, though we still get some hissing if she decides to use a favourite cushion or whatever. She is now starting to dare try to play with the older kittens without fear, and to chase a ball, in other words to behave like a four month old kitten should. She knows the cage is her 'safe place' and it gives her confidence to tackle the outside world. Hope this may give you a few tips - it is horrible to see bullying going on and not be able to stop it.

 

[animal lover 16]

Older cats don't tend to like kittens. They are playful and haven't learned how hard they scratch and bite yet. They will get used to each other...remember to not force it yet limit some space so they can't avoid each other by locking them in a room with you. This will get them used to each other, without you holding them down and trying to force them which gets them to hate each other. Cats work in a sort of colony like way, and how they know that another is apart of it is by marking each other with their scents, you having your scent, and the environment scent. If one is scared of the others don't force their scents on that one for it would make the kitten miserable since it can't run away from it. If the one that is being aggressive it is to show dominance. If they is a spat don't interfere unless you feel the smaller one is going to get hurt. Doing so in small spats shows they are to not accept that one since you keep them apart. Or, doing scolding on one shows favoritism and the aggressors get jealous. I have had similar issues and two new cats that messed the system up. Also, when in doubt use spray bottle with water to train good behavior when the aggressor is being too harsh, that way the younger one won't get to hurt. Make sure to show the aggressor lots of love in front of the kitten to ease the jealousy.

 

[feralvr]

Kikki! And, welcome to TCS. Please know that this is not hopeless. This is what I would do immediately.

Keep the three kittens together in their "nighttime" room fulltime right now. The introductions of three kittens into a house of already established adult cats was too much for all. It is not too late to start over but it may take longer now since their initial relationship has been "damaged" of sorts. That is why proper introductions and supervision is so very important for a lifetime of healthy and tolerant cat relationships.

I would also suggest installing a screen door in place of the regular door after about a week. I have used a screen door or a large clear plexi glass slider in the past and I can assure you this is the best way to start intros. That way the cats can safely see each other from either side of the barrier. Trust needs to be rebuilt. You can plug in Feliway diffusers in the kittens room and the hallway outside of the kitten room. Feliway http://www.feliway.us/ is a natural cat pheromone and would help to calm the waters. You can order from Amazon or pick up at pet stores. They are pricey but would last for a month each and may really help. Feed cats on either side of the door so they see each other at meal time. Don't free feed meals - feed on a schedule. Swap out beds from the kittens to the cats and visa versa. Brush each other using the same brush. Use a sock on your hand to rub down a kitten and then rub down the offender, the one who was picking on the kitten. Scent swapping is very, very important before face to face intros. You can even swap out litter boxes as well. OH - but first make sure the kittens were properly dewormed and received all vaccinations, etc. Also, do not scold your resident cat for hissing/swatting, etc. That will only fuel his fear and cause many more behavioral issues.

Also, are ALL cats spayed/neutered? Dewormed? They MUST be altered before any good relationships can be started. What about the flea problem? They all need to be topically treated and the home must be treated as well. Frontline, Advantage or Revolution (which treats parasites) must be used monthly on all cats.

I know this is a lot of work right now but all of the above is so very important for a lifelong of good relationships. It is worth the initial effort on the guardians part. Sometimes bullying is just going to be part of a multi-cat household. I have a bully. But, it is workable and the cats can learn to tolerate each other. BUT I DO NOT think that is what is going on with your cats, I think introductions were done wrong and it was a shock to the resident cat. All my best to you and for taking in the kittens.

An article on the subject: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/introducing-cats-to-cats

 

[kikki722014]

Yea i have this slight problem concerning my cat and my boyfriend, today he let him in the bedroom to see me because i just woke up, the cat is male, he was purring and laying on the bed, well my boyfriend just petted him on top of his head and walked away well the cat kinda ran twowards him with his paw out but then immediately ran back and laid down. He done that because myboyfriend has been kinda getting onto him for doing that, he thinks he is attacking him but i dont wont to believe that. So if someone can help that would be great!