Is this normal play behavior (with videos)?

[CityCatMom]

As some of you might have been following along with my threads, I recently introduced a new cat, NC to my resident cat, OC. Things have been a bit rocky, OC got sick but has been doing much better over the last few days. I'm still not leaving the girls alone together when I'm not home or when I'm sleeping. I would really like to get them to a stage where they can be left alone together for the day (8-9 hours) while I'm at work and while I'm sleeping at night. I currently lock NC in the bedroom with me so that OC can have some privacy during the night and decompress. NC does not enjoy this at all and has been tearing up my carpet in protest.

I'm trying to assess where they are in their relationship and what the next step should be to achieve my goals for them. I've attached a couple of videos I captured of them interacting today and I'd love to get your opinion on whether this is normal play behaviour. The brown cat is OC who is 10 years old (almost 11!) and the white/Tabby cat is NC, who is just over a year old.

Videos:
I also noticed yesterday, for the first time they smelled each other's noses and didn't automatically swat at each other after, so... Progress?

 

[daftcat75]

I’m not an expert on cat behavior. But NC looks much more relaxed about this relationship than OC. It seems to me that OC is simply reminding NC that she’s the original cat and that respect is due. Whereas I interpret NC’s behavior as, “whatever, dude! I’m not interested in a fight. But I will if need to.” (Rolling on her back frees up all her weapons if OC were looking for a fight.) I call it progress that NC doesn’t return the aggression and that OC doesn’t pursue the matter. OC may always punk NC like this even as they grow into old friends together. Cats will be cats. But this isn’t fighting at all. I think if this is the worst you see, I’d be okay leaving them for short periods, maybe with a camera to observe how they interact when humans aren’t supervising. As with all cases with cats, changes are best made slowly and I would work up to 8 hours away with smaller periods of unsupervised time together.

 

[susanm9006]

No, it doesn’t seem to be play behavior to me. It was a bit of a challenge to fight or at least a strong “I don’t like you” with the white cat being the aggressor and then backing down and the long hair also backing off. Definitely tension between the two. What was happening before the first slap?

 

[CityCatMom]

I’m not an expert on cat behavior. But NC looks much more relaxed about this relationship than OC. It seems to me that OC is simply reminding NC that she’s the original cat and that respect is due. Whereas I interpret NC’s behavior as, “whatever, dude! I’m not interested in a fight. But I will if need to.” (Rolling on her back frees up all her weapons if OC were looking for a fight.) I call it progress that NC doesn’t return the aggression and that OC doesn’t pursue the matter. OC may always punk NC like this even as they grow into old friends together. Cats will be cats. But this isn’t fighting at all. I think if this is the worst you see, I’d be okay leaving them for short periods, maybe with a camera to observe how they interact when humans aren’t supervising. As with all cases with cats, changes are best made slowly and I would work up to 8 hours away with smaller periods of unsupervised time together.

Thank you, yes, OC is very much a scaredy cat and has had a hard time relaxing around NC (which is part of the reason why I keep them separated at night). Actually, her slapping NC or initiating contact has been a VERY RECENT development. Even early last week, she was hiding and running away from NC, hissing whenever she made contact. I've been working on playing with her as much as she will let me in order to build her confidence. NC will still attack her if she in a cardboard box (which she loves), so I think that is still stressing her out a bit. In fact, we just had an incident where OC was in a cardboard box with cutouts and NC would not stop slapping her through the openings and blocking her exit through the box, so eventually we just put them in separate rooms and called time outs. I guess I can put away the boxes when we are not home to minimize opportunities for them to clash in such a way.

NC for the most part is relaxed around OC, though she is scared to eat her treats too close to OC I've found. I do find that she initiates most of these slapping sessions though

 

[CityCatMom]

No, it doesn’t seem to be play behavior to me. It was a bit of a challenge to fight with the long hair being the aggressor and the white spotted cat backing down and then the long hair also backing off. Definitely tension between the two.

Thanks for your reply. Do you have any tips on what I can do to ease the tension between them? I try to play with them around feeding times and before I go to sleep, and we try to step in whenever we hear any hissing or growling, but of course, they will be unmonitored majority of the time they will be together in the future.

Before the first slap, they were just sitting there in the doorway, while I did the dishes 5 feet away. I think I might have just finished a play session with them there like 15 mins prior to this. If you look at my other reply above, there's some more context to their interactions later in the day. NC (short hair) initiates the slapping sessions way more often than OC, the long hair.

 

[susanm9006]

In one video the white cat was the aggressor, getting in the first slap, and in the second it was the long hair. Which is kind of good because it isn’t just one picking on the other. The other good thing I saw is that in both the white cat lays down which is saying “I don’t want to fight”. So if left alone I doubt that a full out fight will break out. I am leaning towards letting them just work it out, maybe with some catnip for both to mellow them out.

 

[Azazel]

In one video the white cat was the aggressor, getting in the first slap, and in the second it was the long hair. Which is kind of good because it isn’t just one picking on the other. The other good thing I saw is that in both the white cat lays down which is saying “I don’t want to fight”. So if left alone I doubt that a full out fight will break out. I am leaning towards letting them just work it out, maybe with some catnip for both to mellow them out.

Does the laying down mean "I don't want to fight" or "bring it on?" I always thought that cats are in the most advantageous position on their backs and it's not a position of weakness or inferiority. I think she's just responding with "bring it on, I'm ready."

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. Agree with most of the above, but I would not at this point be leaving them alone together. Can you review the information in the TCS article on Introductions to determine at what point/step you are at and what would be a good place to move forward/backward to? Given that OC was recently sick, you don't want to overdo the pace of their introductions and possibly stress OC out enough to cause a relapse. Here are some articles, in case they will help any.

How To Introduce A Kitten To An Older Cat – Cat Articles
How To Fix An Unsuccessful Cat Introduction – Cat Articles
How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide – Cat Articles
Are My Cats Fighting Or Playing? – Cat Articles

 

[susanm9006]

Does the laying down mean "I don't want to fight" or "bring it on?" I always thought that cats are in the most advantageous position on their backs and it's not a position of weakness or inferiority. I think she's just responding with "bring it on, I'm ready."

Upright with ears back, head lowered, tail thumping, staring at the other cat is a “bring it on, let’s fight posture”. They wouldn’t expose their bellies unless they believed they weren’t going to get hurt but I suppose she could be asking the other cat to play with her

 

[Azazel]

Upright with ears back, head lowered, tail thumping, staring at the other cat is a “bring it on, let’s fight posture”. They wouldn’t expose their bellies unless they believed they weren’t going to get hurt but I suppose she could be asking the other cat to play with her

I don't think that's correct (the part about rolling on their back). I'm pretty sure they roll on their back so that they can be ready to use all fours in defense when they are about to be attacked. That's why she quickly rolled onto her back when the other cat swatted at her.

I wouldn't leave these 2 alone with each other just yet.

 

[CityCatMom]

Upright with ears back, head lowered, tail thumping, staring at the other cat is a “bring it on, let’s fight posture”. They wouldn’t expose their bellies unless they believed they weren’t going to get hurt but I suppose she could be asking the other cat to play with her

If you look at the second video, you'll see that NC (white) has her tail all puffed up. I think she only does that when she is startled or scared. Usually, her tail is half that size!

 

[CityCatMom]

I don't think that's correct (the part about rolling on their back). I'm pretty sure they roll on their back so that they can be ready to use all fours in defense when they are about to be attacked. That's why she quickly rolled onto her back when the other cat swatted at her.

I wouldn't leave these 2 alone with each other just yet.

Thanks for your reply - any tips on how to reduce the tension between the two of them? They are naturally non-trusting of one another.

 

[Sonatine]

My cats actually do show their bellies when they want to play with each other, but each cat is different. I'd think that they belly up posture would be more defensive than aggressive: it's perfect for the cat to protect herself but she can't initiate an attack. Still, there's definitely tension there. They look like they're figuring things out but you wouldn't want them to undo all that progress with a fight while you're not watching.

 

[Azazel]

My cats actually do show their bellies when they want to play with each other, but each cat is different. I'd think that they belly up posture would be more defensive than aggressive: it's perfect for the cat to protect herself but she can't initiate an attack. Still, there's definitely tension there. They look like they're figuring things out but you wouldn't want them to undo all that progress with a fight while you're not watching.

Yeah, I think it's pretty much an 'I'm ready" posture. My cats also do it in the middle of play sessions - I don't think it's submissive though. I think it's just an advantageous posture for them because they have all 4 paws out and ready to go.

C CityCatMom I'm not sure what process you used to first introduce the cats, but it might be that you need to slow down a little and re-introduce. This might be helpful:

 

[chickpea616]

Does the laying down mean "I don't want to fight" or "bring it on?" I always thought that cats are in the most advantageous position on their backs and it's not a position of weakness or inferiority. I think she's just responding with "bring it on, I'm ready."

I totally agree with this. In everything I've observed with my cats, it's definitely the position of power!

 

[sivyaleah]

I totally agree with this. In everything I've observed with my cats, it's definitely the position of power!

This. When the other cat has 4 paws of unsheathed sharp claws coming at their face it's mighty intimidating.
I'm just chiming in to say this isn't play either. I'd be wary of leaving them together alone also although, sometimes one has to do what one has to do. You can't stay cooped up at home forever, you know? Both seem to back off once engaged - neither is fully going after the other to the point where they are having a full blow confrontation - yet. So I think if you follow the advice and information give to you already you can salvage their relationship.
The age difference is pretty big between them as far as energy levels. Older cats of OC's age really are at that point where they just do not typically want to be messed with and NC is still a kitten pretty much. It's going to take quite a bit of patience and work to get them to a point where they are comfortable but it can be done and hopefully in a month or so you'll be able to look back on those videos and see a marked difference in their interactions.