Kitten Becoming Territorial?

[Omardufromage]

My little MEATBALL, 13 weeks, has been a bundle of joy and stress since we got him but we love him to bits. My eldest Sylvie, 14, is getting more used to him every day. She acts very motherly to him and cleans him and cuddles him while he is asleep. Whenever Sylvie tries to drink water, eat, sleep, or just cuddles us meatball wont have it and will wrap around her neck and chase her off while she hisses/growls. Sylvie doesn't usually play/fight back with him until he crosses the line and then she relentlessly bites and claws him but he doesn't seem to learn when to stop and just keeps going in for more. We play with him quite a bit during the day but if he sees Sylvie doing something he attacks. We also can't even sleep in the same room because he just goes for sylvie non-stop at night and I'm just not sure what to do anymore since we are both loosing sleep over this.

 

[Kefa]

Have you had him fixed yet?

 

[Omardufromage]

Have you had him fixed yet?

Yeah, we adopted him when he was fixed at 8 weeks.

 

[susanm9006]

I don’t think it is territorial. I think she is just something that he finds entertaining, slaps, hisses and all. A half grown kitten can be pretty obnoxious and as many more times the energy of a 14 year old. When he is being pest, tell him no or shoo him off, or better yet, keep them in separate rooms for part of the day or night so both your senior cat and you can have a breather.

 

[Omardufromage]

Well, we do keep them seperated for portions, usually when he is being too much for her during the day, but at night we are trying to have him sleep with both of us because he will meow non-stop if one of us isn't cuddling him at night. He just wants us all to himself!

 

[Yanaka]

I have two siblings. The male keeps playing and waking her up biting her, he's just hyper. She's more patient than your girl, though. You might not want to interfere too much, or you risk damaging the very feeble relationship they are building. All you can do is distract the baby so you can take the weight off of her while he grows up. Maybe seeing if you can give her more hiding places and height so she can escape?

I don't think he's possessive or territorial. He's really still a baby, and he'll do better once he can have your other cat as a friend.

 

[di and bob]

Females are the discipline givers so she really thinks he IS a brat. At that age he will be a pest for quite a while, that is what kittens do. She has to have a place to escape to, preferably high up to defend herself against him. I have a mother/son combo that I take to an outside shop every night to sleep. They actually run to the door now to go out there, you might consider giving him his own room at night until he grows up. Ours have heated beds, food and water and toys out there, even a TV that goes off with a timer to keep them company. They were just impossible to sleep with, they kept playing with each other and our other cats all night. You'll have to find a room far away or soundproof until he gets used to it, make it comfortable with a heated bed of his own. All the luck!

 

[Omardufromage]

Any tips on helping him sleep in his own area at night and stop him from meowing? He has food/water and a litter box but sometimes he stays quiet for a few hours but then just starts meowing and, from what I have experienced, just doesn't stop and it breaks my heart!

 

[Elfilou]

Great advice so far! I'd rather worry about giving your elder kitty a place to get away from him (a tall cat tree he might not get on top of yet, shelves or hidey-hole type cat beds to hide in). Giving her as much opportunity to get away from him as possible, when she wants to

 

[susanm9006]

Any tips on helping him sleep in his own area at night and stop him from meowing? He has food/water and a litter box but sometimes he stays quiet for a few hours but then just starts meowing and, from what I have experienced, just doesn't stop and it breaks my heart!

It is kitten (and cat)instinct to sleep with their family, so his cries are loneliness. He wants to be with you or your older cat. If these aren’t options then you just need to ignore the cries and he will eventually be okay sleeping on his own.

 

[Yanaka]

My kittens meow for their sibling when one of them is hanging out with me upstairs, for example. Is there any way you can accommodate both cats together with you?

My thought is that isolating this kitten might get him even more excited once he’s out with you.

I mean, in all honesty, this kitten is just SO young! Can you imagine isolating his baby mind because he’s too active? He’s a baby! You chose to get him... I am sure he will get used to your down time at night and sleep with you all eventually. I don’t know. It just breaks my heart to confine this little baby just because of what he is.

 

[arouetta]

Dumb question. What if you shut him in the bedroom at night and her outside it? He won't cry and she'll have peace.

 

[Yanaka]

The issue, I think, is that the senior cat has her habits and might feel even more annoyed if she's kicked out of the room. Plus, nobody really want to sleep with a litter box in their room

I think trying to accommodate ways for her to get out of his reach is the only way for now. Eventually he'll calm down a little bit, and they will be able to sleep in the same room.

 

[susanm9006]

I believe that arouetta wasn’t saying you were asking a dumb question but rather that the her or his question that followed “Dumb question ” might be a dumb one.

 

[Yanaka]

I believe that arouetta wasn’t saying you were asking a dumb question but rather that the her or his question that followed “Dumb question ” might be a dumb one.

Yeah I changed my answer when I noticed

 

[arouetta]

Yeah, I wasn't calling you dumb. A dumb question is where the answer is staring the questioner (me) in the face, with a chance that the answer was overlooked.

 

[Omardufromage]

I have made a few up high places for my eldest cat but he now can get up on all of them except for one. Since I love in an apartment I can't build a perch either for her which is what I would do

 

[Omardufromage]

I would love to have him sleep with us. His cuddles are excellent but my eldest cat gets attacked all night long by him and that's not fair to her

 

[arouetta]

That was my question though, would she be bothered if she was shut out of the room? He quits crying because he's in there, she gets peaceful sleep since she's not hearing his cries nor being attacked.

 

[Omardufromage]

I haven't tried that yet and would also feel bad since she has been with me for so long and every night has cuddled me since she was a little kitten. We have slept in separate rooms before and swapped cats around every other night which seemed to work. Both were happy and slept through the night. Maybe I should just keep doing that until he's a little older!