Kitten stalking older cat

[wthellcat]

I've posted before and you guys have been really helpful. I have a 12 week old male kitten, Seamus, that we got in early October. We did a slow introduction to our 9 year old resident cat (Kitty, female), following the advice as closely as we could (feeding near the door, scent swapping, room swapping, limited visual exposure during dinner, etc).

Finally we decided we absolutely could not keep Seamus cooped up anymore and started letting him out with Kitty for brief periods. At first inside a dog cage (that we retrofitted to have a safe place to hide if Seamus got scared), but then just in the open. We flooded them with treats early on (cut in half) because we wanted them to connect positive things with being around the other one.

My problem is I'm not sure what else I can be doing. Seamus seems to be trying to be dominant, and Kitty DOES stand up for herself (she bats him, bites him, etc) but isn't hurting him and he is not scared at all. He will try to eat from her dish, he is always stalking her, and he generally is just causing her a lot of stress.

We've talked to the vet several times (and other cat owners), and they all seem to agree this is normal. I guess if he isn't getting hurt maybe it is, but I have a feeling that Kitty definitely doesn't think of it as play (even though she isn't hurting him.. that could be because he is just a tough little guy??).

There are times when they can coexist in the room... and I feel that if Seamus was being relaxed all the time Kitty would get along with him begrudgingly. But clearly he is a kitten and needs to play (which we also try to help with often). When there is something interesting (Kitty loves drinking out of the tub faucet) she almost doesn't even notice or care about him. Other times she is clearly super annoyed.

Do we just have to ride this out? Can I teach him to not eat from her dish? Can I teach him not to "attack" her? Is Kitty's retaliation too much?

I would really like them to coexist peacefully (I've completely thrown out the idea of them being friends).

Thanks for your advice! Happy Thanksgiving!

 

[katluver4life]

Your kitten is being a kitten.

  From all you have described, all is pretty normal. Give your older cat a place she can escape to, such as elevated spots. Wear the kitten out with more vigorous play sessions so he doesn't focus on her as much for entertainment.

All in all it sounds as though they are doing well. Her swatting him is normal cat speak also. It's her teaching him to back off and as long as there is no actual "cat fight", I'd let them be. As he grows he'll calm down some.

You may have to just feed him somewhere else, or feed her on an elevated surface. Does he go for her food after he has finished eating? Does she eat slower then he does? Or does he just want her food even if he has his own? If he eats faster then her, there is a trick you could try to slow him down. Find a food bowl that when turned upside down there is a depressed ring around the raised center. Dog food bowls are often made this way. This forces him to have to eat by going around the whole bowl and usually slows the eating down enough to give her time to eat her fill.

 

[MoochNNoodles]

They sound so much like Pumpkin and Bunny; my Moms' cats!  Seamus really is being a kitten. If he were around other kittens they'd be doing that to each other.  It's still well within the normal range of adjusting to one another.  Add in the kitten energy and this is what you get sometimes.  She will put him in his place.  

The elevated surfaces for her to escape to may be very helpful.  If you don't already have a cat tree; this may be a good time of year to invest in one.  I got ours off ebay more than 5 years ago and it has been well worth every penny!  In my case; the cats are escaping toddlers.  But it's also great for bird watching and keeping their food out of my little kids reach.  

Pumpkin and Bunny still have their skirmishes every now and then.  Bunny cries like a little girl.  I can't stand that.  Whoever is around will usually tell Pumpkin to knock it off and he does.  But that doesn't mean Bunny doesn't keep him in line when she want's to.  She even had both dogs under her "paw" when they had 2, now 1.  We have a theory he does it just to get her going. But he also has a playmate closer to his age in their other cat Olivia. And she enjoys the rowdy games more.  

 

[wthellcat]

Thanks for your replies!

That makes me feel better hearing about similar issues with other cats as well.

We definitely do feed them separately (Seamus still in my office where we have been keeping him) and Kitty back in her normal spot in the kitchen (whereas we were feeding her for a while in front of the office as part of the introduction).

Seamus will eat his food, but really is more interested in seeing what Kitty is doing. It seems like he would always prefer her food over his (we do give her wet.. might be time to start this for him). And Kitty is so tubby and food-driven that she always tries to gobble what is leftover of his (she will eat all day if we let her).

I will definitely try switching Kitty to an elevated surface and flipping over Seamus' bowl. And we do have a cat tree, but I want to get another one with an enclosed box or something because it will give Kitty a chance to hide and only have to defend one side of her from Kitten attack.

One thing we have not done is to allow Seamus free reign of the house at night. He is too wild and he prevents Kitty from sleeping on the bed with us (something that we think gives her a little bit of a respite every night). Hopefully we can start allowing him out at night in a few months.

Thanks again!