Mabby the bully

[nebula11]

It's not that mabby can't live with Poppy....Its not that Mabby doesn't want to eat near poppy, sleep near poppy, or play near poppy.......its just.......

Mabby will hunt her, torment her...and basically bully her till poppy runs terrified to me or john, or stuffs herself in the tiniest little space where Mabby can not reach her.............

Doofus loves Poppy....but Doofus loves everything.....and Emmet seems totally indifferent...being the loner..... But when Mabby gets bored she does all she can to terrify and harass the 5lb Poppy.

Now Mabby has always been a stubborn and strong-willed cat.....but these school ard bully tactics are getting out of control......

It got so bad tonight we had to feed them seperatly.....doofus and mab on one side of the kitchen, and emmet and poppy on the other....Right now Mabby is with John in the bedroom taking a time out, and Poppy is hiding in a cabniet............

Please Help!!!!!!!! John is super upset..Mabby is clearly his favorite....but Poppy lives in this house too....Please Please Please Help!!!!!

 

[yayi]

Mabby is exactly like my QT. QT bullies only one - Joji. Joji is older but smaller in size and I think QT just does it because Joji used to be the alpha. QT also has a history. She used to be my sister's cat and she broke her leg fighting another dominant female when she lived with my sis. So it's in her character.
Anyway, the bullying has subsided a lot. First, QT gets a time out in the cattery. She hates it. Second, I show her how upset I am. I look her straight in the face and blow air. Finally, there's Wawa. Ever since he came to me, he's been in love with QT. He follows her whenever he can so QT has no time for Joji.

I also think Joji is only nervous because of QT's size. I know that Joji will fight if she's had enough. That is why I must teach QT to behave.
I don't know if I helped. Mabby may look at Poppy as future challenger and that's why she loves to torment the little one. Ask John not to play favorites when Mabby misbehaves. Both of you should be firm.
Hope others here can give you better suggestions. Good luck!

 

[nebula11]

Thanx Yayi......that did help a bit....

John was being firm....but thats what upset him...Hes like "I dont mind her being a brat or snoby....but she can't be a punk-bully....lol......

 

[KitEKats4Eva!]

You need to train Mabby. I know it sounds weird with a cat, but that is what you need to do. If they were dogs we would do it - and we can be very quick (loving kitties the way we do!) to excuse all of their bad behaviour by putting it down to `cat nature'. If you have four cats to live with and one of them is being a nightmare to another, you need to actively intervene before one of them gets hurt or runs away or just becomes a nervous wreck. Also, it can cause friction between all of the kitties, which I'm sure you don't want.

I am ALWAYS going on about clicker-training on this site (and everywhere else) but I am firmly convinced it is the best method of training ANY animal around. I use it extensively with my puppy with great success, and have used it with Sashka as well when she was a kitten.

If you train Mabby in conjunction with other techniques around the house I think you'll find you'll have your problem solved. I'd be more than happy to discuss it with you further via pm or email.

 

[nebula11]

thanx for the information guys...I find that the bullying gets worse, when mabby is mad at something else...i.e. the other cats (sleeping in her spot...stealing her toy)....or at john and I (brushing her, clipping her claws...ect...)...redirected anger......So far we have broken up every altercation, and i have participated in calming activities with mabby and poppy present (like blowing bubbles)

I might look into the feliway plug-in while i train mabby away from such behavior..

thanx again, and also any training tequniques and strategies are much apreciated