I currently have two cats in my care. Gus, is my 6 year old neutered male (found as a stray and only neutered about 1 1/2 years ago), and my foster girl Annie, 10 year old spayed female with a number of medical issues.
Gus has always been a playful boy, on the aggressive side if he doesn't receive enough playtime or time to frolic outside. Annie is diabetic, and has further related complications such as epilepsy and neuropathy. She is a very submissive cat as she does not have the means to defend herself if necessary.
The two have been together for almost 4 months, they get along fine... tolerate one another, sit with one another, occasionally head butt one another. But as of lately, I have never seen this behavior before except in the last couple of weeks: when Annie is sleeping or laying down, minding her own business, Gus will go up to her and bite down on the scruff of her neck. He has even tried to mount her one time!
I understand that this is typical mating behavior in male cats; this is how they subdue their females during copulation. However, this is also an added stress to poor Annie's life that she doesn't need. She will hiss and cry out in resistance but she does not have the strength to defend herself.
I have seen this 3 times:
-First time was when I got home from work and was greeting Annie, Gus went over to her and clamped down on her neck
-Second time was after Gus was playing with his favorite feather toy, I have seen him become over-stimulated with this toy before where he mounts it and rubs up against it.
-Third time was for no reason at all, I was getting into the shower and she was sleeping on the bathroom floor and he went over to her and bit her neck.
I can control the first two situations and ensure that he does not play with that particular toy again, and ensure both kitties get equal attention when I get home. I am wondering what other steps I can take to decrease his sexual aggression against her? I feel awful for the poor girl because she struggles with enough pain as it is and I would hate to have to start separating them when I am not home because my suite is quite small as it is.
Any suggestions/similar experiences would be greatly appreciated!
Gus has always been a playful boy, on the aggressive side if he doesn't receive enough playtime or time to frolic outside. Annie is diabetic, and has further related complications such as epilepsy and neuropathy. She is a very submissive cat as she does not have the means to defend herself if necessary.
The two have been together for almost 4 months, they get along fine... tolerate one another, sit with one another, occasionally head butt one another. But as of lately, I have never seen this behavior before except in the last couple of weeks: when Annie is sleeping or laying down, minding her own business, Gus will go up to her and bite down on the scruff of her neck. He has even tried to mount her one time!
I understand that this is typical mating behavior in male cats; this is how they subdue their females during copulation. However, this is also an added stress to poor Annie's life that she doesn't need. She will hiss and cry out in resistance but she does not have the strength to defend herself.
I have seen this 3 times:
-First time was when I got home from work and was greeting Annie, Gus went over to her and clamped down on her neck
-Second time was after Gus was playing with his favorite feather toy, I have seen him become over-stimulated with this toy before where he mounts it and rubs up against it.
-Third time was for no reason at all, I was getting into the shower and she was sleeping on the bathroom floor and he went over to her and bit her neck.
I can control the first two situations and ensure that he does not play with that particular toy again, and ensure both kitties get equal attention when I get home. I am wondering what other steps I can take to decrease his sexual aggression against her? I feel awful for the poor girl because she struggles with enough pain as it is and I would hate to have to start separating them when I am not home because my suite is quite small as it is.
Any suggestions/similar experiences would be greatly appreciated!
