Expert: Ali - 4/8/2009

Question
QUESTION: I've always had a little trouble with my cat, she's EVIL. One minute she's letting you pet her, then she attacks. Once I didn't even put my hand near her and she tried to attack me. My mom thinks she's being spoiled, but I don't see how. She'll attack for no reason, or without warning. I always have to warn my friends to watch out for her. WHAT SHOULD I DO?!

ANSWER: Jo,

Is your cat spayed? If not that could explain her attacks because after puberty cats can become territorially aggressive. What leads up to an attack? You may be missing some subtle cues that could prevent the cat's temper from escalating into violent behavior. Does your cat only attack a specific person or is she an equal opportunity aggressor? This can help me to figure out what type of aggression is happening here because different things have to be done in order to stop different types of aggression. Has anyone ever played with your cat using their hands, feet or any other body part? If you allow kittens to pounce, bite, scratch or attack any part of the human body because it's cute when they weigh a couple of pounds they get the message that it's okay to do so whenever they feel like it which is bad because cats are very strong for their size. How long has this aggression been going on? The longer this type of behavior is left untreated the longer it will take to rehabilitate the cat. What exactly does your mom mean when she says that the cat is spoiled? Allowing cats to get away with certain behaviors can lead to things like play or petting aggression, territorial or dominant aggression or simply inappropriate responses when being handled by people of any age, gender or size. How long have you had this cat? How old was she when she became a permanent member of your family? If the cat was taken away from mom too early it may help to explain what's going on because kittens really should stay with their mom and siblings until they're at least 12 weeks of age because this is a very important time in their social development. In the first 12 weeks kittens learn about the world around them, they learn about cat and human body language as well as appropriate responses to being handled or playing with another cat. Kittens who were weaned by human beings at an early age are more likely to have problems with their behavior as well as how they socialize with people and other cats. There are effective, humane and gentle ways to help stop this problem but I really need to know what I'm dealing with specifically so as soon as you get back to me I'd be more than happy to try and help you and your cat out.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: My cat is spayed, and she was when I adopted her. There may have been a problem with another cat at the shelter. She has really started acting up after my first dog/her BEST FRIEND passed away a few years ago. She went bezerk after that. Could that still be effecting her now?

Answer
Jo,

Cats do grieve the loss of family members including those with four legs. I don't know if her current aggression is related to the loss of her canine buddy but that may have been the initial reason that her behavior deteriorated to this point. You may want to consider adopting a new friend for your cat if she's an only fur child. If your family does decide to save a life by adopting a shelter animal it's important to introduce the new family member to your cat appropriately. New cat introductions have to happen over a period of several weeks during which time your new cat or kitten has to be isolated in a room behind a closed door to help get your resident cat accustomed to a new pet in the home. You can certainly feel free to check out my previous answers on new cat/kitten introductions. As for introducing a new dog to your household this has to be done carefully and gradually. The dog should be cat friendly, calm, submissive and leashed at all times to avoid the possibility of the cat injuring the dog or the dog trying to play roughly with the cat which could cause serious injuries. It may be worth consulting a holistic veterinarian as s/he may be able to offer natural treatment options such as homeopathy, massage or even acupuncture as well as many other treatments. You could certainly try Rescue Remedy which is a homeopathic remedy containing a blend of flower essences designed to calm and reassure. I would suggest placing 7-9 drops of Rescue Remedy into a fresh bowl of water for your cat every morning or you could simply rub one drop of Rescue Remedy into the fairly bald patches of skin in front of your cat's ears although if you do this it's important to avoid getting any of this remedy into the ears as it can sting - the flower essences are preserved in a grape alcohol solution. You can often find Rescue Remedy in naturopathic pharmacies, health food stores, some mainstream pharmacies in the section where you'd find vitamins and other nutritional supplements and I believe this remedy can be purchased online. Rescue Remedy is very safe, provided that you use common sense (as in don't give the cat the entire bottle in one day) the cat can't overdose on it so don't worry if an extra drop or two ends up in the water. This is a remedy used by pet parents and some veterinarians worldwide to treat aggitated, fearful, anxious, traumatized or abused cats in a variety of situations.