Expert: Karen Craft - 6/4/2009

Question
We have two cats Misty whose 2 and Honey whose 1. They are inside cats, spayed and are female. We have never had this happen before our cats love to sit at our back door and watch us outside. Well our neighbors cat Sam is very friendly and comes over from time to time to play in our front yard. Well about a week ago Sam cam up to the back door where our two cats where sitting watching us through the screen door. Sam got on his hind legs and hissed and clawed at the screen door causing our cats to hiss and growl back well Sam ran but Misty was like a wild cat she threw Honey against the screen door and chased her around the house. Hissing and Growling the whole time at each other. It was really scary. I have never seen this before. The next day they where fine but last night it happened again with a different meaner cat and the one bit my toe and drew blood and they would not stop. This has never happened before in all the times we had our door open. Can you tell us why? And also could our cats catch a disease from the other cats hissing? They are still at it now and we love and do not want to get rid of them, Please Help.

Answer
Hi Becky,

Here's a bit of an article that deals with your problem. It's from All Creature's Care.

"Redirected Aggression

The Problem:
Redirected aggression is a phenomenon I see frequently in cats and parrots. In this situation a strange person or animal upsets the cat. But instead of showing aggression toward this new individual the cat turns its wrath on the pet owner(s) or another pet. We see the same event occurring in marriages when an agitated wife or husband takes out his or her frustration on their spouse.
When redirected aggression occurs it can destroy the bonds between cat and cat and cat and owner that took years to establish. Sometimes it is not more than a stray cat passing by the window that sets of such a confrontation. If a lower ranking cat becomes the object of redirected aggression it may defend itself, leading to a serious cat fight.

The Solution:
First try to decide what the stimulus was for the aggression and remove it. Lower the blinds on the window if a stray cat has approached and shoo it away. If the aggression is directed at you leave the cat alone until it calms down. Do not punish or yell at the cat. If the cat is being aggressive with housemates place each cat in a separate closed room. Turn off the lights in the rooms. Interactions with a cat during this problem are counterproductive. If the cat is highly agitated it is best to wrap it in a beach towel when handling it. Calm your pet and praise it. Once the agitated cat has calmed down, reintroduce the cats slowly. Place them far apart in a room and stroke and praise each one. A food treat comes in very handy in these situations. Remember, even faint smells of another cat can trigger redirected aggression. That is why cats returning from the animal hospital are sometimes attacked by their housemates."

I think this describes your problem to a T. You need to keep Sam away from the screen door. Or just cover the bottom part so your cats can't see Sam. This should take care of everything. And they could catch something from a stray cat if it came to the door hissing. Certain diseases are carried by saliva and could cross the screen and infect your cats. Keep the bottom closed off if you can. Hope this helped. Good luck.

Ciao, Karen