Expert: Tina - 5/11/2004

Question
Hi Tina,
You were recommended by one of my friends and I've been watching for an opening to ask you this question.  
My husband and I do not know what to do and feel we have tried almost everything to solve our two cat's interpersonal issues with each other.  Both cats have traces of Maine Coone in them, are fixed, and are indoor cats.  Our first cat, Chloe, is almost 5 years old, 7.4 pounds, and was adopted from a pet shop at the age of 10-12 weeks.   She was an only cat for almost 4 years.  She is quiet, shy, petite, gentle, and very apprehensive of anyone besides my husband or I. She has long grey hair and white on her belly and paws. Tigger was adopted last year (June) from the humane society.  We learned he was abandoned with his two kitten brothers at the age of five weeks (approximately) and taken to the humane society.  He was raised by a foster family and given a lot of human love and attention.  He was adopted by my husband and I when he was 12 weeks old and we have had problems ever since with both our cats.  Tigger is about 12 pounds now, confident, outgoing, loving, and territorial.  He is constantly competing for our attention.  We have tried to balance out the love but Tigger is the kind of cat that is always underfoot.   He is an orange and white striped medium haired cat.  I was in between jobs at the time I brought Tigger home and spent a lot of time with both cats trying to help them adjust.  I separated them for the first 10 days.  Chloe hissed and growled, which was to be expected when they were introduced, so I put him back in the room and separated them again.  I gave them a lot of love and attention.  Needless to say, it did not work. Chloe still hates Tigger, and Tigger still terrorizes Chloe.  
Our problems are these:
Tigger is the bigger cat.  He guards the cat boxes (we have two) in separate locations.  Chloe is not able to use the bathroom without him coming to jump on her.  He never hurts her but he does scare her.  Chloe developed a bladder infection which was cured with two rounds of antibiotics.  In the process, she started urinating in two spots in the house and twice on me.  After many tests, including x-rays for bladder stones, UAs, and another Urine test, she has received a clean bill of health from the vet today.  Yet, she urinated on my lap again tonight.  The vet says it is behavioral.
My question is this:  What can we do to reduce Tigger's territorial behavior and increase Chloe's confidence to stand up against him?  Chloe growls at him every time he walks by but it does not seem to phase him.  I can tell she is very unhappy.  Tigger also chases her around the house which results in Chloe under the bed growling and Tigger “guarding” her and not letting her out.  We have tried to separate both cats when this happens.  We have also sprayed Tigger with a water bottle.  I even tried Feliaway this fall.  It did not seem to phase either cat.  Tigger was put on Prozac this fall because the vet thought this might help.  He has been taking it but I can't tell if that helps or not.  We have recently started giving Chloe alone time in the bathroom with the cat box to increase her chances of using it.  So far, she has not urinated in the house for 4 weeks.  Only on me.  Even if Chloe stops urinating, we want to solve this frustrating interaction between the two cats and thought it would be solved by now.  Is it hopeless?  It has been almost a year.  
P.S. we are going on vacation next week for 8 days and a neighbor will be caring for the cats.  Should we separate both cats in two separate rooms?  I have read this might help?  Any advice you have is much appreciated!  
More information to know:  We do not have any kids or dogs.  Just the cats.  Thank you so much for your time!


Answer
Hi Nicole,

Just like people, sometimes cats have personalities that just clash. But most cats can learn to tolerate another cat even if they don't become best friends. Cats who have been abandoned in the past can be especially needy because they don't want to lose the love they have found!

Here's some pointers I can offer:

1. Give your male cat lots of outlets for his aggression and energy. Twice a day, play with him interactively for at least 20 minutes. Encourage himto run and jump and attack things like a laser pointer or feather on a wand. Find his favourite toys and give him at least one good workout every day. Cats evolved to expend a high amount of energy in bursts to hunt prey, and sedentary lives can lead to pent-up energy and boredom which can be taken out on another cat. By playing with him regularly you'll use up some of the energy he'd use chasing the other cat and give him a constructive outlet for his hunter instincts. Exercising will do more to change his state of mind than all the kitty prozac in the world! You may want to close the other cat away while doing this so she doesn't get upset by his activity.

2. Don't punish the dominant cat for going after the other cat. Although this seems cruel to turn your back, the more you interfere the worse the problem will get. The aggressive cat will associate the punishment (water spray) with his encounter with the other cat and will have even more reason in his mind to attack her and take it out on her. Instead, try to ignore any aggression, or if it gets really bad separate the cats for a while. Don't reward him for his behavior either but try to keep it neutral and act like you don't notice. When he is NOT aggressive, reward him by paying extra attention to him while the other cat is around.

3. Give each cat alone time with you as you are doing now, in a quiet room with the other cat closed out. Both cats need to feel that they have your sole attention for this time, to cuddle play or whatever.

4. Keep using the Feliway, you need to re-apply it every 4 days if you use the spray. Maybe the plug-in diffuser available at www.drsfostersmith.com would be more convenient.  have found it does reduce aggression but alone does not eliminate it.

5. Try to place the cat boxes in areas where the cat using it can't be ambushed. For example place it inside a litterbox bench with 2 entries (an escape route) or in a corner where there is no place for another cat to hide nearby.

6. Urinary tract infections can become chronic especially if the cat is holding back urination due to fear of using he box and stress also increases susceptibility. You may want to isolate your female cat for a few months to allow her to recover from her infection all the way. Encuorage her to drink plenty of water by feeding canned food, leaving out may containers of fresh water or using a pet water fountain. This will help flush out her urinary tract system and reduce the growth of harmful bacteria in the bladder. Also, feed a high quality cat food that helps prevent urinary tract problems such as Royal Canin Adult (www.felinenutrition.com) Wellness (www.oldmotherhubbard.com) or Wysong Urinary (www.wysong.net).

7. If the kitty prozac hasn't helped stop giving it, it has other side effects that you don't need to deal with. Instead, if you want to try something else I suggest Nutricalm - a herbal supplement that works well to take the hyperactive/aggressive edge off some cats. (http://www.catdoctor.com/storessl/merchant.mvc?Product_Code=10225&Screen=PROD&Ca...)

During the pet-sitter's stay I would recommend separating the cats because they will be stressed enough with you gone, and Chloe will probably not get to use the litterbox. It's better for her to be confined to a smaller space where she feels safe while you are gone.

One of my 3 cats tends to become aggressive with other cats if I don't play with him enough. Getting him really active once or twcie a day keeps him content but if I get busy and don't play with him he'll start "playing" with the other cats to the point they get really annoyed and start squealing and hissing at him. Once I distract him he settles down again.

Good luck!