Bully cat wont stop attacking my cat

[luc7]

Hi everyone,
So this is the story, I have a cat named Tigger, male, quite small and 4 years old. He is the friendliest cat you will meet, he never scratches etc and is nice to everyone. He just wants to have a nice time outside. In the evenings (usually), quite frequently, I hear Tigger scream. I run outside and scare the same mean cat away. Its the same cat everytime and its happened about 20 times now and i'm fed up. One time, somehow Tigger got outside at 4 a.m. (I try to keep him in after dark), and then of course I heard his scream, this time it sounded like someone was trying to slaughter him

I ran outside as fast as I could, and chased away, of course the same bully. When I took Tigger inside, he had a horrible bleeding gash on his foot......... I just ran out a few minutes ago to rescue him again from the bully, this time he has a bleeding cut on his ear, and he is full of the bad cat's saliva, im guessing from it biting

Well I hope you all understand how fed up I am and how sorry I feel for my cat. What would you do in a situation like this? The bully is big and mingy, doesnt look like it belongs to anyone. I dont know what to do. I'm afraid one day Tigger will get seriosly injured from this cat.
Please help
Thanks
-Luc

 

[ghostuser]

My cat Toby almost died as a result of a cat fight. We never found the culprit, but the vet told us it was definitely another cat -- I thought something much bigger from the state Toby was in. We were fortunate in finding Toby in the bushes that he had hidden in and rushed him to an emergency vet (it was 11pm) who did a great job. But he was touch and go for 48 hours.

Although Toby (and his brother Lucky) were indoor/outdoor cats, I never let either of them out after 6pm from that incident onwards. They weren't very happy about the curfew but they got used to it.

I'd hate you to find your sweet little boy in the same mess my Toby was that night. It was heart breaking. So I'd keep Tigger in after 6 if I was you.

Good Luck

 

[yayi]

Unfortunately, the bully is probably a stray unneutered tom who sees Tigger as an intruder in his territory. And Tigger is your brave boy who wants to prove him wrong. That explains the screams and the cat fights. A submissive male would ran away and hide. Tigger doesn't seem to do that.
Keep Tigger indoors now to give time for wounds to heal. Continue keeping him indoors at night. Don't leave any food outside for strays. Contact or volunteer in a TNR organization in your area. They may provide more alternative solutions to the problem. Personally, I don't like calling animal control so I won't recommend it.

 

[sunnicat]

 

[salem cat]

I have the same problem with(I named it) the "Black Evil". It comes here and attacks my three smaller cats, day and night. I felt something watching me the other day, and when I looked around I found Black Evil staring at me. I've tried to live rap him many times, but he's way too smart for that. And it's gotten to the point that I'm about ready to do anything to rid this cat from my area! I thought about calling the police and saying I just saw a big black tom cat acting funny and it might be sick with rabies...but they would probably take one of my cats instead, even though none of them are black

I'm just absolutely fed up also, and it's very hard to keep 6 cats inside all the time when they are used to going outside! Good Luck with your bully, and I'll be watching for good ideas here

 

[KitEKats4Eva!]

We had an ultra big mean white tom that used to come right into our back patio and bully the girls. After trying water spray and loud bangs and shouting etc, Mum threw a little garden pebble at him one night. I think it hit him on the rump, and he's never come back. It seemed a bit violent to me at the time, but not as violent as that cat would have been if it got it's teeth and claws into one of my girls. The most annoying thing was that it was in good condition with a collar and bell, so obviously some hopeless irresponsible owner was just letting it out free to roam and terrorise at night.

 

[luc7]

Ok, thanks a lot everyone. I'm going to ask the neighboors if it belongs to anyone, and if they know who, i'm gonna have a word with the owner.

 

[pushylady]

Good luck with the neighbour! Hope they're reasonable people and you don't

 

[ollyextra05]

Honestly, the only way to ever gaurantee a cat will not be attacked by a stray/ agressive cat is to keep him/her inside, 24/7. Most vets recommend keeping cats indoors only, and many shelters will only adopt cats out if the adoptees promise to keep the cats inside, most breeders have a similar clause in their contracts as well.
Indoor cats live longer, and dont have to worry about other cats, being poisoned by mean neighbors, being attacked by other cats, or worse. A TCS member recently had one of her cats shot by a neighbor...there's just too many bad things that can happen to a cat outdoors.

Please, please, I urge you, before your cat is seriously injured, or worse, bring kitty inside to stay!

 

[yosemite]

Our cats ONLY go outside on a harness and leash and with strict supervision. If we are unable to be outside with them, they are indoors. They know this and although Bijou would like to go out more often (he tells us so in his meezer voice), he only goes with us.

I love them too much to take the chance of leaving them outside unattended. Anything can happen to them - raccoons, other cats, dogs, it's too dangerous.

Could you start getting them used to being out only with supervision? That would be my recommendation, but I know I'm rather over-protective of our kitties.

 

[luc7]

Originally Posted by OllyExtra05

Honestly, the only way to ever gaurantee a cat will not be attacked by a stray/ agressive cat is to keep him/her inside, 24/7. Most vets recommend keeping cats indoors only, and many shelters will only adopt cats out if the adoptees promise to keep the cats inside, most breeders have a similar clause in their contracts as well.
Indoor cats live longer, and dont have to worry about other cats, being poisoned by mean neighbors, being attacked by other cats, or worse. A TCS member recently had one of her cats shot by a neighbor...there's just too many bad things that can happen to a cat outdoors.

Please, please, I urge you, before your cat is seriously injured, or worse, bring kitty inside to stay!

Absolutely NOT, I cant keep my cat inside again. I had to deal with that for 1 year before I moved to another house. It was absolutely the worste thing for me and my cat. He hated it. I had to keep him inside because the house was no good plce for him to be outside. Next door, they have 3 german shepards, and one night the killed a cat.

Plus it was practicaly in the city so the streets were so busy. Its so hard to keep a cat inside who WANTS to go outside, plus with other family members walking in and out and windows open. As a matter of fact, most of the reason I moved into this new house, was for my cat....it was waay to much stress to keep him inside at the other house. I barley have to change his litter box now becuase he just goes outside. AS for the other cat, I know its not going to KILL him, I ALWAYS hear them in time and run as fast as I can at the bad cat. Sorry, I may sound like im attacking you but im not, Im just showing you the stress of keeping a cat inside

 

[katman]

Hi luc, iv'e had a similiar problem with my little sasha, she has a very friendly outgoing personality, next door to us have five cats and one in particular a black short hair will constantly chase and provoke a fight with sasha, sasha will run away and wont come back until this cat has gone in. I must agree though you cant keep a cat in 24/7 if it wants to go out, iv'e had this discussion many times before it would be impossible to keep her in cos' there are too many people coming and going in my house and the stress would be unbearable...for me as well as her!.

 

[jennyr]

Like you, Luc, I chose my house to be safe as possible for my three girls, though there are a couple of ferals around (I managed to TNR one of them so far) who try to pick fights. I just keep my cats in at night, against the attempts of my room mate to let them out. That does stop the worst of it. I htink the best you can do is try to find out if this cat has an owner, and if he is neutered, and if not, trap hime and TNR him. That might solve some of the aggression, though it would probably take some time for him to calm down. Good luck.

 

[luc7]

Hi, I know that the cat is NOT neutered, and I am pretty sure it is a stray. What does TNR mean? Thanks

 

[jennyr]

Trap, neuter, return. If it is not neutered, then it is likely not owned. I would try and trap it and get it neutered if I were you. Can you borrow a humane trap from somewhere?

 

[flakeytron]

As mentioned in this thread before the only way to ensure that your cat won't get - an assortment of parasites, diseases, attacked by a dog, cat or other wild animal, hit by a car, etc. is to keep him inside. Since this option doesn't appeal to you, having the other cat "fixed" is probably the best option.

Also,

Make sure your cat is up to date on all of his vaccines. Since you mentioned he "goes" outside, he is vulnerable to getting all kinds of things. Whatever parasites this bully cat has your cat probably has now, as it is transfered in fecal matter. Also, since your cat has been bitten by this cat please test your cat for felv & fiv and make sure he is up to date on those vaccines. It's not just the attack which can kill your cat, it's the diseases that can be transfered to him. That's why an indoor cat can live to be 20 and an outdoor cat is lucky to make it to 5. I would hate for that bully cat to kill your cat, either by an attack or by giving it a disease like feline leuk.

Also,you can treat your cat with REVOLUTION so you can at least protect him from fleas and heartworm and try to control hookworms, roundworms and ear mites. You can't prevent him from getting many parasites that are outside but at least you can prevent some diseases.

 

[hannah louise]

Hi everyone, 

I have just experienced the same thing with my little boy coco. He's only a year old and loves going out, but on Thursday this big bully tabby cat attacked him and bit his back foot. Within 12 hours it was infected and he had to have injections. This cat has tried it before with coco- I think i've heard screams about four times in the past 5 months, so it's not all the time. However, I'm just now so scared he will have coco's eye or that he will be seriously hurt. What can I do? I'm sure this tabby is a stray, just eating from the bins or other people's houses. The vet suggested water pistoling the tabby, so might try that. But there is no pattern to his comings and goings and he just runs off as soon I as I come out. Also, coco is desperate to go out today (two days after bite)- should I let him out for a bit (supervised of course). 

Hannah

 

[Norachan]

Hi Hannah,

I've taken care of formally feral cats that got so badly injured in cat fights they needed 28 stitches and loads of antibiotics to recover, I really wouldn't put Coco in that kind of danger if I were you. There is always the risk that he will get Feline AIDS or Leukemia from cat bites, both of which can be fatal.

Is Coco neutered? A neutered cat is less likely to fight than an intact one.

You could try to trap and neuter the stray tom cat. Is there a group that do TNR in your area? They would be able to help you with trapping this cat.

How about walking Coco on a lead? If he is really desperate to go out this is one way that he could get some exercise while you're there to watch over him. Water pistoling the stray will keep him away from you, but if he has decided this is part of his territory he will keep coming back and attacking Coco when he's out alone.

 

[amzi]

Hi Everyone,

I have the same problem with my cat... He is a Ginger Tabby named Jake.

He is the most gentle, kind and loving kitty. He is neutered. He is 4 yrs old. He has befriended every cat in the complex, he is the type that will submit rather than fight back. Even with my black cat who HATES other cats, she won't go looking for fights but if one is in her territory they will have hell to pay and I love it because Jake is bullied by this Grey/White cat, male that used to be a stray and was taken in by our neighbours and has been neutered but wasn't when they found him at a year old. My black cat is the only one he will avoid but she's old and stays close to home. He terrorizes Jake and I've spoken to the owner who makes countless excuses like "He cries so I can't keep him in at night... oh but I do try." I told her to keep him locked in the garage at night with a few toys and a scratching post, shelves to climb, you name it, but she just wont. 
Her cat is new to the complex I stay in, all the other cats are fine and have been for years until she started feeding this stray which at this point I've about had it. I LOVE animals and especially cats but he is not afraid of anything, I even send my dogs out after him when I get a chance because well... oops! Get out of my garden and don't you dare hurt my cat again, I'm done, I'm sick of paying vet bill after vet bill. I've seen them fight so I know what goes on, Jake will see him in the gardens and will slowly turn around and proceed to run away and this cat will chase him, when he catches up, Jake out of habit, being the sweetheart he is will fall onto his side, which is very dangerous and just take the beating until he can find an opportunity to escape and I've heard him cry in PAIN not in aggression as he's the total opposite of aggression. He loves everyone. 
I am even thinking about capturing this cat and getting it declawed or asking the owner to declaw her cat if she won't keep it indoors. And it's not about night or day, it's 24/7 this goes on. Just a moment ago at 3 PM my Jakie was outside my gate, literally right outside and I saw this cat run from it's garage and straight for Jake who was totally oblivious. My dogs went crazy and the dogs are very bonded to Jake, my Springer Spaniel is the same age as Jake, they are a week apart in age. So when I have an opportunity to let him out I will and he goes straight for this other cat. The thing is that I don't want to teach them to be aggressive toward cats but I am almost about to ring this cats neck myself... I'm scared of what I might do to it if I catch it.

I'm just angry right now as you can understand, but I know for a fact this cat is going straight to the vet and I will find a vet to declaw him unless this women takes responsibility.
I would hate to do this but what other option is there... and no I can't leave my cats indoors, they will drive me insane!!! I tried that and it does not work unless conditioned from a young age. It's not like my family will keep windows closed, the temperature rises to 40 degrees Celcius here, sometimes it can go to 45... We'll die in summer with the windows closed. 

I didn't find anything too helpful in the comments, is there some way I can stop this cat targeting mine in a humane way? A spray I could use? spiked armor? HAHA I'll try ANYTHING at this point. 


SO FRUSTRATED!!

 

 

[Norachan]

 
Hi Everyone,

I have the same problem with my cat... He is a Ginger Tabby named Jake.

He is the most gentle, kind and loving kitty. He is neutered. He is 4 yrs old. He has befriended every cat in the complex, he is the type that will submit rather than fight back. Even with my black cat who HATES other cats, she won't go looking for fights but if one is in her territory they will have hell to pay and I love it because Jake is bullied by this Grey/White cat, male that used to be a stray and was taken in by our neighbours and has been neutered but wasn't when they found him at a year old. My black cat is the only one he will avoid but she's old and stays close to home. He terrorizes Jake and I've spoken to the owner who makes countless excuses like "He cries so I can't keep him in at night... oh but I do try." I told her to keep him locked in the garage at night with a few toys and a scratching post, shelves to climb, you name it, but she just wont. 
Her cat is new to the complex I stay in, all the other cats are fine and have been for years until she started feeding this stray which at this point I've about had it. I LOVE animals and especially cats but he is not afraid of anything, I even send my dogs out after him when I get a chance because well... oops! Get out of my garden and don't you dare hurt my cat again, I'm done, I'm sick of paying vet bill after vet bill. I've seen them fight so I know what goes on, Jake will see him in the gardens and will slowly turn around and proceed to run away and this cat will chase him, when he catches up, Jake out of habit, being the sweetheart he is will fall onto his side, which is very dangerous and just take the beating until he can find an opportunity to escape and I've heard him cry in PAIN not in aggression as he's the total opposite of aggression. He loves everyone. 
I am even thinking about capturing this cat and getting it declawed or asking the owner to declaw her cat if she won't keep it indoors. And it's not about night or day, it's 24/7 this goes on. Just a moment ago at 3 PM my Jakie was outside my gate, literally right outside and I saw this cat run from it's garage and straight for Jake who was totally oblivious. My dogs went crazy and the dogs are very bonded to Jake, my Springer Spaniel is the same age as Jake, they are a week apart in age. So when I have an opportunity to let him out I will and he goes straight for this other cat. The thing is that I don't want to teach them to be aggressive toward cats but I am almost about to ring this cats neck myself... I'm scared of what I might do to it if I catch it.

I'm just angry right now as you can understand, but I know for a fact this cat is going straight to the vet and I will find a vet to declaw him unless this women takes responsibility.
I would hate to do this but what other option is there... and no I can't leave my cats indoors, they will drive me insane!!! I tried that and it does not work unless conditioned from a young age. It's not like my family will keep windows closed, the temperature rises to 40 degrees Celcius here, sometimes it can go to 45... We'll die in summer with the windows closed. 

I didn't find anything too helpful in the comments, is there some way I can stop this cat targeting mine in a humane way? A spray I could use? spiked armor? HAHA I'll try ANYTHING at this point. 


SO FRUSTRATED!!

 

Amiz,

I'm sorry to hear you are having this problem with your neighbours cat. Please don't think about getting this cat or any other animal declawed. Declawing is a very inhumane process that causes a lot of pain as well as health and behaviour problems. It's outlawed in most countries, the US is one of the few places that this practice is continued and there are steps being taken to outlaw it in the US too. Take a look at these articles so you understand exactly what declawing is.

http://www.declawing.com/

http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/cats/tips/declawing.html

If you can't keep your cat indoors how about walking on a harness so that he still gets some fresh air or exercise? You could also put some cat proof fencing around your yard to keep Jake in and the other cats out. He is far safer if he stays in your house or yard. Other animals and cars are a danger to him too.