- Joined
- Sep 24, 2018
- Messages
- 68
- Purraise
- 209
Hello! I have two cats - Rosa (2F) and Jake (1M). Rosa's been with me since last August (you can read about my journey with her here!), and Jake came home about 3.5 weeks ago, both from the same rescue organization. The introductions were slow but went great, and the cats are safely co-existing and maybe even bonding. Or... so I thought???
Last night around 3:30 I heard a bit of a ruckus, and I got up to check on them, since I'm still a bit anxious about the introduction process. What I found was... Jake humping Rosa, lol. More specifically, her lower back, but he had her by the neck and was over her. (I checked on her and there was no broken skin!) In a sleep-deprived daze, I thought... my new cat is a rapist! I finally got the presence of mind to tap him, which surprised him off her, and they separated. Rosa went up on her cat tree, Jake wandered around.
(Both cats are neutered, btw! Rosa was neutered at the appropriate kitten age, but it might be relevant that Jake was only neutered on May 7th after being rescued from a hoarder.)
So my question is... is this okay? Will this harm their relationship, and if so, is there anything I can do to discourage it - like separating them again? Is this going to be ongoing, or is it because his neuter was so recent?
Some hopefully relevant behavioural notes: During the first stages of introductions, there was some hissing and growling, but by the time they were having supervised visits, they were both super friendly - ears forward, tails up, inquisitive chirps and meows but no hissing whatsoever. They play occasionally, usually in short bursts, and sometimes I hear some louder meows, but neither have had injuries and spats last less than 10 seconds. Rosa will defend her stuff from Jake (including me, if she's getting pats!) but doesn't make physical contact, just sort of hops down and raises her paws, lol. The rest of the time, Rosa is actively trying to scent-mark Jake and does not seem afraid of him or intimidated by him at all.
Physically, Jake has about 3lbs on Rosa at 8.8lbs, but is quite tall and skinny for his size, whereas Rosa is probably 6-7lbs and built like a tiny tank comparatively.
To be clear, I don't think Jake is bad at all for doing this - I know it's just a natural drive and that there's no bad intention behind it! (I am VERY glad they are both neutered though. I do not need kittens!!!) But I do want to know if this is something I need to address, and if so... how??? lol. I did not realize this could be a thing when I got him, so I'm out of my depth here!
Last night around 3:30 I heard a bit of a ruckus, and I got up to check on them, since I'm still a bit anxious about the introduction process. What I found was... Jake humping Rosa, lol. More specifically, her lower back, but he had her by the neck and was over her. (I checked on her and there was no broken skin!) In a sleep-deprived daze, I thought... my new cat is a rapist! I finally got the presence of mind to tap him, which surprised him off her, and they separated. Rosa went up on her cat tree, Jake wandered around.
(Both cats are neutered, btw! Rosa was neutered at the appropriate kitten age, but it might be relevant that Jake was only neutered on May 7th after being rescued from a hoarder.)
So my question is... is this okay? Will this harm their relationship, and if so, is there anything I can do to discourage it - like separating them again? Is this going to be ongoing, or is it because his neuter was so recent?
Some hopefully relevant behavioural notes: During the first stages of introductions, there was some hissing and growling, but by the time they were having supervised visits, they were both super friendly - ears forward, tails up, inquisitive chirps and meows but no hissing whatsoever. They play occasionally, usually in short bursts, and sometimes I hear some louder meows, but neither have had injuries and spats last less than 10 seconds. Rosa will defend her stuff from Jake (including me, if she's getting pats!) but doesn't make physical contact, just sort of hops down and raises her paws, lol. The rest of the time, Rosa is actively trying to scent-mark Jake and does not seem afraid of him or intimidated by him at all.
Physically, Jake has about 3lbs on Rosa at 8.8lbs, but is quite tall and skinny for his size, whereas Rosa is probably 6-7lbs and built like a tiny tank comparatively.
To be clear, I don't think Jake is bad at all for doing this - I know it's just a natural drive and that there's no bad intention behind it! (I am VERY glad they are both neutered though. I do not need kittens!!!) But I do want to know if this is something I need to address, and if so... how??? lol. I did not realize this could be a thing when I got him, so I'm out of my depth here!