After tail amputation surgery, 'healthy' cat continues to be aggressive..

[thedixonsmama]

We have two sweet boys who are brothers, Daryl and Merle (any Walking Dead fans around here?). The boys will be two this October. They were found together, huddled in a ditch by our old home, and have been inseparable since - to this day they cry when they are unsure of where the other is. Recently we made a cross-country move from Florida to Michigan. Both boys did a great job with the trip and adjusting to their temporary home at my parents. That is, until Daryl developed severe allergies (to what, we are still unsure) and had a spattering of terrible sores across his forehead, the likes of which our vet had never encountered. Merle had similar, much smaller red spots that cleared up almost as soon as they showed up. Daryl wasn't so lucky, and he ended up tearing open a couple, landing himself in a cone for about a month. Daryl is a klutz on a good day, and he was really struggling with the cone. As a climber though, he still insisted on getting on top of whatever he could manage to climb. Well, one day when we were at work, he managed to fall off the old tube TV in the basement and crash into my brothers pile of game consoles. In doing so, he broke his tail in two places. After the bottom half of his tail effectively died, the vet deemed it necessary to do a tail amputation, removing all but three inches of Daryl's tail.

Now, up until this point, Merle has always been the more reserved/nervous/skittish of the two boys. Daryl is a sweet, outgoing and adventurous cat. Any time the boys would go to the vet, despite scheduling appointments for them to go at the same time, Merle would spend a few hours hissing at Daryl upon their return. I know this is normal, as cats will not recognize even their own brothers if it doesn't smell like their brother. Other than these situations neither cat has ever exhibited aggression in any way toward the other. They play but they don't even play that rough when they do. Aside from the couple hours of hissing after the vet, they're the best of buddies.

I know this all sounds typical (post-vet non-recognition aggression) and I expected it when returning from the vet after Daryl's surgery. However, that was five days ago and it's still happening and happening at a scale that I would never have expected. Not only is Merle hissing whenever Daryl is near, he is growling, swatting, and going after Daryl. But not just Daryl, us too. If we smell like Daryl, he hisses at us and even tried to bite me the other day. He has gotten ever so slightly better, but I expected him to be fine by now. We are keeping them separated unless we are home, and when we are with them we are treating it like a new pet integration process. Daryl never strikes back or hisses back, he simply looks confused and heartbroken by his brother's behavior.

I have tried diffusing lavender oil to calm Merle, and have given him blankets of Daryl's (which he sleeps on just fine). They're sharing a litter box and a food dish with no problems. Merle seems to be mostly bothered by the amputated tail and its accompanying scent.

Have any of you experienced this type of non-recognition aggression that has continued for this long? Any suggestions, recommendations? I'm at a loss and I just want everything back to normal. I can tell Merle is just confused and upset and isn't trying to be a jerk, but I just want to make sure Daryl isn't being caused any unnecessary additional stress because he needs to heal. Please help!

 

[misterwhiskers]

Hi! Sorry about your cats tail amputation! Poor guy!!

I once lived in a household with 4 cats. The "alpha" cat had to get some surgery on an infected ear, and the younger, non related, non alpha male was like Merle--very hissy, unsure of himself. It lasted about 2 weeks. It seemed out of character until we realized that as the beta male, he kinda expected the male cat to look out for "the pack", and once he was injured, it scared him. It's possible this is a play to be alpha, but my best guess is he's just insecure. You brought home his brother, minus a tail...cats use their tails to communicate with. He also has a cone...and smells like a doctors office (and other pets, maybe)...in other words, he's an alien!!! It's possible too, that he's swishing his now bobbed tail in discomfort, and his brother interprets that as aggression.

I would separate the two for now, because Daryl can't risk his tail being injured if his brother does the freakout on him. I'd give it up to two weeks, then crack the door so they can sniff each other. You might try switching their areas up, so scents get switched. The Feliway is a good idea.

Now, I'm not a behavior specialist, just somebody who's had cats her whole life. I wouldn't worry too much; given a little time and patience, they'll soon be on good terms. But I would expect it to take a few weeks, anyway.

 

[thedixonsmama]

That actually makes a lot of sense - because as much as Merle puts up a tough guy front, he really is much more timid than Daryl. So even though Daryl is a big softie, I can see him being the more dominant of the two. He usually dictates play, and I suppose I previously interpreted his unwillingness to be rough with Merle as submissive, though it could just be that he's well aware of their size/strength differences and does not want to hurt his brother (he's also very gentle with us when play nipping/kicking, unlike Merle who is a bit more aggressive with play). Thank you for that insight, it makes a lot of sense, and I was getting the vibe that Merle is more confused and upset than anything. I know he isn't trying to be a butthead, haha.

I was thinking about the Feliway collar, or Good Behavior collar but I've heard such mixed reviews about all Feliway products helping with this type of aggression I wasn't sure about spending the money if it wasn't going to work. After all, we've had our fair share of vet bills in the past month and I'm trying to regroup after those expenses. 

You're not the first to tell me it may take a few weeks, so I do feel quite a bit better about the fact that he's not back to himself immediately like usual. Thanks for the input, I appreciate it! :]