Aggressive Episodes Getting Worse

[Ayns]

Ive scheduled a neuter for my one unneutered boy and I think I just need some reassurance that it will fix my problem. I have two males one neutered and one unneutered. My Tom cat has been having episodes. The first time it happened I dropped something and he attacked my leg. The second time was months later and I looked off the edge of the bed at him and laid back down. He jumped on my face and scratched me to pieces. It feels like he's scared an he makes a horrible yowling and screaming noise. When he gets like this he goes after my other boy too. This usually only happened once every few months but it's happened 3 times these past 3 weeks and tonight twice already. I'm not sure what's even triggering him anymore but if I make a loud noise or drop something or accidentally knick him off the bed in my sleep he goes into beast mode. Will literally hunt me if I leave the room and try to jump on my legs. Has he just associated me with trying to hurt him. He's always been a bit of a dick but the attacks are a lot to handle. Im just praying that his neuter tomorrow can fix the aggression. Do you guys think there's a deeper problem that will persist? He's an indoor cat and has all his shots by the way.

 

[Stephanie1373]

Yikes! I’m so sorry this happens! I know you must be feeling freaked out and disheartened at the same time. Neutering usually calms down some of the aggression but not always, it really depends on the cat. This guy sounds like he’s got some high anxiety happening. Talk to your vet and explain what’s going on and see if there’s a physical issue happening. Sometimes aggression stems from pain or illness.

If he’s physically alright then maybe he could use some medication to calm his nerves, like kitty Xanax. Or if you prefer the natural route then you could use CBD oil which can calm down a high anxiety cat. Does he get a lot of playtime? Sometimes releasing the pent up energy can calm a kitty down.

Best of luck to you and your kitties!

 

[sargon]

It may take a few weeks (the hormones stick around for a bit post neutering), and you may need to supplement with behavioral training to get your cat where you want him (especially if he's a bit older), but neutering should cause a rapid and dramatic drop in aggression.

 

[rubysmama]

Hello and welcome to TCS. I hope neutering calms down your cat's aggression. It might be wise to mention these attacks to the vet when you drop him off for his neuter appointment, just so they are aware, and can maybe check for anything physically wrong with him.

Meanwhile here's a TCS article that might be helpful: Cat Aggression Toward People

 

[Ladewyn]

Yeah, while neutering can help if the behaviour is hormone related, bear in mind even fixed cats, male and female, have been known to be aggressive. If the aggression is due to fear (or other emotions), there's a huge chance that neutering won't fix anything, since it's not actually getting rid of the hormone causing the issue (which is probably adrenaline/cortisol/etc). It will maybe make the attacks a little less intense, but he may still need some behavioural therapy to really address the issue.