A little background: We adopted a stray "community cat" who had taken up residence on my deck. He was fully vetted by us and was brought inside in July. We introduced him to our two resident cats over a 3 week period, and for over a month now, he has been fully integrated into our family. The resident cats mostly tolerate him--they can share a couch or a bed without incident, and there have been fewer spats as time has passed--but if he gets too close, especially to Toffee (the tortie and self-proclaimed "top cat"), they hiss and spit and scratch.
Over the last few days, I have noticed Toffee getting spunkier than normal with Tucker. In particular, she swats and hisses at him at feeding time if he is in front of her on the way to the food bowls. He is not food aggressive at all--in fact, he typically eats last. However, he is giant compared to her. She probably weighs 8 pounds, where he is closer to 16.
Today, Toffee was hiding when I fed the cats their breakfast. I have since found her, hidden in the back of my son's closet, and she seems to not be fully opening one of her eyes. I suspect that she and our new boy, Tucker, got into a spat last night and she may have been scratched in the eye. She is pitiful and has been curled up next to me or next to her litter-mate, Mittens, most of the morning. We have a vet appt this afternoon, but I have concerns.
Does this injury mean that she and Tucker cannot get along, ever? Why would Toffee have suddenly grown so much more aggressive with him? And now that he has injured Toffee, is this going to be a constant thing? I can't deal with that kind of stress. Am I going to have to re-home Tucker??
Over the last few days, I have noticed Toffee getting spunkier than normal with Tucker. In particular, she swats and hisses at him at feeding time if he is in front of her on the way to the food bowls. He is not food aggressive at all--in fact, he typically eats last. However, he is giant compared to her. She probably weighs 8 pounds, where he is closer to 16.
Today, Toffee was hiding when I fed the cats their breakfast. I have since found her, hidden in the back of my son's closet, and she seems to not be fully opening one of her eyes. I suspect that she and our new boy, Tucker, got into a spat last night and she may have been scratched in the eye. She is pitiful and has been curled up next to me or next to her litter-mate, Mittens, most of the morning. We have a vet appt this afternoon, but I have concerns.
Does this injury mean that she and Tucker cannot get along, ever? Why would Toffee have suddenly grown so much more aggressive with him? And now that he has injured Toffee, is this going to be a constant thing? I can't deal with that kind of stress. Am I going to have to re-home Tucker??
Last edited: