My brother rang me this morning with a problem he could not solve. His cat is being accused of raiding neighbours' houses, attacking their cats and in some cases, dogs, and defecating/peeing on their beds. He is having to replace a mattress and pay for a catdoor in the process. This started in May and has got progressively worse.
To start at the beginning - Mackenzie is a large, long-haired, polydactyl, neutered male. He lives with my brother, his partner, another cat and a small dog, in a North London suburb - the family have been there for 5 years. The house is in a quiet street that backs onto a forest. The cats have a catflap and go in and out at will, both into the garden and over the fence into the forest. They usually stay inside at night. Mackenzie has a habit of visiting some of the neighbours, who till recently have welcomed him, and he has been friendly with their pets. A recent change has been a couple who have into a house opposite, who have two dogs. However as the dogs are only in the back garden, contact with Mackenzie has been minimal.
In late May, a neighbour complained that MAckenzie kept coming into their house and eating their cat's food. This escalated to Mackenzie attacking another house's kitten and one of the cats (unspecified) defecating on a bed. Then other neighbours began to tell similar stories, so that now Mackenzie is dubbed the cat from hell. He is accused of raiding food cupboards, attacking a dog, peeoing and defecating in their houses (brazenly, according to one person) and generally being a bully. At home his behaviour has been normal.
My brother took him to the vet to be checked out and for advice. He is medically healthy, apart from being slightly overweight (6 kg). The vet suggested a Feliway plug-in, which has had no effect. A catflap is being installed, at my brother's expense, in the kitten's house. The kitten is male and as yet unneutered, though this behaviour started before its arrival. He is also buying a new mattress for another neighbour after a catfight resulted in cat poo and pee on the bed. Obviously, this cannot go on, but the causes remain mysterious.
Changes are being made. My brother is installing the latest microchip controlled cat door in his own house, to make it easier to keep the cats in at night. They have been trying to keep Mackenzie in, but he is now being released at 7am, whereupon he goes straight round to cause havoc elsewhere. I have suggested that for the moment both cats should be kept inside 24/7, if only to confirm that Mackenzie is responsible for all the incidents, and maybe to try to break the cycle of behaviour. Keeping them in permanently is not an option for them - it is not normal for cats in the UK and neither cat is used to having a litter box indoors.
Mackenzie is trying to establish his dominance over the neighbourhood. But why he should do this after 5 years is a puzzle. I thought it might be the kitten next door, but it started before that. The kitten will be neutered soon so that may help. Unfortunately no-one, except my brother, is seeing this from Mackenzie's point of view. He is obviously unhappy with the current environment, but we need to identify the trigger factor. He gets enough to eat at home, and still seems happy there; there have been no changes in his behaviour towards his home or family. Any ideas or questions?
To start at the beginning - Mackenzie is a large, long-haired, polydactyl, neutered male. He lives with my brother, his partner, another cat and a small dog, in a North London suburb - the family have been there for 5 years. The house is in a quiet street that backs onto a forest. The cats have a catflap and go in and out at will, both into the garden and over the fence into the forest. They usually stay inside at night. Mackenzie has a habit of visiting some of the neighbours, who till recently have welcomed him, and he has been friendly with their pets. A recent change has been a couple who have into a house opposite, who have two dogs. However as the dogs are only in the back garden, contact with Mackenzie has been minimal.
In late May, a neighbour complained that MAckenzie kept coming into their house and eating their cat's food. This escalated to Mackenzie attacking another house's kitten and one of the cats (unspecified) defecating on a bed. Then other neighbours began to tell similar stories, so that now Mackenzie is dubbed the cat from hell. He is accused of raiding food cupboards, attacking a dog, peeoing and defecating in their houses (brazenly, according to one person) and generally being a bully. At home his behaviour has been normal.
My brother took him to the vet to be checked out and for advice. He is medically healthy, apart from being slightly overweight (6 kg). The vet suggested a Feliway plug-in, which has had no effect. A catflap is being installed, at my brother's expense, in the kitten's house. The kitten is male and as yet unneutered, though this behaviour started before its arrival. He is also buying a new mattress for another neighbour after a catfight resulted in cat poo and pee on the bed. Obviously, this cannot go on, but the causes remain mysterious.
Changes are being made. My brother is installing the latest microchip controlled cat door in his own house, to make it easier to keep the cats in at night. They have been trying to keep Mackenzie in, but he is now being released at 7am, whereupon he goes straight round to cause havoc elsewhere. I have suggested that for the moment both cats should be kept inside 24/7, if only to confirm that Mackenzie is responsible for all the incidents, and maybe to try to break the cycle of behaviour. Keeping them in permanently is not an option for them - it is not normal for cats in the UK and neither cat is used to having a litter box indoors.
Mackenzie is trying to establish his dominance over the neighbourhood. But why he should do this after 5 years is a puzzle. I thought it might be the kitten next door, but it started before that. The kitten will be neutered soon so that may help. Unfortunately no-one, except my brother, is seeing this from Mackenzie's point of view. He is obviously unhappy with the current environment, but we need to identify the trigger factor. He gets enough to eat at home, and still seems happy there; there have been no changes in his behaviour towards his home or family. Any ideas or questions?
