HELP!! had one cat shaved now others HATE him

[xkittenmittensx]

Hello, I'm hoping someone can help me here. I have 3 cats (1 female and 2 males all spayed/neutered) that were all adopted together and have been inseparable until today. For the first time I had my Maine Coon mix shaved for the summer and now the other two are acting as if he is a new cat. Non stop viscous hissing and fighting has got everyone really upset.  I know its a scent thing, the shampoo that the groomer used was pretty strong and he obviously looks different but i don't know how to reminder the situation, any suggestions? i have a large 2 story house but should i separate the Maine Coon  until the other 2 calm down? will they ever go back to the way they were? any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[fhicat]

 
 i have a large 2 story house but should i separate the Maine Coon  until the other 2 calm down? 

Probably a good idea to restart introductions too. Treat them like you would with a new "stranger" cat, because it's likely he's now a strange cat to the others. Separate him, and then re-do introductions over several weeks.

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/introducing-cats-to-cats

This is a general tip though, so hopefully someone with Maine Coon knowledge can give specific pointers to help!

 

[cocheezie]

You might try keeping him separate until he's settled down and had a good wash himself. I'm sure he thinks the groomer got it wrong and mussed up his hair and he has to put everything back to right. - i.e., gets rid of most of the shampoo smell, and covers himself with his own saliva (scent). Just a thought. (Cat motto: when in doubt, wash)

Edit: my Maine Cooni-ish brown tabby does mind the heat at all. Is this why you had him groomed?

 

[xkittenmittensx]

Thanks for the advice! I was thinking about washing the other 2 but i am nervous about their whole dominance system getting messed up (even more?). Since one of the short hairs (2 short hairs and 1 long) is a runt i don't want the other 2 picking on her to establish their place. And I'm also leery of adding more stress to the situation.

Last summer was rough for Reggie (Maine Coon) he is a very active 2yr old and even with routine brushing hair mats were annoying, not to mention the other two cats were constantly grooming him so double the hairballs.  But now after this no more groomer, this was NOT worth it!  I wish i would have known that there was even a possibility of this happening, i would never have done it.  I will definitely recommend to others that they either have all the cats done at once or to just do it themselves. They used to act like they were brothers and sister, i hope one day they will again

 

[andrya]

lt won't take long for them to sort themselves out, mine do this every time one of them comes home from the vet! You could help things along quicker by taking the other 2 cats' blankets or beds and rubbing them onto the shaved cat so he smells more like home.

 

[denice]

My little girl cat does this when my boy comes home from the vet, it always took 3 days for it to sort out.  I did find something that greatly sped things up purely by accident.  I always did the towel rubbing thing on both of them.  A few months ago I grabbed a towel that I had used to dry myself off after a shower with right before I took him to the vet and used that.  For the first time no hissing I guess putting my scent in with the mix did the trick.

 

[xkittenmittensx]

Wow that's a great idea! i will definitely try that! Now it seems that here has been a change in power, the once meek Maine coon is now very aggressive (a complete 180 change!) toward the format top cat.  its to the point that the Maine coon wont let the other cat eat or even walk around upstairs and will chase/meow/growl at him. Dexter is such a sweet cat to see him constantly afraid is tough. any suggestions as to how to ease this situation?

 

[BayouBlessings]

I realize this is an old thread, but I'm glad it was still available to read. I shaved my Maine Coon yesterday, and now, my other cat screams at him. They got into a terrible fight! I ended up caging them for the night. I never knew this could happen. PrettyBoy (Maine Coon) had gotten such a thick coat on him and he was leaving huge clumps of hair everywhere and hair balls. So, I shaved him (I'm a groomer). I didn't bathe him or spray him with anything that would affect his odor, but I guess the fact that he looks so different has Leo upset. Dang! I'll just keep him brushed in the future. I certainly don't want to go through this again!!