Help (not An Original Title, Sorry)

[salix]

Haven't posted in years, I'm more of a reader.
I have three cats, Espie, is a pure lumpy lovebug, and never causes me any worry, the problem is Stinker, and, I assume, Mica.
Mica is now a geriatric lady, and we've been companions for years, I acquired stinker about 3 years ago, when she was found under a deck with her two siblings, the vet figured she was about 5 weeks old, she was full of worms and poop all over her fur, hence the name, and she always treated me as her mama, always needing to be near me.
Stinker and Mica always avoided each other, and I've always made sure to pay them as equal attention as i could, even if Stinker was always the more needy one.
The other day, I got home from work, and stinker was nowhere to be seen, Mica is usually the greeter cat, so, I wasn't so worried at first, but a couple hours passed and I hadn't seen Stinker.
I went looking, and I found her in my bedroom closet, I picked her up, and she snuggled into me, so, I carried her out to the livingroom to eat and spend time, and she freaked out, she left long scratches in my chest in her attempt to escape.
I finally found Stinker again, and put her in my room with food and a litterbox, once she realised it was only me and her in there, she snuggled into me and ate the soft food, after checking obsessively, i observed the litter was used, so, physical health ok.
Stinker has been in my bedroom for a day and a half, I guess I'm asking if there's a way I can get the girls more tolerant of each other? It can't be a life trapped in one room, but Stinker needs me, and Mica's my bud, and old, Is there anything more I can be doing?

 

[rubysmama]

Welcome back to TCS. Sorry though that it's cat stress that's brought you here.

Did the aggression between Stinker and Mica just escalate recently? Have they ever co-existed somewhat peacefully? Just wondering if it's possible that Mica isn't feeling well, and took it out on Stinker?

 

[salix]

they've always had an uneasy peace, never actually getting violent, just avoiding each other, i could always take Mica in to the vet, she's just not exhibited any signs

 

[rubysmama]

How old is Mica? As you know, cats are good at hiding their pain. Here's a TCS article on 35 Signs That Your Cat May Be In Pain

The recent aggression, of course, might have been caused by something outside the house that Mica is blaming on Stinker. Maybe try separating them for a bit and seeing if a re-introduction helps. Here's some more articles:

Re-directed Aggression In Cats
How To Deal With Non-recognition Aggression In Cats
Why Do Cats Attack?

Is Your Cat Stressed Out?

 

[salix]

Mica is about 14 years old, not being as I've observed anything more than old lady cranky, but as a cat mom, I'm always learning, I'm scared of anthropomorphism, I can take her to the vet , she tends to give me intense eyes, and big head burrows

 

[Jem]

I would definitely bring Mica to the vet to do a seniors check up. She could be in pain from age related arthritis which is why she does not tolerate Stinker very well. Over the last couple of years it could have become worse and she was having a particularly bad day and Stinker just happened to walk too close for comfort to Mica so she lashed out.
Once Mica gets the all clear and/or treatment, I would try a re-introduction of the two.

 

[salix]

I will certainly do that, thank you, and thank the powers that be for not purging my account, it’s always good to get an outside opinion when I’m in trouble or confused about something

 

[kissthisangel]

hmmm, we won't know if stinker and Mica are having issues if they won't have any chance to interact. That said it's difficult to knowingly put your cats in a potentially stressful situation. I think the vet check is necessary for your own peace of mind and to establish if Mica is unwell. I would however try rubbing a nice clean sock allover Mica and then just leave the sock on the floor in your room not near to any important resources, like food or water, or you, to test Stinker's reaction. If Stinker retreats and hides then it's a pretty clear result - she's frightened of Mica.

If she doesn't do this after sniffing the Mica sock then you may be ok to slowly re-introduce them, taking cues from the cats as to how they feel (and of course depending on your vet-checks). Perhaps something happened whilst you were out that spooked stinker (or Mica) that lead to a particularly bad interaction that caused the immediate fear. It could be the room she has a bad association with and not the other cats. I only think of this because of how my house is separated, we try not to let the cats in the kitchen because cooking is hot and food is clean and things so our central area is the living room which means almost everything happens there.

Have you tried any re-introductions between Mica and Stinker between this time? how did it go? How is Espie acting during all of this, does she look for Stinker?

 

[rubysmama]

Have you tried Feliway? Some members say it helps. Others think it's a waste of money. But it might be something to look into. Or ask the vet about.

 

[salix]

An update; I took Mica to the vet, they confirmed that she's a senior, in good health, just make sure to put her on senior's food, which I did, to be fair, she's always been a bit territorial, but I never discount anything, especially since, until today, Stinker refused to venture out of my room.
A few days ago, I came home from work, and found that I had forgotten to shut my bedroom door, and what do I see? Mica and Stinker, both chilled out on my bed, so I took Kissthisangel's advice, and tried the sock trick on Espie, no dice, not even a reaction.
I considered not putting food out in my room, but I was scared that stinker would just starve herself if i did that, I put catnip in the hallway, she wouldn't fall for it, tonight, I took a break, and left the door open, and after a few hours, in which Stinker would call for me periodically, she finally came out, her tail is down, she's being wary, and I make sure to praise and pet everytime she leans on my ankles, but she's FINALLY out, and thank god, because she was beginning to scare me.
Thank you so much for all advice, even after this long, I feel like a noob, or a crazy cat lady, I just don't want to screw up this privilege I've been given with my girls.

 

[rubysmama]

Thanks for the update. Glad to hear that Mica is in good health. And that she and Stinker were chilling on your bed. Fingers crossed whatever happened between them is forgotten.