How Can I Stop My Older Cat From Bitting My Kitten?

[monalisaney]

Recently I adopted a new kitten that is about 2 months old. I introduced her to my older cat that is 1 year old in about a week and everything seemed fine. However sometimes my older cat attacks my kitten. When the younger one starts running he just goes running after her and jumps on top of her and sometimes he hurts her. Before he attacks his eyes get really big and fixated. This is isn't something new because when i used to play with him sometimes he would attack me and have that same look. The difference is that i can get a hold of him and reprimend him and since my kitten is too small she cant deffend herself. I try getting him to release his energy other ways but he doesn't seem interested in play (paper balls, feather, laser...). How can I solve this issue?

 

[rubysmama]

Hello and welcome to TCS. Congrats on your new kitten.

Cat introductions usually take more than a week, so if you think your older cat is stressed over the new kitten, you might have to separate them and re-do the introductions. Here's an article with more info: How To Fix An Unsuccessful Cat Introduction

Some of the "fighting" between older cats and kittens is the adult cat teaching the kitten cat manners. Generally, if there's no blood or fur flying, and if the kitten doesn't seem scared, and keeps going back for more "fun", then it is just "mock fighting".

However, because your kitten is still so young, do not leave her with your older cat unsupervised, until she is bigger.