Male Cat Picks On Female

[Loverofcats1992]

I adopted a male and female kitten back in May after I lost my 7yr fur-babies within a month of each other, And as they have gotten older the black male cat it seems is always bullying the tabby female. They are kittens though they aren't a year old yet but they are big.

They can be laying down at the window behaving and all of a sudden he will pounce or start biting at her. I have seen him bite at her neck,back legs and maybe her genital area? He is neutered but she isn't spayed yet I'm waiting for when she can get a spot on the local spay&neuter bus. I thought when he would be fixed that he would be less aggressive?

I will yell at him so many times to leave her alone because I can hear her growling and hissing and when she is screaming, And that's when I have to get up and make him go away because he will have her cornered. And she is always running from him when she just wants to be alone.

Because when she is spayed I can't have him biting and pouncing on her since she will be tender all over and he could cause some serious damage to her not to mention the stress it's causing her I'm sure. Am I missing something here? Is it me? I don't want to come home and see he has attacked her and bleeding or worse he killed her. Because honestly....I think the first time I come home and I see he has done that then it's time for him to go.

 

[5starcathotel]

From what I understand, male cats tend to stay active/aggressive a bit longer than females. That is to say, a 2yo male cat will be a bit more interested in playing/hunting/killing than a 2yo female..regardless of neutering. But obviously, this will vary from cat to cat.

That said, I *strongly* *doubt* that your female is in any real physical danger. CERTAINLY the situation is not ideal for her, and we want to improve their relationship...but cats that have grown up together and lived together for 6 months should not be mortal enemies out for blood! Indeed, the fact he can just relax and lay down in the same room as her means he considers her to be *family*.

Your boy probably needs a bit more play time with something that can really get him moving like Da Bird or even a laser pointer. Even your girl will benefit from this, as it will reinforce her physical hunt/catch/kill instincts.

Last thing I'll say is, try not to overreact. "Screaming" is never good, but:
- Chasing each other through the house - awesome.
- Wrestling with each other, even if she is on her back in what seems like a submissive position - awesome.
- Screaming, fur flying, hissing, etc...not quite so awesome, and when we want to intervene with toys and playtime for *both* cats.

 

[artaq]

we have dealt with this in our home. we hired 2 cat behaviorists to come and advise us over the years...the 1st was a waste of our time and $. the 2nd behaviorist finally gave some great advice:

- she advised us to put a collar with bells on our male Shamus. this way Tula alwyasknows where he is so she can keep her distance if she so chooses, and he can't surprise her.

- she said we needed to create more vertical space. so i went and bought 2 more cat trees. i also bought some "cat" shelving on Etsy. this makes it so both cats can go to more places and they aren't "trapped," but can escape from either end. i screwed in the shelving so that at either end, they can safely jump off.

- she said exactly what 5starcathotel said above, give him more play time daily, to get his energy out.

our situation was a bit more dire with serious fur flying / out for blood. our little girl Tula has redirected aggression issues from 6 years ago, this is something we still keep an eye on daily. she is on daily liquid (tuna flavored) prozac which has helped TREMENDOUSLY. when we are sleeping or away from home, the 2 cats are kept separate so that they don't get into a fight and regress. we bought a 6 foot tall by 8 foot wide wall-accordion type product off of Amazon that has helped with this...too tall for them to jump over.

i hope this helps some, don't give up!

 

[Columbine]

You've had some great replies here already

Yes to everything that's been suggested so far, especially more interactive playtime for the male, and introducing more vertical space. More playtime for the female will help too, as it's a great confidence booster, so may help her stand up for herself a little better with the male.

Just in case, this article may be helpful (though I hope its never needed ): How To Safely Break Up A Cat Fight

Lastly, a few questions:-

• How old are these guys now?
• How old was your boy when he got fixed?
• How long ago was he fixed?

I'm asking because, if he was mature enough to reproduce (or close to it), neutering won't have had an immediate effect hormonally - it takes a few weeks for those hormones to leave his system. This could easily explain his more aggressive behaviour, especially if your girl is old enough to be approaching her first heat/season. If this is a factor, it should naturally ease off a bit over the next few weeks.