So, it's been a LOOOONG time since I've been here and lots has changed. I wish I were just here to post pics and brag about my cats but I need help desperately! My grumpy old man has started chasing and attacking other cats. He usually picks on one specific male but if caught, he will redirect to other cats.
Just some quick background. Wickett (the bully) is about 14 now and has delt with numerous new additions. I had one cat when I adopted him and they weren't friends but they did ok. FF to 2015 and we rescued a new kitten in June then in November said goodbye to my eldest. 2 years later (2017) we rescued a litter of 4 in the spring and another 2 in the fall. Wickett has always been a bit grumpy but dealt with the new kittens fairly well. A few grumbles but mostly he was ok with them. Then this spring we rescued our last two barn cats (that's a whole other story) bringing our total cat count to 10. They are all indoor cats and we live in a modest 1,000SF single store house. Then the seeming last straw was at the end of this summer when I found a kitten dragging herself across the road taking my son to school. Our last rescue... for real this time. But that's one past Wickett's tolerance level apparently. He was starting to act a little hostile but he was also on steroids for inflammation at the time. I just chalked it up to roid rage but he's been off them for over a month now and is still very aggressive and bullyish toward one specific cat (Rufus). It also got notable worse when the newest addition was released from quarantine. He'll stalk Rufus and chase him and quite literally scare the poop out of him. We've taken to keeping Wickett in the bathroom when we go to bed but we still see evidence of fights if we go out and don't lock him up. I don't know what to do... or where to start beyond keeping them separated when we aren't home to supervise.
Just some quick background. Wickett (the bully) is about 14 now and has delt with numerous new additions. I had one cat when I adopted him and they weren't friends but they did ok. FF to 2015 and we rescued a new kitten in June then in November said goodbye to my eldest. 2 years later (2017) we rescued a litter of 4 in the spring and another 2 in the fall. Wickett has always been a bit grumpy but dealt with the new kittens fairly well. A few grumbles but mostly he was ok with them. Then this spring we rescued our last two barn cats (that's a whole other story) bringing our total cat count to 10. They are all indoor cats and we live in a modest 1,000SF single store house. Then the seeming last straw was at the end of this summer when I found a kitten dragging herself across the road taking my son to school. Our last rescue... for real this time. But that's one past Wickett's tolerance level apparently. He was starting to act a little hostile but he was also on steroids for inflammation at the time. I just chalked it up to roid rage but he's been off them for over a month now and is still very aggressive and bullyish toward one specific cat (Rufus). It also got notable worse when the newest addition was released from quarantine. He'll stalk Rufus and chase him and quite literally scare the poop out of him. We've taken to keeping Wickett in the bathroom when we go to bed but we still see evidence of fights if we go out and don't lock him up. I don't know what to do... or where to start beyond keeping them separated when we aren't home to supervise.