New cat terrorizes old cat.

[flowercatt]

So I have a situation that I really need help with. I'm afraid I'm going to have to re-home one of my cats soon if this doesn't get better

I've had Lucy for about 6 years and she's getting to be about 10 years old now.

We adopted Pete in November and he's about a year old.

We took in Bumblebee about two months ago and the vet estimated her to be about two.

So Pete absolutely loves to chase Lucy. It's literally constant. When we first got Pete we did the slow introduction, transferring items with each other's scents at first, then letting them eat next to each other through a cracked door.

After this two week introduction period it's like something clicked in Pete's head and he chases her literally whenever he sees her. After about a week of that we decided to restart the introduction process and he's been living in our spare bedroom for about two months now with absolutely no contact with her. There was a few weeks where I would let him roam the house with the other cats shut in my room to let him smell them in the house. Just now I let them eat next to each other through an open door .. and 10 seconds in he sprinted after her and chased her through the house. After not seeing her for literally two months.

The few times he's seen Bumblebee he hasn't done this to her. He harasses her some but doesn't chase her down like he does with Lucy. I'm starting to think he's just not compatible with other cats and I'll have to re-home him. And I feel awful leaving him in the spare bedroom. It's not a tiny room but he can't get as much attention as I would like to give him in there.

 

[Mac and Cats]

What do you usually do when this happens? Do you try to play with the younger cats to tire them out? Do they have any other stimulation? Do they have high places to retreat to? Would it work to have a gate (or two) blocking off the door instead of a completely shut door? Then maybe they could sniff/interact without being able to chase and pounce? He may be doing this because he is just curious and interested in meeting her?

I have a similar issue. We have a 15 yo and a 13yo and we also have a 10mo that loves to chase and pounce. I tried just removing him from the situation repeatedly as people told me this would eventually work, but to be patient and persistent. However, this wasn't really working with my work from home situation because I'd be getting up every 5 seconds to remove him sometimes. Eventually, I ended up buying 3 tension baby gates and blocking off the two back bedrooms with the baby gates stacked floor to ceiling. So, the two older cats have access to both back bedrooms. They usually hang out there most of the day anyway, so it isn't really an issue for them. If they do want out for whatever reason, I just remove the two bottom gates so that they have access. There are litter boxes, food and water on all sides of the gate, so everyone has access to all of their needs. It can be pretty annoying if you need to go into the back bedrooms, but it works for now and gives the elder cats some peace for at least part of the day. I'm hoping we won't need to do this forever. I do remove the gate when the kitten has calmed down and can behave himself and also at night when we are sleeping. It isn't a great long term solution, but it does work for us for now.

 

[flowercatt]

What do you usually do when this happens? Do you try to play with the younger cats to tire them out? Do they have any other stimulation? Do they have high places to retreat to? Would it work to have a gate (or two) blocking off the door instead of a completely shut door? Then maybe they could sniff/interact without being able to chase and pounce? He may be doing this because he is just curious and interested in meeting her?

I have a similar issue. We have a 15 yo and a 13yo and we also have a 10mo that loves to chase and pounce. I tried just removing him from the situation repeatedly as people told me this would eventually work, but to be patient and persistent. However, this wasn't really working with my work from home situation because I'd be getting up every 5 seconds to remove him sometimes. Eventually, I ended up buying 3 tension baby gates and blocking off the two back bedrooms with the baby gates stacked floor to ceiling. So, the two older cats have access to both back bedrooms. They usually hang out there most of the day anyway, so it isn't really an issue for them. If they do want out for whatever reason, I just remove the two bottom gates so that they have access. There are litter boxes, food and water on all sides of the gate, so everyone has access to all of their needs. It can be pretty annoying if you need to go into the back bedrooms, but it works for now and gives the elder cats some peace for at least part of the day. I'm hoping we won't need to do this forever. I do remove the gate when the kitten has calmed down and can behave himself and also at night when we are sleeping. It isn't a great long term solution, but it does work for us for now.

Hello and thanks for your answer. Yes, we play with Pete constantly because he is so high energy. The little outburst he had just now was right after 30 minutes of intense playing because I hoped it would help with him wanting to chase. He is a very high energy cat and when we let him roam the house he sprints around all day. We've tried removing him from the situation, but like you said, I would be getting up every 5 seconds. There was a week or two where I tried spraying him with water every time he chased but it seemed to effect him none. I tried setting up a baby gate but he would climb over it. I even put two gates on top of each other and he still got over. Me and my fiance are looking into getting a gate that will take up the whole door so he wont get over. It gives me some hope that the gates seemed to work for you because that's our next step

 

[Mac and Cats]

There was a week or two where I tried spraying him with water every time he chased but it seemed to effect him none. I tried setting up a baby gate but he would climb over it. I even put two gates on top of each other and he still got over. Me and my fiance are looking into getting a gate that will take up the whole door so he wont get over. It gives me some hope that the gates seemed to work for you because that's our next step

Yes, that's why I ended up stacking 3 from floor to ceiling so that it was impossible for him to climb over. I put the shortest one at the very top and don't usually take it down because it's just too much of a pain to remove and put back. My husband had several days of needing to remember to duck under it. It can be super annoying when you need something from the other rooms. So, I usually just try to make sure I have everything I need. If I do need to get in there real quick and don't plan to keep the gates removed, I usually just remove the bottom one and duck under. It's not super convenient. There are probably better options. I wanted to put a wooden framed screen door temporarily so that it would be easier to come and go, but my husband wasn't a fan of this idea and I think our door frames in the hallway would get in the way of opening/closing it anyway. Hope you find a solution that works for you!

 

[Alldara]

Hi F flowercatt Can you describe the reasons why you think he's not playing with the other cats?

Chasing is a normal play activity. So is batting and swatting at one another.

 

[flowercatt]

Hi F flowercatt Can you describe the reasons why you think he's not playing with the other cats?

Chasing is a normal play activity. So is batting and swatting at one another.

Hello. I think he might be playing with Bumblebee, because his fur does not stand up, he doesn't hiss, and it isn't as constant with her. With Lucy, I do think it's aggression. He hisses, chases every second he gets the chance, and his fur stands up. There has been a few times where it evolved to them tumbling and screaming at each other. Even if he is playing I would still like to put a stop to it because Lucy is obviously not enjoying it. She's an older cat

 

[Alldara]

You could try tossing a peice of kibble or a treat.

Spraying water won't work well. It just means he won't do it when you're there as soon as he realizes the water only sprays when humans are around. It will degrade your relationship with him rather than teach. He needs to be provided an alternative behaviour, if it is indeed not playing.

If you are VERY very sure that this isn't play behaviour, I would recommend getting a harness and leash on to him one weekend when you are home and using that to stop the behaviour. Do not pull, just stop him from chasing.. say to him, "All done chase." When he tries to chase your older cat. It take a time.... sometimes a long time to train a cat.

However, chase should really only be stopped if the other cat is hiding (without sticking their feet out to play upon successful hide, or mutual chasing back and forth to various hiding spots), or if there is growling, squeeks of pain (aka request to stop), or hissing to back off that isn't being respected.

 

[Alldara]

Hello. I think he might be playing with Bumblebee, because his fur does not stand up, he doesn't hiss, and it isn't as constant with her. With Lucy, I do think it's aggression. He hisses, chases every second he gets the chance, and his fur stands up. There has been a few times where it evolved to them tumbling and screaming at each other. Even if he is playing I would still like to put a stop to it because Lucy is obviously not enjoying it. She's an older cat

Great! Thanks for letting us know.

When you let him go, you fully release him and then he goes right back to it from what I can see.

On a day when you're both home and he's out, I would suggest rather than fully removing him to do the following.

-sit or stand outside Lucy's hiding spot
- block his path and say, "All done." In a firm tone. Try to distract at this point. Some cats are very stubborn.

(Sometimes when Cal is annoying Nobel he will walk in a circle and then try to annoy him from the other side, at this point I just put a firm hand on his chest to stop him proceeding forward and repeat 'all done' then pause to allow him to eventually back off, or you know come around in another circuit and try another angle).

Pete's got a TON of energy at 1 year. Keeping him in a room will not be helpful to reducing it, so I think it would really benefit all of you to solve this issue long term. Though, it would be really great to continue to give Lucy closes-door breaks from him until he chills out.

Is Pete neutered?

Has Lucy been to the vet for senior bloodwork in the last 6 months? Pete might also be bullying as she's sick and that makes him nervous.

 

[Teddy Cat]

So I have a situation that I really need help with. I'm afraid I'm going to have to re-home one of my cats soon if this doesn't get better

I've had Lucy for about 6 years and she's getting to be about 10 years old now.

We adopted Pete in November and he's about a year old.

We took in Bumblebee about two months ago and the vet estimated her to be about two.

So Pete absolutely loves to chase Lucy. It's literally constant. When we first got Pete we did the slow introduction, transferring items with each other's scents at first, then letting them eat next to each other through a cracked door.

After this two week introduction period it's like something clicked in Pete's head and he chases her literally whenever he sees her. After about a week of that we decided to restart the introduction process and he's been living in our spare bedroom for about two months now with absolutely no contact with her. There was a few weeks where I would let him roam the house with the other cats shut in my room to let him smell them in the house. Just now I let them eat next to each other through an open door .. and 10 seconds in he sprinted after her and chased her through the house. After not seeing her for literally two months.

The few times he's seen Bumblebee he hasn't done this to her. He harasses her some but doesn't chase her down like he does with Lucy. I'm starting to think he's just not compatible with other cats and I'll have to re-home him. And I feel awful leaving him in the spare bedroom. It's not a tiny room but he can't get as much attention as I would like to give him in there.

Hello, would love an update on this situation since its been a while now.

I am currently in a similar situation with our new cat who is only around 2 years old. She has been with us now for over a year, but its only been recently that we have let them "mesh together" after a very very long separation and introduction. New cat will not stop chasing our older resident cat (also a bit wallflower-ish) and its more of an intimidation than play.