Strange Kitty

[sailfish]

Tika was the last to become part of out Cat collection. We got her because Myah was being outcast by the other two cats and was becoming a punching bag for Chaka. We figured by adding a fourth cat to the mix it would even the numbers and things might iron themselves out. This idea didn't work out. Tika now attacks Myah viciously, the very cat we thought she might befriend. But thats another story. The problem that drives me nuts is Tika seems to take a back seat when it comes to treats and offerings. Every night at 7:00 we give the cats treats. We give them Friskies Party Mix. They like "Wild West". When I open the bag to dole them out Tika heads of to the furtherst, darkest corner she can find. I often find myself on my knees reaching in under a sofa or shelf to try and get the treats within nose distance. Sometimes she'll eat them and other times she will wait maybe five minutes before she eats them. More often than not Beau will finish his and run off and eat tika's while she watches him do so. Even at the eating dish she will keep back and reach in and paw out just one pellet. She will do this repetitiously until she finishes. I feel that something went wrong when she was being weened from her mother and thrown into a mix of a lot of hungry cats around one bowl of food and got smacked around when she wanted to eat. Also Tika was a tiny kitten. When we got her neck was so skinny you could hear the water squirting down her throat when she drank. Later when we had her spayed the vet said that her teeth were not fully developed for her age. I almost believe she has some sort of dwarfism. Her muscles of her hind quarters seem to have a resemblance that of human dwarfism characteristics. Today she is of good weight and she is doing fine except for the relentless beatings she dishes out to Myah.... "the little witch"... and this Hiding from treats thing that disturbs me probably more than it should. Has anybody heard of a cat behaving this way? TIA

 

[stephanietx]

Do you have Feliway running in your house? That might help calm her some. Also, does each cat have his/her own food dish or do you feed from a common bowl? Even if you feed from separate bowls and spots, I'd feed her and give her treats in a separate room with the door closed.