Suddenly extremely aggressive cat

[Ghjohnson]

Hello. I apologize in advance because this may be long. I’ve had 2 cats since they were about 5 or 6 weeks old, a short haired grey/brown tabby named Chorus and a long hair black/white domestic named Verse. Since they were kittens Chorus has had a very strong bond with me and Verse to my husband, fast forward a few years when my daughter was 5 or 6, Chorus seemingly randomly attacks a couple of our nannies and then went after my daughter and bit her. I had to re acclimate her to my daughter my giving her treats when the nannies would come and she seemed to get over it. Then it happens again a year later with my niece who came for the holidays but not nearly as aggressive and it was in little spurts of hissing and not one big attack. Fast forward again to last night and what seems unprovoked to me, she came after me and attacked my leg, she was locked on me and she was growling and yowling at every move I made so I stood frozen until she calmed down and we could lead her into our bedroom. We kept her in our bedroom until we put our daughter to bed. When we let her out she was very vocal but affectionate, she rubbed up against me and my husband, smelled us, took treats from my hand and licked us. All was well until I got up from the couch and she was locked on me and attacked me again. It took us 2 hours of ransacking our living room to get a blanket over her and lock her in the bathroom for the night (with wet and dry food, water and a litter box). She was so scared every time we tried to corner her and grab her that she peed and pooped several times. We are taking her to the vet today but I am so sad and scared. She cuddles and purrs me to sleep most nights so this was very shocking behaviour. Has this happened to anyone?

 

[ArtNJ]

Are they able to see an outside cat through a glass door or window? Sometimes that can cause this.

More generally, when does Chorus seem stressed and by what? Typically, with a cat that generally likes or loves you, real attacks (not play) happen when the cat is very stressed so its useful to think about this. Other pets that stress the cat, or any misc situations that stress the cat are stuff we should think about.

The vet is a very good idea to rule out medical causes. Cats that don't feel well tend to have a lot more of this kind of problem.

Just to be thorough and rule out play aggression, is there growling and hissing with these attacks? What does the cat do before the attacks? Are they seemingly random, or is it always a human trying to interact with the cat? Tell us about the wounds -- are these serious attempts to injure or just kind of latching on and doing some damage, especially when the human jerks away?

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. How old is Chorus now? It sounds from the history to be some sort of fear/anxiety related aggression - mostly because it was with people that she either didn't know well or not at all. Attacking your daughter after reacting to the nanny was just an extension of her 'state of mind' at that moment. How this evolved into attacking you would suggest her condition could be escalating, perhaps from aging, or, even some sort of illness that is brewing. There are triggers that prompt her behavior, as evidenced by all of the more distant incidents. I would chart of these incidents with as much detail as you can remember, and continue to do so with any more attacks that might occur in the future. Details are likely going to be important.

The key is to try to determine the 'new' triggers that you have somehow elicited in her, even though you are not aware of them at this point. The second time she attacked you could have been because she was startled somehow by you getting up from the couch. What was going on immediately before the first time? You coughed, sneezed, called out loudly to someone in another room, made sudden movements with your hands/body, etc. - something that caught her off-guard?

I do think a vet visit is in order, to look for possible neurological issues that might be elevating over time. Talk to the vet and explain the occurrences to see if they might have an idea of what kinds of conditions could cause an aggressive response that is possibly provoked by fear/anxiety or being startled.

 

[Ghjohnson]

Hi! Thank you for all the info! I apologize it’s taken me this long post an update, it’s been a very rough/busy few days. We contacted the vet and behaviorist the next morning and since she was still growling and hissing when we approached the door, they both figured it was best to get her stress levels down before adding to it with a vet visit. The first couple of days or so she was still hissy and growly whenever we snuck food in. She has been on Gabapentin for 4 days and Casein protein for 2, she is still in our guest bathroom but we have baby gates in the door jamb and open the door to try to engage her during the day. She has since calmed down some but we are still VERY wary of leaving her to roam the house freely and possibly endangering our daughter. We got her in her crate to clean and make the bathroom more comfortable for her (blankets, toys, fresh water and litter) and we were able to get our wifi camera in to observe her and make sure she’s ok. For right now it’s a wait and see situation but the night of the attack, I saw no hope because for the first time ever I am afraid of my cat. But after speaking to the behaviorist I see a teeny tiny glimmer of hope. If anyone has any input or experience with this and their cats being on Gabapentin and Casein protein please feel free to share your wisdom. We love our cats very much but we are also very afraid that this will end up with is having to make a cery difficult decision Thanks again!

 

[Ghjohnson]

I forgot to mention that Chorus 9 years old. Also, we took our cat to the ver for a regular check up over the weekend and she has gum disease, so as soon as we can get Chorus calm and in her crate we may have to get that looked at as well. Maybe she’s in pain too.

 

[Lisannez]

We tried Gabapentin on our 13 year old Tuxie to help calm her on car rides. She is generally a very easy going cat but we travel to my Mom's house and she would meow the entire four hours until she was hoarse, and pant. It did nothing, we upped the dosage, it did nothing. We tried Benadryl too with no luck. This year for Christmas the vet gave us CBD oil by mouth so we are going to try that. Growing up my cat was on prozac due to anxiety, it really helped. Good luck I cannot imagine being afraid of your cat.

 

[Ghjohnson]

We tried Gabapentin on our 13 year old Tuxie to help calm her on car rides. She is generally a very easy going cat but we travel to my Mom's house and she would meow the entire four hours until she was hoarse, and pant. It did nothing, we upped the dosage, it did nothing. We tried Benadryl too with no luck. This year for Christmas the vet gave us CBD oil by mouth so we are going to try that. Growing up my cat was on prozac due to anxiety, it really helped. Good luck I cannot imagine being afraid of your cat.

Oh wow, crazy the Gabapentin didn't work. Hope the CBD does! It’s heartbreaking being afraid of my own pet, a pet I trusted 100%. She’s slept next to me since she was a kitten. I am crossing all fingers and toes and praying to everything that is holy we find something that works.