I have two cats. Fred is 5 and I’ve had him for 4 years, Ralph is 1 and I’ve had him since he was 4 months old. Fred was a semi feral and I think has some PTSD from living outdoors. He’s incredibly skittish and shy, to the point where you can’t even walk in the same direction as him without him getting upset and running away. A common phrase in our house is “everything’s okay Fred, I’m not chasing you”. Ralph I adopted from a shelter where I think he was born and raised. I think he was a bottlefed baby based on his distant personality. The only background I have on him is he was brought to the shelter I got him from after a shelter in a neighboring state became overcrowded. He’s brave, he’s bold, and nothing phases him.
That being said, Ralph plays very rough. Straight to pouncing, biting and chasing. Fred sounds like he’s being murdered every time Ralph tries to play. I’m not sure if it’s in pain or fear or both. I can’t clap my hands or do anything to scare Ralph because I’m afraid of giving Fred a heart attack. It mostly happens in the evenings around bed time and first thing in the morning. I bring Fred into my room at night and he sleeps on his pillow where he knows he’s safe from Ralph. As far as I know Ralph has never seriously injured Fred and vice versa. Fred has never stood up for himself and more or less just takes the abuse. Fred cannot scratch on the tree or dig in the litter box without getting a reaction from Ralph that results in a screaming Fred.
When Ralph is being too rough I pick him up and put him in the bathroom for 10 or so minutes and let him calm down and decompress. But lately by the time I get to them if I’m in another room Ralph makes a run for it and hides under a bed, behind our washer and dryer or somewhere I can’t reach him and he thinks it’s all a big game. Ralph does wear a “calming collar” (he has some other behavioral issues that stem from hyperactive activity) They do play with toys together, they eat together and I find them sleeping near each other or on different levels of the cat tree together. Fred is no longer over grooming or yowling at night because he’s lonely. I think he enjoys the company of another cat, just not the negative attention.
This post got much longer than I wanted it to, thank you for reading the entire thing!
That being said, Ralph plays very rough. Straight to pouncing, biting and chasing. Fred sounds like he’s being murdered every time Ralph tries to play. I’m not sure if it’s in pain or fear or both. I can’t clap my hands or do anything to scare Ralph because I’m afraid of giving Fred a heart attack. It mostly happens in the evenings around bed time and first thing in the morning. I bring Fred into my room at night and he sleeps on his pillow where he knows he’s safe from Ralph. As far as I know Ralph has never seriously injured Fred and vice versa. Fred has never stood up for himself and more or less just takes the abuse. Fred cannot scratch on the tree or dig in the litter box without getting a reaction from Ralph that results in a screaming Fred.
When Ralph is being too rough I pick him up and put him in the bathroom for 10 or so minutes and let him calm down and decompress. But lately by the time I get to them if I’m in another room Ralph makes a run for it and hides under a bed, behind our washer and dryer or somewhere I can’t reach him and he thinks it’s all a big game. Ralph does wear a “calming collar” (he has some other behavioral issues that stem from hyperactive activity) They do play with toys together, they eat together and I find them sleeping near each other or on different levels of the cat tree together. Fred is no longer over grooming or yowling at night because he’s lonely. I think he enjoys the company of another cat, just not the negative attention.
This post got much longer than I wanted it to, thank you for reading the entire thing!