My Male Cat, born feral, recently became indoor/outdoor
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Elizab65
My Male Cat, born feral, recently became indoor/outdoor
Whew! Where to begin? I have two beautiful cats, allegedly brother and sister, though they look nothing alike.. in fact, the male is a possible Maine Coon or Norwegian Forest, and his sister is a tiny little Calico. (Yes, I have heard cats have bifrucated utereuses) Anyhow. I never, if I could help it, let them outside. They are now 3 years old. I recently moved into a house with large-ish front and back yards. Well, it was impossible to keep them inside, needless to say, i gave up, except for rounding them up at night.. ( I live in So Cal.. coyote country) Well. the male didn't come home a few days ago.. and Fri AM he finally came limping in. OK, long story short, he got into a 'scrap' w/ another cat, i assume. 300.00$ later ( ER Vet services, sedation cause he's impossible to examine w/o it, antibiotics for the bites) OK, here's the thing. His sister is now literally hissing at him every time she sees him or he comes near. I find this really disturbing on many levels: 1) I think she's being mean, and I keep admonishing her to stop her bad behavior , and 2) It's making me wonder if SHE might have been the one to beat him up, they have definitely taken swipes at ea. other in the past(not in fun) and OK, 3) I neglected to mention the vets SHAVED my beautiful silky haired boy... so now he looks like a weird lion/cat ( he had lots of mats, and they had to see the cuts, etc) So, could the Calico be freaking ( hissing) at him cause he's unrecognizable? I really could use some insight here, and instead of paying 15$ (which believe me, after the 300.00$ I really don't have)to attend a CLASS/Seminar by the SPCA about "your cat" and their behaviors, etc etc, I was hoping someone out there may know more than I about this weird (mean)behavior of hers. (it's occurred to me it may be some weird Darwinian thing: Survival of the fittest, and she realizes he's weak right now...??) Sorry for the long, long post, I'm currently enrolled in an MFA Program for Creative Writing... hence, i tend to be long-winded! Thanks a million in advance for any advice/thoughts anyone might have!
Re: My Male Cat, born feral, recently became indoor/outdoor
Your female is acting as she is because she can smell the clinic scent on your male, and probably the scent of the cat who attacked him.
Once the wounds are healed completely, you can try using a sprinkle of corn-starch on each cat, brush through fur, and they will both smell the same then.
Give this time, your female will get over it. In the meantime, as you've learned, it's best to keep them inside, no matter what. There are always methods to keep them entertained and happy indoors, you just need to be comitted to the task.
Once the wounds are healed completely, you can try using a sprinkle of corn-starch on each cat, brush through fur, and they will both smell the same then.
Give this time, your female will get over it. In the meantime, as you've learned, it's best to keep them inside, no matter what. There are always methods to keep them entertained and happy indoors, you just need to be comitted to the task.
..........Traci
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Elizab65
Re: My Male Cat, born feral, recently became indoor/outdoor
Thank you, Traci... see how I am, with my Creative Writer's mind! There I was, coming up with all sorts of inventive, (slightly funny) reasons for my Calico's behavior towards her brother, when I neglected to remember one basic fact.. animals are 'scent'/smell driven creatures! Silly Me! 
( You gotta admit, I was pretty creative, huh? 
)
You have a very informative site here, I'll be sure to put it w/ my drop down 'Favorites' List for future reference! [/code][/i]
( You gotta admit, I was pretty creative, huh? )You have a very informative site here, I'll be sure to put it w/ my drop down 'Favorites' List for future reference! [/code][/i]