Problem with my two cats, can someone help me?
Problem with my two cats, can someone help me?
Hello I have a 2 & 1/2 year old and a 8 year old cat both female, but I need to get the younger fixed still, which i'm working on(My mom keeps procrastinating it she's supposed to go get a coupon and call the vet to make an appointment. But keeps putting it off when I remind her.) My older cat recently got bathed and shaved(about over a week ago on Thursday night), a friend of mine did it for me(she's part maine coone) so my friend gave her a bath and shaved her for me since she needed it. The cat is fine, but since she got shaved a week ago on Thursday,my younger cat sometimes goes after her and attacks her. Once it happened down stairs and my younger tried to corner her and began howling and hissing,the same thing happened upstairs another night. And tonight my older cat tried to come in my bedroom to say hello, and my younger freaked out and jumped off my desk and began howling and hissing at her then corned her and proceeded to attack her(trying to claw at her) I tried to break them up and she went after her again, finally I was able to break them apart and my older left the room and I shut the younger in here with me. Also my room is sort of the younger ones territory, she's in here often and likes to follow me around sleep with me,etcera. Does anyone know why she's doing this or how I can stop it? Also i'm getting a kitten on saturday,also female and will be having to shut her out of my room at times, for the kittens sake, and i'm afraid she'll attack my older cat then when i'm not able to contain her,or while i'm at college in the day. What should I do? Also since it may help to know the younger one is over attached to me. My younger cat has also been more craving attention,following me everywhere meowing at me/following me until I go back in my room,wanting to cuddle more than usual ,and be more around me in general then normal. She usually does this right before she goes into heat, so I was wondering if that could be part of the problem? But she had no problem before with my other cat. So i'm wondering if the whole her being shaved lead her not to recognize the other or something since her scent as probably changed?I just hope my younger cat isn't sick, she seems perfectly healthy beside attacking my older cat. Also her food dish is in my room,which I will be moving Saturday since I don't want the kitten eating it,but even so the older cat use to come and eat out of the youngers food dish sometimes and my younger had no problem with it. /Would not attack her. I'd appreciate some advise.
Re: Problem with my two cats, can someone help me?
Stop putting off getting the younger one spayed, call the vet, make the appointment first thing next week, and JUST GET IT DONE! Why is your mom responsible? Can't YOU make the appointment and get her in? Also, make sure you get pre-anesthetic bloodwork done prior to the spay.
Read this! Love Your Pets - Spay & Neuter!, it will explain to you why it's necessary to get your cats spayed and neutered, and the serious consequences if you don't.
How old is the kitten, and is she spayed already? If not, be sure to get her spayed between 4-6 months old, your vet will determine when this should be done, per her health status, weight, age (and include the pre-anesthetic bloodwork). Get the new kitten fully evaluated by your vet BEFORE you bring her into your home, she needs to be tested for FELV/FIV, dewormed, vaccinated by your vet. Are the two other cats current on their vaccinations??? If not, get this done!
Why is the older cat getting bathed and clipped? Does she have problems with mats? What brand, type of shampoo does the "friend" use? Is it a cat-friendly safe product? ("natural" products, or tea-tree-oil products, or citrus products are NOT safe for pets).
It could be that because the cat was bathed with a smelly shampoo and shaved, your younger cat didn't recognize her immediately, or smells the shampoo and other scents on her, all cats will react like this when another has been in another environment. Give it time and they should be back to normal in a day or two.
ALL your cats need to be spayed, period. When they aren't, there is unnecessary heirarchy problems in the environment, which can cause health and behavioral issues between them. Plus, for every heat cycle you allow a female to endure, will increase her risk of mammary cancer, uterine cancer and other serious, detrimental health issues. If you think your younger cat is ill in any way, don't wait, get her seen by your vet right away.
Read this! Love Your Pets - Spay & Neuter!, it will explain to you why it's necessary to get your cats spayed and neutered, and the serious consequences if you don't.
How old is the kitten, and is she spayed already? If not, be sure to get her spayed between 4-6 months old, your vet will determine when this should be done, per her health status, weight, age (and include the pre-anesthetic bloodwork). Get the new kitten fully evaluated by your vet BEFORE you bring her into your home, she needs to be tested for FELV/FIV, dewormed, vaccinated by your vet. Are the two other cats current on their vaccinations??? If not, get this done!
Why is the older cat getting bathed and clipped? Does she have problems with mats? What brand, type of shampoo does the "friend" use? Is it a cat-friendly safe product? ("natural" products, or tea-tree-oil products, or citrus products are NOT safe for pets).
It could be that because the cat was bathed with a smelly shampoo and shaved, your younger cat didn't recognize her immediately, or smells the shampoo and other scents on her, all cats will react like this when another has been in another environment. Give it time and they should be back to normal in a day or two.
ALL your cats need to be spayed, period. When they aren't, there is unnecessary heirarchy problems in the environment, which can cause health and behavioral issues between them. Plus, for every heat cycle you allow a female to endure, will increase her risk of mammary cancer, uterine cancer and other serious, detrimental health issues. If you think your younger cat is ill in any way, don't wait, get her seen by your vet right away.
..........Traci
My mother is only responsible because I am not able to drive yet, i'm in the process of getting my permit,so I can't do it myself unfortunately. I have the money for it though,but I can't drive yet like I said. And I know its important to get her fixed, and I've been meaning to. My older cat got a bath because she had alot of matted hair and dandruff, and the shampoo my friend used was one specifically designed for cats. The kitten i'm getting tomorrow is 8 weeks old, so I have to wait till she's old enough,but I do plan to spay her as well. I'm going to remind my mother to get the coupon tomorrow,and to make an appointment, I also plan to take the kitten to the vet immediately,to get her vaccinated. And try to get the others in for their recent vaccines. Thank you so much for your help.