My cat vs 3 other cats

[AdamSavage]

So at the end of last month my buddie/roomates friend moved in a brought with her 3 cats. I was not overly crazy about this idea but, we needed a 3rd person to help pay rent. So I had to deal with hit. However, my cat isn't happy they are in the house and shows them this everyday. I figured it would stop eventually but 2 weeks into this and it's not showing signs of stopping at all. My cat just will not leave them alone. Most of the time she goes after the other cats for no reason at all.

The only solution we have been able to come up with is, bring my cat to the basement with me and close the door. I don't keep her down here all day, it's just when she goes after the other cats. I can't keep doing this forever, it's not fair for her to be confined to the basement, while the other 3 can go anywhere they please. However at the same time, she needs to leave them alone, so she isn't in the basement all the time.

I don't know what else to do at this point. Moving isn't a option as I have to much to just move, and finding somewhere that would be cheap and fit my stuff would be near impossible. I could just keep her down in the basement all the time, but then we are back to it not being fair to her.

Suggestions ?

[Shade]

A couple of suggestions:

1) Make sure that all four cats are spayed/neutered. A lot of behavioral problems come from cats that are not fixed living around each other.

2) Count the number of litter boxes in the house. You should have at least two in the basement where your cat stays, and four more upstairs where the other cats are-the rule given by many feline experts is one more littler box then the number of cats in the home (though I would say two downstairs and four upstairs as that is the normal living conditions).

3) Make sure that in the main living spaces that you have plenty of places for the cats to get up on. Cats like high places, and having a number of cat trees for them would be wonderful.

4) Watch 'My Cat from Hell' on Animal Planet-very informative and gives some nice tactics for dealing with problem felines.

5) Now this is the thing I know personally. My best friend is the definition of the crazy cat lady. She has eight cats in her house, and they are in three groups-two groups of two and then a group of four. They are broken down into groups because there are three 'alpha' type cats in the home that will tear up the others if they are all allowed to roam freely, according to my friend. So this is what they do. They have different areas of the house sectioned off-the master bedroom for the group of four, her father's upstairs room for the A pair, and the downstairs basement for the B pair. What they do is thus: at different times of the day, different groups are allowed out to the rest of the house. Morning to about 1-2 is for the group of four. Then they are put up in their room, and the B pair is let out to roam the rest of the house, until bedtime. At night, the B pair is put up and the A pair gets their turn to roam the house until morning when they are put up and the group of four gets put back out.

You and the roommate could work something like that out-let her three cats out during the daytime, then have her lock them up in her room at night, so your cat could have the roam of the place during the night time-or vice versa.

Though, to me, the cats really need to just work things out. Let them fight, stop it if you feel it is getting too dangerous, but they need to establish a ranking system among themselves.

Or perhaps distract your cat when she attacks the others? I had a cat that was a very dominate girl a good while ago, and whenever she would go after the others, I would shoot her with a super-soaker. A bit messy, but she wouldn't pick on them as often.

[AdamSavage]

My cat is fixed and I believe 2/3 of the cats are as well. There is a long haired male cat who fairly laid back. Then you have 2 females, 1 is older and the other is NOT fixed and is only about 8-9 months old. My cat likes to go after the younger cat most of the time. Every so often she will go after the other female as well. The male cat for the most part, she tends to leave alone. Sometimes she tries to start with him, but he quickly tells her off and she backs off. I think part of the problem is when my cat starts closing in for the attack the 2 females don't do much but growl and kiss at her. I've been fine with just 1 litter box in the house with just my cat. She knew where it was and I didn't let the box get to full at the same time. As of right now there is literally only 2 litter boxes in the entire house.

My cat uses both, depending on where she is in the house really. The 2 litter boxes would be ok if they where changed daily. However the one upstairs can sit for days without being changed. It takes me or my buddy to tell her to change it, before it gets changed. I can try the spray bottle if I'm close by when they get into a fight.

[Shade]

Good luck!

I tend to watch animal planet when nothing is on, and the litter box thing is something I hear across a number of shows. If you are having behavior problems, having more litter boxes sometimes might really help things out.

Good luck trying to get things worked out. Also tell your roommate that she needs to get her cats fixed pronto. It might help with some of the aggression levels in the house, and it is just the responsible thing to do as a cat owner. She'll increase the health and the lifespan of her cats if she gets them spayed early on.

[AdamSavage]

Well I already made the suggestion that she get her cat fixed, I will re make the suggestion again.

[Dvatori]

Get a dog.

[AdamSavage]

lol that would keep the cats busy that's for sure.

[AdamSavage]

Spraying her with Water does nothing to stop an attack and I don't think it will prevent her from starting one either. I caught her just as she was attacking the other cat, only to have my cat turn around and Scratch me. This is the first time she has ever done this to me...

[Dewclaw]

How were the cats introduced? Introductions should be done slowly, keeping them entirely separate at first while occasionally switching bedding and swapping rooms to get them used to each other's smell. Try feeding them at the separation mark, whether it be a baby gate or at a door. Offer them treats for eating peaceably together. Work your way up to supervised visits. This whole process takes time and should be done slowly. Rush it, and you'll be back to square one.

http://www.catsinternational.org/articl ... ction.html

When she turned and scratched you, this was misplaced aggression. http://www.thecatbehaviorclinic.com/agg ... avior.html

[AdamSavage]

The cats where brought over a few times before they moved in. However when they moved in, it was 3 extra cats in the house going anywhere they please.

[zedxrgal]

As already stated introductions, especially in cats MUST be slow and over time. Some cats take months to adjust to having another cat around if not longer. Cats are some of the most territorial animals on the planet and they show it. If the spray bottle isn't working then try something like making a loud noise which can actually distract the fighting felines until they can be separated. Usually if you take an aluminum can and put some pebbles or coffee beans in them and tape it closed and then shake it when a behavior you don't approve of happens. The noise is very startling.

Dewclaw has it right and keep them apart until they get used to each other and have happy experiences together.

[GormanGhaste]

It can also depend on the age of the cats. We tried to introduce a 15-year-old cat to our others, but she had not been around other cats, was so tiny and timid, and would always run from aggression. (And yes, one of ours was a bit of a bully if she wasn't stood up to.) Ultimately, we ended up keeping them in separate parts of the house, just so the 15-year-old could have peace and quiet.

Although it would be great if everyone could work out time-share for the main part of the house, don't feel bad if you end up keeping your cat in the basement. As long as you spend quality time with her every day, give her toys, a stimulating environment, and a day/night light cycle, she will be fine.

[AdamSavage]

Hmm, I will for the next week keep her down with me and only let her out for short periods of time. She is usually fine for the first couple hours, then she gets restless and goes on the hunt. She nicked the smaller cat on the ear and made it bleed. The blood has dried up and she seems to be fine though. I will try the can trick as well. Thanks for the advice guys. It's been stressing me out.

[Worba]

Shade mostly nailed it, so I'll just add a couple bolds / underlines -

3) Make sure that in the main living spaces that you have plenty of places for the cats to get up on. Cats like high places, and having a number of cat trees for them would be wonderful.

This right here is huge, moreso than one would think - and it goes beyond cat towers. Those are good, but if that's not cutting it, then really the best thing is ramps / shelves that are bolted into the wall and have cheap carpeting for claw traction. When cats get scared, they tend to go for high places - preferably something higher than your waist / chest when they're in that state.

4) Watch 'My Cat from Hell' on Animal Planet-very informative and gives some nice tactics for dealing with problem felines.

This show is awesome - among other things they show you what sort of play will get the changes you want to see (or at least help get your cat closer to being there). On one episode they took a cat from full feral to coming out and accepting pats and cuddles in the course of a few weeks.

Though, to me, the cats really need to just work things out. Let them fight, stop it if you feel it is getting too dangerous, but they need to establish a ranking system among themselves.

This one I'm not 100% in agreement on. The problem is that ranking systems can sometimes result in the smaller / less aggressive cat hiding in cupboards, behind book shelves and generally turning into an "indoor feral". We once had a situation with a large male picking on a small female, and that's how it went - the girl became a nervous wreck.

I really wish they'd had Cat From Hell back then...

[CrystalKitten]

I just moved in to my first shared house and my cat is much the same. Only she doesn't really like people, or anything. She's a very shy cat, and before when I lived on my own would hide when ever people came over. There's probably only 2 or 3 people (including myself) that she'll actually be "normal" (read.. friendly, lazy, and sometimes insane) around. A small handful that she'll be cautiously curious.. and everyone else (including the dog) sends her into almost a panic (or if there's a barrier, like the dog is outside my window, OR she's up high.. she'll sometimes go into growling/hissing fits).

I do just keep her closed up in my room. Sometimes I'll close the laundry door and door to upstairs and open mine to let her play on the stairs, but she's fine in my room. I'm not sure how large your basement is, but my room (also in the basement) is quite large, almost the size of a small bachelor (I have it split into a living room and bedroom using a curtain), or even one bedroom minus a kitchen area. She's generally fine with this much space. There's things for her to climb (she can get to the window, or on top of one of my bookshelves) furniture to hide under, enough space for her insane moments... And I still have her harness and leash to take her outside for more exercise.

Then again, cats can have very different personalities, so I'm not sure how much space yours is used to or would need for their habits.

[AdamSavage]

Well the cats have already set boundary. It seems the 2 females have claimed the upstairs as there area. I rarely see them in the living room at all, nor do I see my cat upstairs either. She wont go past the first set of stairs leading to upstairs. The male cat however, he comes and goes anywhere he see's fit in the house. Then again, my cat and him get along so that plays a factor. I've caught her a couple times smelling his bum.

[bluddy]

My cat still tries to deny after four years that there's a new cat in the house.. maybe it's just the most territorial cat i've ever seen but i think that'll last for quite the while :S