Cats and Stress
Some of the most common causes of cat stress are: changes in the immediate environment, introduction of a new pet into the family, sudden loud noises, unfamiliar smells or the absence of certain family members.
Some signs of stress include: hiding, unusual fearfulness or aggression, excessive vocalizing, urine marking, changes in eating habits or eliminating outside the litter box.
If you notice signs of stress in your cat, try to identify the cause, and then take steps to help your cat cope. In many situations, spending more time with her while gently grooming and speaking softly to her can be wonderfully calming. If an environmental change is the trigger, try to slowly get your cat used to the new situation if not give your cat to someone else.
Next week... What to do with that spare cat food.
cat food pizza! those are yummy.
but seriously though, one of my cats, bean, is getting more and more aggressive toward my other cat, cricket. both neutered males, living in the same space since i took them in as kittens, some changes in the environment (roommate left, girlfriend moved in) that i wouldn't call stressful, considering they both love my girlfriend more than me.
but yeah, bean is getting more and more rough when he "plays" and will tackle and bite pretty roughly on cricket, who'll make some pretty awful noise, and hiss, and bat back at him. I'm worried that my old roommate, who used to "pet" and "show affection" to bean especially, was pretty rough when he was growing up. not abusive... just rough, like petting him like you would a big dog, pushing him around and stuff. but that seems like a stretch as for what is causing his aggression now.
whadoido?
ginger minger Wrote:If you notice signs of stress in your cat, try to identify the cause, and then take steps to help your cat cope. In many situations, spending more time with her while gently grooming and speaking softly to her can be wonderfully calming. If an environmental change is the trigger, try to slowly get your cat used to the new situation if not give your cat to someone else.
Okay, I'll spend time with you, groom you and speak softly to you...
* how would you like me to groom you? *
Okay, did you get that?
eggroll Wrote:cat food pizza! those are yummy.
but seriously though, one of my cats, bean, is getting more and more aggressive toward my other cat, cricket. both neutered males, living in the same space since i took them in as kittens, some changes in the environment (roommate left, girlfriend moved in) that i wouldn't call stressful, considering they both love my girlfriend more than me.
but yeah, bean is getting more and more rough when he "plays" and will tackle and bite pretty roughly on cricket, who'll make some pretty awful noise, and hiss, and bat back at him. I'm worried that my old roommate, who used to "pet" and "show affection" to bean especially, was pretty rough when he was growing up. not abusive... just rough, like petting him like you would a big dog, pushing him around and stuff. but that seems like a stretch as for what is causing his aggression now.
whadoido?
sounds like your cats are trying to sort out who is the boss cat,do you feed them together?are they from the same litter?
with male and female cats there is a pecking order they may be trying to sort out who is the alpha male.It also sounds like bean misses your mate and the rough and toumble they had and is trying to playing up with poor cricket,id keep a eye on them both hopefully this will soon pass cats notice changes,people missing e.c.t if it continues
id go see your vet about it mate.
beaner2k6 Wrote:i lit a cat on fire once
Well i lit a beaner2k6 on fire once:p
beaner2k6 Wrote:i lit a cat on fire once
fudgeing lol. where do you live again? i think that's illegal here O_O
ginger minger Wrote:sounds like your cats are trying to sort out who is the boss cat,do you feed them together?are they from the same litter?
with male and female cats there is a pecking order they may be trying to sort out who is the alpha male.It also sounds like bean misses your mate and the rough and toumble they had and is trying to playing up with poor cricket,id keep a eye on them both hopefully this will soon pass cats notice changes,people missing e.c.t if it continues
id go see your vet about it mate.
- i feed them together, always have, keep their food bowl full most of the time, dry food only
- they are not from the same litter, got cricket about 2 weeks before bean from a pet store, got bean younger than cricket from the SPCA
do you think i should try to exhaust bean a little more myself with some rough play? how do i discourage biting/scratching without confusing him? i wouldn't worry about this, really, as i know animals are going to be animals, but it definitely seems like every day, bean just picking on cricket, and cricket not liking any bit of it. but more recently, i think I've noticed cricket instigating some of it...
it's things like, bean will pounce on cricket, and flip him over during the whole thing, and when cricket runs off, bean will smack his lips like he's taken out a chunk of hair and is trying to get it out of his mouth. it's stuff like that that makes me think "uh-oh, this little fudgeer's being too rough..."
i don't know, does that sound totally abnormal or not? lol
also, in less than a week, wee'll be moving into a much nicer, bigger place, so hopefully more personal space for them both will help them chill out a bit.
eggroll Wrote:beaner2k6 Wrote:i lit a cat on fire once
fudgeing lol. where do you live again? i think that's illegal here O_O
ginger minger Wrote:sounds like your cats are trying to sort out who is the boss cat,do you feed them together?are they from the same litter?
with male and female cats there is a pecking order they may be trying to sort out who is the alpha male.It also sounds like bean misses your mate and the rough and toumble they had and is trying to playing up with poor cricket,id keep a eye on them both hopefully this will soon pass cats notice changes,people missing e.c.t if it continues
id go see your vet about it mate.
- i feed them together, always have, keep their food bowl full most of the time, dry food only
- they are not from the same litter, got cricket about 2 weeks before bean from a pet store, got bean younger than cricket from the SPCA
do you think i should try to exhaust bean a little more myself with some rough play? how do i discourage biting/scratching without confusing him? i wouldn't worry about this, really, as i know animals are going to be animals, but it definitely seems like every day, bean just picking on cricket, and cricket not liking any bit of it. but more recently, i think I've noticed cricket instigating some of it...
it's things like, bean will pounce on cricket, and flip him over during the whole thing, and when cricket runs off, bean will smack his lips like he's taken out a chunk of hair and is trying to get it out of his mouth. it's stuff like that that makes me think "uh-oh, this little fudgeer's being too rough..."
i don't know, does that sound totally abnormal or not? lol
also, in less than a week, wee'll be moving into a much nicer, bigger place, so hopefully more personal space for them both will help them chill out a bit.
Hmm. Its good you are moving to a bigger place,like you said it will give them more room,Did Bean ever do this when your mate was around? cats from instituation like SPCA sometimes don't have the best start and can have a few issues,cricket is getting the jitters that's why he starts it sometimes when he knows bean is gonna kick off,You could try a bit of play with your cat to take the emphasis off crecket,It may sound crazy but it might benifit from medication if it continues you can see your vet about this.but hopefully it will stop soon.Keep an eye on any cuts though yo don't want your cats getting any infections.
beaner2k6 Wrote:i lit a cat on fire once
When i was really small (like 8yo), each time i went to my relatives house, i use to run around hitting their cat with a broomstick, until it goes and hides somewhere where i can't get it.
And after a while, the cat developed this ability to recognize me whenever i walked up the wooden staircase, and hides itself somewhere in some corner. So i would just hide somewhere and wait for it to come out, then hit it.
Surprisingly, that cat is still alive up to now. It's like 13 yrs old. Older than my sister. Don't know how long an average cats lifespan is though.