Smaller cat is the more dominant?

[dragonchilde]

This isn't really a problem at all, more of just a question of curiosity.

I've got three indoor males right now. One is the oldest, the 16 year old who really doesn't factor in. He ignore the other cats, and does what he wants, unless they annoy him, then he'll growl and swat.

Then there's Mozart. He's almost a year old, and is HUGE. Semi-longhair, fat, and very complacent.

Now, the real question is Noodles. Noodles is 6 months old (still intact). He's the more aggressive of the two youngest. He is usually on top when roughhousing, he's always butting in when Mozart tries to eat (it doesn't matter which bowl Mozart goes to, Noodles will push him out of the way. It's to the point where Mozart can move to another bowl, Noodles will stop eating, and go to whatever bowl Mozart moved to!)

I'm just curious about this, because Noodles is LITERALLY half Mozart's size, both in weight and actual space-taken-up! Is it because of his unaltered state that he's so dominant, and Mozart so submissive? Mozart is a very laid back cat, to begin with, but it's been fascinating to watch their roles reverse as they've grown older. I used to worry about Mozart hurting Noodles, now I hear Mozart crying more than his little brother!

[jenluckenbach]

Noodles is a youngster attempting to be dominant. He may or may not end up as the alpha cat as time progresses, but with Mozart's laid back personality, he probably could care less who is alpha. Now, if you wait much longer for the neuter surgery, this behavior will probably get stronger. (hormones, you know).

But anyway, size does not matter, it is their personality that will determine who is top cat.

[JenBKR]

I actually had the same situation...Both cats are the same age, but Katie is much bigger than Belle. However, Belle has a stronger personality and is certainly the aggressive one. We got them both as small kittens (Belle was the runt, fit in the palm of my hand) and it has always been that way, even since they were both spayed. I think it has a lot to do with personality; Belle is not afraid of anything (except the vacuum cleaner...lol).

[TopCat3]

Yes my younger cat did this too. She will always barge in eventually if my 16 yr old is enjoying some lap-time with me. She is very jealous and competitive in the attention stakes and used to do the foodbowl thing when she first joined us at 6mths old. She's now 7 and a right handful- she even competes with mu computer like now when I am trying to type this!;)

[dragonchilde]

Originally posted by jenluckenbach
Noodles is a youngster attempting to be dominant. He may or may not end up as the alpha cat as time progresses, but with Mozart's laid back personality, he probably could care less who is alpha. Now, if you wait much longer for the neuter surgery, this behavior will probably get stronger. (hormones, you know).

But anyway, size does not matter, it is their personality that will determine who is top cat.

Yeah, we're saving up for the surgery now. I don't want to let him get much older, because I don't want him to start spraying before I can get him neutered.