Fighting among my 3 male cats -- help!

[jandcprince]

I have three indoor cats (Critter - 10 years old, Bruce - 5 years old and Colonel - 4 years old) They have all gotten along pretty well over the past three years (Colonel was brought in as a one-year-old) but twice over the last four days, they have gotten into such a fight that Critter went into shock and sat in his own poop for hours. Our vet sent him a mild sedative that mellowed him enough that we could get near him and clean him up a little.

The first fight was last Thursday and on Friday, Critter seemed much better and all three were content. But, yesterday, another fight broke out (and may I say it is the worst sound imaginable!) and we had to separate Critter from the others. Bruce seems to get along with both during all this -- the problem seems to be Critter and Colonel. I wasn't in the room when either fight started so I don't know who the instigator is.

Also, there have been no major changes/upheavals in our home over the last four months or so.

Help! What can I do or is there something I shouldn't be doing to help my cats get along? Thanks.

[Denyce]

It is often hard to tell the instigator even when you are able to watch the entire thing. Cats have a very subtle body language that we can't always understand. I am assuming they are all neutered? There was some trigger you just don't know what it was...there could even be a stray coming up to your home that is causing some of this. It agitates one or the other which then causes the fighting.

There is a product called Feliway which I have had some success with in calming down one of my female cats. It is a synthetic hormone that we purchase in the plug in variety. I would also check all around for any inappropriate urination. Also Sometimes their anal glands release a small amount of fluid.When Deirdre (one of my females) smells Brianna on a blanket she gets really pissed off. This happened last night, I couldn't smell a thing on the blanket but it is one Brianna often sleeps on. I used it on the bed because with the AC I was a bit chilly. Deirdre came up on the bed and started sniffing one specific spot. She then became so angry she started snarling and hissing at ME! I had to remove the blanket before she would settle down. If Brianna had come along she would have attacked Brianna.

So first you must do some more detective work to find out why this is happening after several years of getting along. Try the Feliway and keep Critter and Colonel seperated when you are not around for a little while. Then reintroduce them slowly. Cats are very complicated creatures and it is sometimes hard to know what will set them off.

Denyce

[Denyce]

Also...I forgot...when was Critter's last physical check up? I know it sounds pretty odd but sometimes cats will react violently when there is an underlying illness. Critter is getting a bit older...perhaps there is something going on with him that you aren't aware of yet and it is changing how Critter smells to Colonel which is upsetting him. *shrug* I have no idea..it is just a thought.

Denyce

[jandcprince]

Thanks! And yes, they are all three neutered. I will do an internet search for that product now. When you say it's a plug in, I assume you mean like a air freshener plug-in? Anyway, I'll find out when I do my search.

Thanks again!

[jazzcat]

Feliway has been great for my gang. It has helped to calm some of the stress between Scout and Ripley and it has also helped Ripley's spraying problem.

I use the plug-in (yep, just like an airfreshener) and in addition I use the spray. I've bought it online through PetsMart and in-store at Pet Supplies Plus.

[jandcprince]

Do you use one plug in per room or does one per house do it?

[jazzcat]

I was mainly having problems in my newly repainted and carpeted dining and living room so I used one plug-in to cover both those rooms. They only cover a certain amount of square footage so for your situation I would think you'd need more. It's expensive so maybe you could use one plug-in where ever the cats hang out the most and use the spray around the rest of the house. You have to spray daily.

[jandcprince]

Just want to say thanks for the posts! Critter is going to the vet tomorrow morning (Wed). From there, we'll find out if it's physical or if Feliway is the way to go. My husband will take a printout from the Feliway web site so show the vet and get his feedback.

Thanks again -- you guys are awesome!

[leslie flenner]

Is it possible that a tom is coming around spraying and upsetting everyone? they smell that stuff better than we can and it may be "pissing" them off! Could you nueter some of the males or females to lower the amount of testosterone odor being sprayed around?

[jandcprince]

Thanks for your reply. All of our cats (with the exception of the kittens we just took in) have been neutered. Critter's vet visit went well yesterday. Outwardly, the vet could find nothing wrong. As a matter of fact, he remarked that Critter appeared to be in great health for his age. He did take some blood, however, and soon we'll have the results from that.

In the interim, we plan to give Critter a very mild sedative every 2-3 days until we have the results. The vet wasn't familiar with Feliway but was familiar with similar products. He is going to get back to us on his recommendation once Critter's tests are in.

Hopefully, we'll soon have our happy family back.

[Denyce]

Our vet clinic uses both the feline and canine version of the Feliway (I can't remember the canine versions name) in their kennal area and swear by it. It really reduces the amount of stress.

When did you take the kittens in? I must have missed that in an earlier post. Did the aggresion start before the kittens?

Denyce

[jandcprince]

We've had the kittens for, probably, two months now. The aggression started last week (Thursday, if I remember correctly). Of course, being on a farm, there may be a tom coming up that we don't know about.

[Denyce]

How are things going with your cats? Are they settling down any?

Denyce

[jandcprince]

Thanks for asking. Critter's bloodwork came back good. The cats started up a little again last night. We separated them and my husband has sedated them this morning (all three this time) and called the vet. The vet still hadn't found out much about the Feliway but is checking for us. In the meantime, I am pushing for us to go ahead and try it -- especially with your endorsement.

[Denyce]

Look at it this way. The only thing it can hurt at all is your pocketbook. It will be around 40 ish since you have to buy the whole business.

Denyce