How can I stop my 8-month-old cat from attacking my other cat?

Poor cats! It's possible there is stress being caused over dispute of territory, especially if you have quite a few cats in a small home or apartment. A good first step is making sure each cat has their own access to food, water, litter, and perches they can get away from each other so that the cats can establish their areas without having to compete for resources. A good second step is to add in a pheromone collar or diffuser, which can help reduce inter-cat aggression and make things less stressful. In some cases, a younger cat may bully an older cat if there is an underlying health problem going on. A vet visit to rule out any pain or illness that could be making Mr. Winkle the target of this attention may help reduce the problem as well. If the changes to the home don't help, speaking with a veterinary behaviorist in your area may also be a good option: https://www.dacvb.org/page/about

First, make sure your older cat has places she can hide and get away from the kitten. High perches, a tunnel, a cat tower, make sure that there are plenty of places for both of the to scratch, climb and hide without interfering with the other. And makes sure you play with the kitten a lot, both to tire him out and give your older can some breathing room. A kitten's life is all about play, and play is all about prey. Every race down the hallway, every pounce from behind a door, every swat and nip is a display of a kitten's hunting skills, instincts that are just as strong in today’s housecat as they were in her ancestors thousands of years ago. To a kitten, everything in the house is potential prey, including you. A kitten's first playmates are his mother and littermates, and from them he learns how to inhibit his bite. A kitten separated from his family too soon may not have learned that lesson and doesn't know when to stop. Also, if people use their hands and/or feet instead of toys to play, the kitten may learn that rough play is okay. In most cases, it's not too difficult to teach your kitten or young adult cat that rough play isn't acceptable. Don't let your kitten play with your hands or feet (or any other body part). Use a toy when playing with him. Drag a toy, preferably a fishing pole-type toy that keeps your hands from kitty’s mouth and claws, along the floor to encourage your kitten to pounce on it, or throw a toy for him to chase. Some kittens will even bring the toy back to be thrown again. Give your kitten something to wrestle with, like a soft stuffed animal about his size, so he can grab it, bite it, and kick it with his back feet. This is one of the ways kittens play with each other, especially when they're young. It's also one of the ways they try to play with human feet and hands, so it's important to provide this type of alternative play target. Encourage play with a "wrestling toy" by rubbing it against your kitten's belly when he wants to play roughly—and be sure to get your hand out of the way as soon as he accepts the toy. Don't hit or yell at your kitten when she nips or pounces. This will only make her fearful of you and she may start to avoid you. The idea is to train her, not punish her. Equip yourself with the right training tools: toys, toys, toys, and a water pistol.

You may need to make some adjustments so you can help keep your home a low stress and comfortable place for your cats and get Piper and your other cat to get along. Cats need at least one litterbox per cat plus one extra to help reduce stress associated with the litterbox. They should be placed in separate rooms, away from the food and water bowls, must be scooped at least daily (preferably multiple times a day)and washed out at least weekly with a mild soap, followed by thorough rinsing. Cats need a lot of space to explore, but keeping them indoors is much safer than letting them outside, due to the risk of injury from cars, wildlife, other animals, etc. The key is providing space (particularly vertical space for climbing, such as cat trees, ledges, and the like) inside the home. Visit veterinarypartner.com and healthcareforpets.com for tips on stress reduction. The following link has information on introducing a cat to your home: https://indoorpet.osu.edu/cats/felinelifestressors/new-pets Also look into Feliway, a synthetic pheromone that is available in a diffuser and spray form that promotes calm feelings in cats http://www.feliway.com , and feliway friends, which is a pheromone that can help cats get along with each other better https://www.feliway.com/ca_en/Products/FELIWAY-FRIENDS-Diffuser I highly recommend you have Piper spayed, as sometimes the hormones associated with not being spayed can worsen behavioural issues. Spaying also stops the heat cycle, eliminates the risk and cost of unwanted breeding, and can reduce the risk of uterine and ovarian cancer, as well as reduce the risk of potentially fatal uterine infections and breast cancer. Good luck, and I hope your kitties start to be friends soon!

I'm sorry to hear that you're having this problem! I would be interested to know more about exactly what the cats are doing that concerns you, as true "aggressive" behavior or serious fighting would be unusual to see in a kitten this age. Normal play between two cats (including wrestling and biting) is often mistaken for fighting by owners, so I'm wondering if your cat may actually be playing normally with the younger kitten. If this is an aggression problem, this is quite serious at such a young age and would best be handled by a veterinary behaviorist - he/she can evaluate your cat to help determine what is causing the aggressive behavior, and put together a detailed treatment plan to work on the problem. This would likely include some methods to redirect her to some other activity if you see warning signs of an attack such as stalking, growling, etc. as well as possibly medication of some kind to help treat her aggression. Your veterinarian should be able to refer you to a behavior specialist in your area, if you ask.

Hi, your cat is very young still so being playful it is not unexpected however if she is being aggressive too there are lots of things to consider. You can try to offer her as many occasions to display normal predatory behaviour, such as toys and feeding puzzles. If she does not have any access to outdoors, would it be possible to have a Catio arranged for her to experience some kind of sensory stimulation/observe outside etc ? Does she have places at home where she can be left undisturbed and rest ? A book I really found useful is https://www.amazon.com/Trainable-Cat-Practical-Making-Happier/dp/0465050905 And please see https://icatcare.org/advice/problem-behaviour/aggression-humans

Here is an article on introducing new cats to the home. https://www.petcoach.co/article/5-steps-to-introducing-your-cat-to-a-new-feline/ In addition, I recommend a calming pheromone such as Feliway that can help with anxiety. It is available as a plug-in room diffuser for large areas, and as a spray for small areas like a mat or bed. https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=8906 https://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=37241 Another product I like is Composure, which is available as a little treat. https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/vetri-science-composure-feline-bite-sized-chews I hope this helps. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hello. You do not say how old the kitten is, but this may just be the kitten learning how far he can push his older companion, or he is beginning to learn some dominance. Discourage the behavior by gently shooing the kitten away & distracting him with a treat or some play time with you. I have a cat that every time he sees my little dog sitting on my lap, he has to jump up & start chewing on the poor dog's ear. We then have to take turns to see who gets to sit in my lap. Cats can get quite demanding, & jealous. Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.