You will probably remember me saying that i had a new kitten months ago and that my older cat and him are not getting on at all, well it has been 7 months now and they are still fighting, it is not fighting where either is getting hurt but my older cat hisses, howls, screams, god it sounds horrific.

The kitten just jumps on her for no reason and bites her, bites her legs etc we have tried everything to stop him but he just won't stop. We think he is only playing rough but still she does not see it like this i am afraid.


We left it in the hope that they would sort it out over time, well it has been 7 months and still not getting any better, if anything the older he is getting the worse he is getting.

My older cat just seems so unhappy these days, she used to be cuddly but now wont come near any of us, she looks at me with her sad eyes as if to say "what the hell have you done" " i was happy before he came".

It is starting to really upset me seeing her so down and fed up and the only thing that i can think of is too rehome one of them, has anyone got any advice please?????

Am i exaggerating and panicking, is the fighting they are doing however bad it sounds normal? Is it just rough play and my older one is just really vocal???

Any advice would be a great help

Oh no :-( I'm sorry to hear that thing's are not working out with your cat's, have you tried feliway? are your cat's neutered? x

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Made by smudge2009
Gloworm - Run free little man. 23.05.2011-06.09.2011

Thanks, i havent tried feliway actually, i have been thinking about it, but was not sure if that was the right way to go, but if you think it will help i will definitely give it a go, yes they are both neutered.

do you have interactive toys like the door frame duck, or ball run? my kitten overplays with the year old - but when i encourage him to play with toys when shes out .. hes more tired & calm when he sees her. does the kitten try to be nice to the cat? or always charging up to play?

feliway is good, or on the classified bit of forum theres another type - havent used it though

I have so many toys in this house as he loves his balls, and we are always playing with him. Yes the kitten does now and again go and just lie next to her and she just goes nuts, if he just walks past her she goes nuts, it has just got worse now and she has turned into such a nervous, twitchy cat it is heartbreaking to watch her in such a mess and so stressed.

We have Feliway and it take's a few days to start working but is really good x

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Made by smudge2009
Gloworm - Run free little man. 23.05.2011-06.09.2011

Is that the plug in one? which one is the best? x

Oh dear I'm so sorry they are not getting on. 7 months is a long time to see no improvement so it doesn't bode well I'm afraid.

Have you thought about getting another kitten so that your older kitten can rough and tumble with the younger one, and the pair of them might leave your older cat alone? However this is a high risk strategy and could make your older cat even more unhappy. A third cat might be out of the question for other reasons, in any case.

Could you try keeping the 2 cats in separate areas of the house or is that not practical at all? Your young cat needs lots of stimulation - have you tried any interactive toys for him? And your older cat needs some peace and quiet! Then closely supervise them when they are in the same room. And have some Feliway on the go. See if there's any improvement after a couple of weeks. Kittens do grow out of the mental stage and they do calm down eventually.

I was in a similar situation last year - I had the most gorgeous adult rescue cat
who had only been with us a month before we got the 2 MC kittens, and he HATED them. The kittens were lovely and just wanted to make friends and play, but Humph was having none of it and would run at them swearing and beat them up. It wasn't playful, it was angry. The poor things would try to make friends every day and always got a good thumping. It was very stressful for us and after 3 months if anything it was worse. So we found a new home for Humph where he was the only cat and now he's happy as Larry. He's down the road from my in-laws so we hear about his antics and can visit him. He's a different cat now and it's a very happy ending for him.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do

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Rescue cats for many years, currently one moggie and 3 young Maine Coons.

We have the plug in Feliway Louie still throws tanterums at Tango but they do play together again now may just be becasue Tango is the same size now & does'nt give a spot

Or there are other things you can try Bestpet Pharmacy - Behavioural

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All my children have paws!

Thank you so much for all your advice, another cat is out of the question, we have so many animals as it is and you get so attached to them if it made it worse still it would be an even bigger nightmare for everyone.

I don't have seperate rooms i can put them in as house is mostly open planned etc.

Do you know how old when they calm down? I am definitely going to get some feliway and see if that makes a difference.

I feel really awful to even think it but i have thought about rehoming my older cat with a nice elderly couple or a nice quiet household, as think she is so damaged here now that even if i rehomed the kitten she would never be quite the same with us now.