Tigger is a spayed female cat, we got her about 2 and a half years ago. When we got her, the people we bought her from claimed her mother had died so we never got to see her. Also I had strong suspicions that Tigger was actually younger than the 8 weeks they claimed she was - I guessed about 6 weeks, as she was tiny.

As a kitten, Tigger was very skittish and a bit nervous. She wouldn't go near our stairs (we live on a first floor) until she was about 4 months old! In all other aspects she was fine - very loving, would wait for us to come home every day and sit on our laps for a while, and always loved going outside adventuring.

Then last year my husband succombed to the charms of two kittens, a brother and sister named Goblin and Gizmo. Goblin & Gizmo couldn't have been more different to Tigger at that age - they were confident, totally at home, very relaxed and very laid back cats. Nothing seems to bother them, they love attention and also go outside as and when they like.

We did everything by the book when introducing the cats to each other. First we kept them in a room with the door closed, placing the food on either side of the door so that they could smell each other when eating. Then we put the kittens in a puppy crate and put Tigger in the room with them. Then we let the kittens out, etc etc. Goblin & Gizmo seemed keen to play with Tigger, she was having none of it!!

To this day, over a year later, she hisses at them every time she seems them, she won't enter a room if they are in it already, and runs straight out of a rooms if she hasn't realised that they are there. Occassionally she will want to play with the kittens, although it is strictly on her terms and fairly aggressive play.

Her behaviour extends to us as well. We hardly see her at all anymore, instead of sleeping inside during the day and going out at night, she will stay outside most of the time, only coming home to eat. She doesn't even come inside when its raining!

She also hisses at us, puts her ears back and growls at us. Her nature has completely changed - she always used to like being stroked and sitting on our laps, and she would sit with us in the evenings. Now it is on very rare occassions that she will come inside and see us, and even rarer when she'll jump on the bed and come to ask for some loving.

I am really upset, because I know she's not happy but I don't know how to solve the problem or what to do.

Any ideas or suggestions would really help!!! I would have thought over all this time that she would get over it by now, but she really hasn't calmed down much since we got the other two cats.

Help! Sorry it's so long!!!

Thank you.

Shirley.

I really don't know but didn't want to read and run. Sorry I can't help!

x

I find it amazing how cats can be just like humans.

I'm no cat pyschologist but with all the attention Tigger got it seems like she might not want to share the attention with the kittens.

I constantly have this problem. I live in a two tier flat with me my girlfriend and our flat mate on the 1st floor and relatives of my girlfriends on the ground floor.
We also have a cat family. Our cats are Puss (1 year old) and Boots (two years old) plus kittens Stitch and Tobi (Tobi is currently in the vets). Downstairs are Mork & MIndy who are brother and sister and related to Puss and Boots.
Mindy is a strange cat outside she just wants to be stroked and will pester you until you runaway! Mork will follow you to the shops if you let him! However they both hate our cats Mindy seems bad temepered but they never really fight if they are allowed to socialise they get on fine though but it takes about 3 weeks for them to stop hissing at each other and never in our flat.

my advice would to be keep on trying to intergrate the cats slowly, maybe put them all in a room with there litter trays and food bowls so they dont have much need to get out (sounds cruel but it might work).

Hi Shirley,has she been spayed?

__________________
Dogs have owners, Cats have slaves

Burnthwaites Siamese

Hi,

Thanks for your replies.

Yes, Tigger has been spayed, before we got the kittens.

Goblin & Gizmo aren't really kittens anymore - they are now over a year old, so reverting back to the whole keeping them in one room with food, water and a litter tray seems a bit extreme! Or is it?? Plus they all love going outside, and we've tried keeping all the cats indoors before and it seemed to me that Tigger got worse, not better! We only did it for about 2 weeks - was that not long enough?

Thanks! Really appreciate anything we can try!!

Shirley.

Yes agree Shirley,since their are tensions now putting them in a room together i don't think would help,again maybe some sort of rescue/calm remedy or feliway plug ins around the house may help,are Goblin and Gizmo spayed/neutered?

__________________
Dogs have owners, Cats have slaves

Burnthwaites Siamese

Hi,

Goblin has been neutered. Gizmo has actually just had a litter of 5 healthy kittens! Obviously not helping matters, lol! We were caught by suprise at her pregnancy!!! Needless to say once the kittens are off the scene, Gizmo will be going to see the vet to get spayed!

I've ordered some Feliway plug, so we will see if that makes any difference at all. Do you think I should keep all kitties inside so they can absorb the wonderfulness of the Feliway?

Shirley.

Update!

Well I got the Feliway plug in yesterday, which I plugged in as soon as I got home.

Tigger came in about 2 hours later, came inside the lounge, jumped up on the sofa and said a quick hello to my hubby. She then stopped to lick the top of Goblin's head (who was sleeping in a shoe box - silly cat!), and proceeded to go into the kitchen for some food.

During the night, she came up to me and meowed nicely asking for some attention, and slept in her usual spot all night long.

She still hissed at the other cats this morning, and at me - but boy, it's already an improvement! She wouldn't have come into the lounge at all before, would have bopped Goblin on the head rather than licking it, and wouldn't sleep in her usual spot either.

Either it's complete co-incidence or this Feliway stuff is doing it's job!

Long may it continue!!!

Shirley.

Hey

I was having a very similar problem - and the feliwat had improved things dramatically by atleast 85% ! Very happy with the people who recomended it - thank you!