Cats (cattonic) wrote, @ 2009-06-17 19:59:00

Current mood:

melancholy

Kitty crisis (part 1)
Puddin' is officially suffering from Misdirected Aggression.

Last night the cats were watching and growling at something outside (stray cat or raccoon).
Boo must have done something to make Puddin' think the creature that she was stalking had grabbed her so she focused all of that tension and fear and aggression back to Boo.

My first clue that something was wrong was the serious, screaming cat noises.
Next, Boo raced down the hall at top speed into my bedroom with Puddin' close behind. I had to slam the door in her face. Half an hour later, she was still prowling outside of the door, growling.

I had the bright idea of putting Boo in a carrier to protect him, and letting Puddin' into the room so that they could gradually settle down. BAD idea.
Puddin' screamed and leapt onto the carrier, like a lion onto wildebeest. She was kicking and biting over and over with great strength. Very impressive. Very scary. She was in for the kill.
Boo wailed and wet himself.

One desperate trip to the veterinarian later and we have a plan for reconciliation. It's gonna take at least a month of keeping them separated (pretty hard to do in this little house). They can smell where each other has been, but they absolutely cannot see each other.
When tensions have died down, then we gradually reintroduce them. Vet said, above all, take it sloow.

Now begins the jolly new lifestyle of having confined cats, two separate feeding times, two separate cat boxes.
(I prayed for patience and God sent me His patented "Let's Build Patience" kit.)
I'll keep you updated.

from rainycity1 (Anonymous) 2009-06-22 22:38 (link)

Poor Boo. Poor Puddin' (and of course, poor you). I hope the situation is calming down. I assume that Puddin' was checked also for any health problems that might be behind the problem. One tip I was given was to make sure that when they are around each other again (when you start re-introducing them, for example), make sure to give them extra-special treats. That way there starts to be a positive association with the other beast. Good luck! (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: from rainycity1 cattonic 2009-06-25 00:43 (link)
	Good idea about the treats. Maybe during the final week away from each other, I'll let each cat sniff the other's bedding and hand out a yummy treat. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)