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Jenny: you asked, and now you shall receive (pg. 5)
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| The17sss |
| quote: | Originally posted by Schadenfreude
i have 5.
the behaviour you are seeing has nothing to do with mating, but with one cat trying to show dominance over the other.
cats are pack animals...add another 1 or 2 and you will see that a hierarchy will develop, and the least dominant cats will be the one that eats last, washes all the other ones, and a whole bunch of other things that you see with big cats in the wild. |
What would your theory be about my small female doing that... she's tired of being dominated and wants to try and assert herself a little? It will be interesting when we add a 3rd cat to the mix, because it will be another female.
Yeah my male cat is definitely the first one to eat... noticing this, when it's food time I always take out a small portion and put it on the floor around the corner for the little one so she doesn't have to wait. She always looks so sad when the male eats and makes her wait! The grooming is pretty mutual though. |
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| SYSTEM-J |
| Again, why bother teaching them when you can just let them outside? |
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| Schadenfreude |
there is nothing deep to it...it is exactly like you said, just simple fighting back and trying to show the male that dominance can come at a price.
when you get a "pack", you start to see collaboration within the cats on the lower rung. It is so entertaining to see the scheming and sneaking that goes on when they want to have a "coup d'etat".
all i can say is that when you do decide to add another cat (it will be chaos for a few days...they are very territorial) do not attempt to break up the fighting unless you fear for the safety of one of your cats. The fighting is important, if you don't let them do it, the new cats will never fully integrate.
the hierarchy can only be decided by them...human influencing can lead to cats that act out. |
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| Silky Johnson |
| quote: | Originally posted by SYSTEM-J
Again, why bother teaching them when you can just let them outside? |
I could be wrong, but if I paid that much for a cat, I wouldn't let it outside. |
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| Schadenfreude |
| quote: | Originally posted by SYSTEM-J
Again, why bother teaching them when you can just let them outside? |
because with expensive cats you don't let them outside....if you pay 1200 for a bengal...if someone sees it roaming they will take it. |
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| SYSTEM-J |
| I don't know how any animal lover could keep a cat trapped in a house all its life. |
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| The17sss |
| quote: | Originally posted by jennypie
I could be wrong, but if I paid that much for a cat, I wouldn't let it outside. |
Exactly. Last thing I need is to see $4000 worth of fur running away or getting hit by a car.
| quote: | Originally posted by Schadenfreude
It is so entertaining to see the scheming and sneaking that goes on when they want to have a "coup d'etat".
all i can say is that when you do decide to add another cat (it will be chaos for a few days...they are very territorial) do not attempt to break up the fighting unless you fear for the safety of one of your cats. The fighting is important, if you don't let them do it, the new cats will never fully integrate. |
Haha... I would LOVE so see coup d'etat stuff in action playing out with a group of cats. :stongue:
When we first introduced the female, she was so ing small. The male wanted to kill her. We had to keep them separated for at least a month until she could fend for herself. Then we put them in the kitchen face to face for the first time and just let them go at each other...lol. I agree, it was important to not stand in. The girl is very timid and has never once bit me or my wife, even when we try to make her bite. But each night when the cats get amped up, she attacks and bites him while playing. It's fun to watch because he'll put up with it for a while, then he'll flip a switch and pounce... she gets all scared and runs away. 30 minutes later, they're laying on each other grooming like the best of friends. :p
| quote: | Originally posted by SYSTEM-J
I don't know how any animal lover could keep a cat trapped in a house all its life. |
We take 'em outside on a leash and to the park sometimes... they get some fresh air. |
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| Schadenfreude |
| quote: | Originally posted by SYSTEM-J
I don't know how any animal lover could keep a cat trapped in a house all its life. |
if you have a lot of space, it isn't all that bad. Cats do not have big territories on the outside. It is why you tend to always see the same cat ting on your lawn, they don't stay far from their "safe zone".
man i feel like the ceasar chavez of cats.:p |
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| Schadenfreude |
| quote: | Originally posted by The17sss
Exactly. Last thing I need is to see $4000 worth of fur running away or getting hit by a car.
Haha... I would LOVE so see coup d'etat stuff in action playing out with a group of cats. :stongue:
When we first introduced the female, she was so ing small. The male wanted to kill her. We had to keep them separated for at least a month until she could fend for herself. Then we put them in the kitchen face to face for the first time and just let them go at each other...lol. I agree, it was important to not stand in. The girl is very timid and has never once bit me or my wife, even when we try to make her bite. But each night when the cats get amped up, she attacks and bites him while playing. It's fun to watch because he'll put up with it for a while, then he'll flip a switch and pounce... she gets all scared and runs away. 30 minutes later, they're laying on each other grooming like the best of friends. :p
We take 'em outside on a leash and to the park sometimes... they get some fresh air. |
i'll post vids next time i catch them doing it. it isn't limited to with cats...they work together sometimes to do that bugs us (like try to steal leftover meat from the garbage). 2 will try and get the can to open, and one stands on look out. If he sees one of us coming into the kitchen he will meow and they will all bolt like wildfire.:stongue: |
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| SYSTEM-J |
| quote: | Originally posted by Schadenfreude
if you have a lot of space, it isn't all that bad. Cats do not have big territories on the outside. It is why you tend to always see the same cat ting on your lawn, they don't stay far from their "safe zone".
man i feel like the ceasar chavez of cats.:p |
When I lived in a village I used to walk my dog late at night and you'd see cats everywhere. They like to mark territory, to meet other cats, to hunt, to climb, things like that. I've seen cats in the middle of farmland, over a mile from any house.
This is why I would never keep a cat again as things stand. We had three cats when I was a kid and they'd be out roaming all night. But that was in a village in the countryside and one of them still ended up getting hit by a car. I wouldn't feel right unless it was safe for the cats to go and do what they wanted, to have freedom, and there aren't many neighbourhoods that can guarentee that. |
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| The17sss |
| quote: | Originally posted by Schadenfreude
i'll post vids next time i catch them doing it. it isn't limited to with cats...they work together sometimes to do that bugs us (like try to steal leftover meat from the garbage). 2 will try and get the can to open, and one stands on look out. If he sees one of us coming into the kitchen he will meow and they will all bolt like wildfire.:stongue: |
lol... that's hilarious. working in teams. your cats are the most vocal of breeds, correct? |
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| Schadenfreude |
i can see why you would feel that way.
with our move, they have all the place in the world (there is a room just for them for instance...litter, toys..beds.) and with 5 of them they have all of the friends that they need. We invested way too much in them to take a chance, so we do our best to make sure that they have things to stimulate them and make life interesting.
I so want to buy a mouse at the pet store to see what they do...but i have been vetoed. Pffft it isn't animal cruelty imo...just the food chain at work. I should still do it one day and not tell her:p |
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