[bear8317]

I have four cats they are all indoor cats. Their names are chomper is 7yrs, Stash is 6yrs, Mewsmews is 5yrs, and then there is baby Bonkers who is 3yrs I have had the all sense they were babies. Now Chomper, and Mewsmews get along with everybody they love people and other cats Stash and Bonkers they love people but hate each other for some odd reason. They always attack each other they will literally stalk each other. Poor Bonkers always gets beat up he has scabs all over him, and I terrified that one day one of the is going to get seriously hurt besides the bumps and hairballs all over. I love the both they are my kids but I just can't seem to get them to get along. 9 times out of 10 it is Bonkers that starts it witch I don't understand cause he always gets beat up like I said. I'v tried everything and nothing works. I wish they would just be more like chompers and mewsews. Now when it comes to them loving on us they are complete different cats. What can I do any suggestions would be greatly appricated.

[Illusion]

Dear Bear - Yeah for people who love cats! Who are the boys and are there any girls?

One of my cats, Mouse (all 20 pounds of him) is aggressive and likes to charge my other cats. I have stopped him numerous times, sprayed him with water, told him no - and he still does it. He has not however beaten up anyone like your cat - ouch!

No chance that they can go outside? They may just need to get all their energy out - (like humans playing sports!) and smell the roses.

I do use a lot of reassurance to try and keep things calm. I have toys, - treats like cat nip which they love. You may have to try a few things - saying no and intervening before it escalates into a fight, reassurance, favorite treats and so forth. Make sure that if they cannot go outside, that they get the chance to enjoy the outside by a favorite window - preferably open with a screen if you can.

I do a lot of monitoring to keep my cats safe - and with Mouse, well - I just need to keep an extra eye out for him since I know how he can be. Just today, he went outside, rolled around in the grass and under some small trees, and after an hour or so decided to come back in - just so that he could charge Fuzzy (she screamed bloody murder but he didn't touch her). Whew! I immediately stepped in and said "NO, NO" in a loud voice. He hasn't bothered her again today. All this after he had a nice breakfast and a nice stroll in the garden.

I've also had to keep them apart - not with the door closed - but one in this room and another in this room (if they are not outside) and stay involved by calling their name - so they know I am watching. Sometimes it could just be a clash of personalities - my cats Morty and Isadora get along great (and it doesn't hurt Morty is a big Momma's boy!)

It may take a little work and intervention on your part, and plenty of love to work this out. And like my situation - it is not perfect, but it can be done. Take care.

[Akoue]

First, I would strongly discourage you from letting the cats go outside. This is not only dangerous for them but a great way to end up giving lots of your money to a vet.

Illusion is exactly right to say that you need to monitor them when you can. When you see that someone is being too aggressive, clap your hands to stop them and then take the offending party away and put him in a small room, preferably a bathroom, for fifteen minutes or so. Time out works well with most cats. You want it to be confining and, most of all, boring, but not horribly unpleasant for the one who's being disciplined. Once he has served his time, let him out so that he can mix and mingle again.

This is something that will take patience and repetition on your part, but they will learn what the boundaries are. Boys will wrestle, and it's important that they do: It is good for them both physically and psychologically. And it is going to happen that someone ends up on the losing end of those wrestling matches. That's fine. That's cats being cats.

What you want to do is to help them understand that excessive aggression isn't permitted. You need to be patient, because it will take them a while to understand the difference between acceptable play and unacceptable play. But cats are very smart and much more eager to please than people often realize. Be firm and consistent. My cats (I live with six at the moment) have come to understand that when someone cries out you have to back off. That way they can still wrestle and burn off some energy, but they don't hurt each other very often. Of course, sometimes it will happen, and this is just boys being boys, as it were.

I would also like to second a question asked by Illusion: Are any of the cats female? Has everyone been fixed?

The more time you can spend with them, playing vigorously, the less time they'll spend stalking and attacking each other. But remember that you want them to do some of this. It is good for them. Your job is to help them tone it down a bit. As I say, it will take patience on your part. But they will work hard to understand and follow the rules. Cats love rules.