I have 3 cats. One is an adult female (spayed) that I found as a stray. She is exceptionally docile and not confrontational with other cats. My other 2 are kittens (both neutered)--a 10-month old Ocicat and an 8-month old American Bobtail (Musashi). I got the 2 kittens at the same time, some 7 months ago, after one of my cats was lost. After a brief adjustment period, the adult female warmed up to both kittens. But here's my problem. My American Bobtail seems almost depressed. He's very very mellow, and surprisingly inactive for a young cat; he's quite shy and seems to be somewhat of a loner. Sometimes he runs away from us. Yet, if you pick him up or cuddle him, he's totally relaxed, and will tolerate nearly anything, but he purrs rarely. My husband and I shower affection on him. My Ocicat is the exact opposite--extremely active, very outgoing, curious, constantly playing, and monopolizing the older female--the Oci just loves her. Musashi used to play with the Ocicat, but as they have gotten older, he seems to be less involved and less engaged. He is physically healthy, eats normally, has absolutely no signs of a physical problem. A family member recently offered the theory that my Ocicat is an Alpha male and is subtly intimidating my Bobtail. The Oci has his nose into everything and the minute Musashi shows interest in something, the Oci is right there getting in the way and then Musashi just stops what he is doing, or leaves. I've had cats all my life and raised many, many kittens and I've never had a cat quite like Musashi. I handle my cats a lot and do lots of bonding acivity and always wind up with great cats that are loving and affectionate. So, does anyone buy the theory that he is just feeling intimidated by my other cat(s)?

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