Late in the day on Saturday, I brought home Casey Jones, my second cat. Naturally, there's been a bit of hissing and growling between him and Chessie, although that's natural from what I've heard and read. I've been keeping them separated at night and during the day when I can't watch them. As the evening's gone on, the hissing has calmed a bit. However, a little while ago while I was getting around for bed, the "Feline Express" started up. They came barreling up the stairs at about 200 MPH and went into my bedroom. There were a few purring meows, and Casey came running out and down the stairs with Chessie hot on his heels. Shortly after I heard them reach the kitchen, the whole thing repeated itself, only this time, Casey was chasing Chessie back up the stairs and into the bedroom. It got quiet, so I looked in. They were laying on the floor about two feet apart acting completely normal. A little while later, one would start to try to provoke the other, and the hissing started again. Obviously, I separated them since it was a fight starting. Was the chasing also fighting or were they actually starting to play together? If they aren't hissing or growling, how do I know if it's play or fighting?
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Chessie in his favorite spot while I work in the kitchen.
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Fighting or playing?
Replies (2)
Hi There,
This sounds like playing since the cats were taking turns chasing each other. Hissing, growling, and wrestling is also part of normal play in kittens.
At some point the cats will have to decide who is the top cat and it's possible that there may be some fighting for that position.
I will almost always let my cats work out things themselves. Hissing and growling is an everyday thing here but there are never serious fights. All of the others highly respect the top cat.
If things get really rough and one cat is obviously getting more and more upset, I will step in and put a stop to it. One of my males tends to mount the other cats and he is being clicker-trained to stop the behavior because it is so upsetting. He stops cold and runs to me for attention.
Concats on your new addition!
Regards,
PHKitkat
My cats are doing this too, I'm happy to find out that it's normal!
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