Cat Behavioural Experts

[fossyant]

We have 4 cats.

All have got on swimmingly well.

Old 14 year old Tortie (grumpy, but she is now short of sight) female

2 year old ginger ninjer rescue (no teeth - cat flu, but no issues and is really healthy) MALE

2 x Ragdol pedigrees, just coming upto 1 year old. Male cat is tall - matches our big tortie, but is 2 inches taller than his sister and the rescue male. Ragdolls are very fluffy so even little Luna looks bigger than the rescue short haired ginger tabby, Leo.

All got on fine, until recently. New neighbours, but they have what I'd call a Turkish cat - looks a bit like our male ragdoll but is small like the female (our male is white and grey, female grey) - neigbours cat white) , but has 1 blue one green eye. It's friendly enough but hisses like mad at ours. Our cats are all indoors - the old cat was an outdoor cat until losing her sight, but the rescue and the 'posh cats' are inside.

We do have a big cat run, so the younger cats can go out (we stop the old cat now after she fell in there) into the garden and around the perimeter.

Dynamics have changed since the neighbour's cat arrived. Leo the rescue, hisses and meows at our two raggies, especially Simba - the big male Ragdoll. We've put a plug in felliway friends in for a week, but not so sure what else to do.

They get on fine most of the day until evening. Then Leo get's snappy. It might be because he is that bit older and the younger two fluffy cats are in a crazy mood, or, the neighbour's cat has upset the balance.

@Reynard might be the expert here !!

 

[Reynard]

Assuming all of yours are neutered, then my best guess is that the neighbour's cat has upset the group dynamics, and that Leo gets snappy with the raggies because he can't physically get at the cat that's getting on his wick to give it the old what for...

Some cats are more territorial than others - my two give any cat who so much dares enter the garden pretty short shrift. A friend has a big ginger lump who will try to kill any strange male...

I suspect it's just because the other cat is new - eventually some sort of truce may well be reached - or maybe it's also possible that the other cat is an entire. Might be worth checking with the neighbours. On the flip side, Turkish Vans (semi-longhaired, mostly white, but colour on the head and tail) can be a bit funny temperament-wise, although they're not nearly as unreliable as they used to be. I used to hate handling them when stewarding.

Feliway is a good start. Extra hidey holes for your lot - need not be expensive, upside down cardboard boxes with a hole cut in the side will do, some up high as cats feel safer at a height. Maybe some grass matting to screen the run on that side. Yes, your cats will still be able to smell the newbie, but none of them will be able to see each other, and cats will stare when they're being aggressive / making a point etc. Breaking that line-of sight can make a difference.

Hope this helps xxx

 

[fossyant]

Thanks @Reynard we've started on your suggestions. All ours are done, and I think next doors is female !! I think you are right as Leo lived his first 8 months wild completely. Simba the raggie is currently the worse to try and get out into the wild....

It's a Turkish Vans - lovely cat, but small like our female rag doll (although very vocal).. we have to double take but Simba is massive compared to it - we usually see the white back.... , then it turns round.

Our Luna is quiet, Simba very laid back, but more vocal than the female, but nothing like Leo the rescue. Our previous Ragdol. Mtoto, was wery vocal, but the only male at the time (just with the old grumpy tortie (Tiggy).

I think there is a bit of male alpha stuff going on now, Leo is being quite bossy, but Simba, given his size is still backing down, but they have grown up with Leo..

Simba is a big cat.

All fun... Leo has no teeth, thin fur... Simba, laid back, much bigger, teeth and loads of fur.....

 

[Reynard]

Size isn't everything... I know a tortie who is about two and a half kilos soaking wet and she rules the roost. And that includes two miniature schnauzers...

Ragdolls (colourpoint) and ragamuffins (non-colourpoint) are pretty laid back - takes a lot to upset them, they're more likely to undertake a tactical retreat.

I wouldn't be surprised if the Turk was male given the shennanigans to be honest, although with the fluffy pantaloons, it's not always easy to see

 

[AndreaJ]

The icatcare.org website has an interesting section about cat behaviour although I am not sure it adds much more advice than @Reynard has already given you it might be worth a look. At work we also sometimes recommend a sort of timeshare arrangement if that can be sorted with your neighbour where one households cat is kept inside while the others cat/s are outside although it is not always practical to arrange it's worth thinking about if things don't settle down.

 

[Globalti]

Not relevant at all to this thread but today at the cattery we met an immense Maine Coon.

Oh
My
Gawd

 

[Reynard]

Not relevant at all to this thread but today at the cattery we met an immense Maine Coon.

Oh
My
Gawd

I'm 4ft 11, and sometimes handle them when stewarding at cat shows. It's not the weight that's the problem, just the sheer yardage of cat...

 

[fossyant]

Not relevant at all to this thread but today at the cattery we met an immense Maine Coon.

Oh
My
Gawd

Maine Coon's were on my short list of a 'big cat'. Male Ragdolls aren't far behind. Check out the Norwegian Forest Cat.. Oh yeh....

I've been pro-active... one of our litter tray's is slightly raised to enable the wet stuff to pass through to be tipped out, so you don't go through too much litter. So I've been tipping our cat piss out on the boarder of the land in the soil (no neighbours affected....). Stuff you do for your furry family..

Let's see how this goes..

Give me a bike any day...

 

[fossyant]

Bit of history..

Dog person myself (dogs as kids). But getting married, we were out all day. So got two cats, lived to grand old age, in out as they do, then number three. One and two passed away....

A few years later, happened to get a lovely ragdoll cat Mtoto, but he was a monkey, so we had to let him out. Wandered far too far and got run over. We managed to find him. Wife far too upset - got Leo the Ninja (from a rescue). He cost us £1k to get sorted.

Ragdoll mummy was so upset (as were we) had mummy cat back to daddy. So we ended up with two Ragdolls. One is almost the same as Mtoto, and the girl is just like mummy cat... so now 4 bloody cats.... !!! ARGH. All are now indoor (outdoor run) - the old cat can't see...

Guess who does the litter.....

 

[Reynard]

Guess who does the litter.....

On the upsides, you aren't scooping poop in public and walking down the street with it in a little baggie...

 

[Slick]

And, at least your neighbour's don't have to clean up after your pets.

 

[fossyant]

PS Original mummy (AKA the breeder) has been back too see ours today, then gone off with my wife for a break at our caravan !!

We have a 'watsapp' group for all the kittens - it's lovely..

 

[fossyant]

And, at least your neighbour's don't have to clean up after your pets.

Well yes that's good, but we are also the only folks that do any gardening, so we get every other cat's sh1t in out boarders.... our cat's shoot in our trays or the run...

 

[Slick]

Well yes that's good, but we are also the only folks that do any gardening, so we get every other cat's sh1t in out boarders.... our cat's shoot in our trays or the run...

We did have an issue with all the local moggies fighting over the use of our garden. We tried everything, all our borders have been fenced off and every gap plugged that we could. A neighbour asked us to feed her cats whilst they were away and ever scince the big guy comes over to ours for a snack and a bit of a pet before going about his normal business. He now guards our garden like it's his own which keeps every other cat in the place away. A pretty good deal if you ask me.

 

[fossyant]

We did have an issue with all the local moggies fighting over the use of our garden. We tried everything, all our borders have been fenced off and every gap plugged that we could. A neighbour asked us to feed her cats whilst they were away and ever scince the big guy comes over to ours for a snack and a bit of a pet before going about his normal business. He now guards our garden like it's his own which keeps every other cat in the place away. A pretty good deal if you ask me.

It's next doors cat. It's lovely - we gave it a bit of food off the BBQ and ours too but Leo has taken to be the boss....

Leo would be OK out side, but he has cat flu, so we keep him in with our vaccinated cats.... (responsible cat owners...)