Sibling rivalry

Question
We have two 4 year old cats, just moggies, brother and sister, Buster is a very large cat and Bonnie is just the opposite. Bonnie has slowly over the last two years removed herself from the house now mostly only coming in to feed, no matter how cold or wet it is, basically eats and runs.

Buster has been the dominant cat, and we believe he is keeping her out somehow. He is very relaxed but in the past has been in the habit off staring at her if she was sitting on me, almost jealous like. Buster would often sleep near the cat door at night, as if to keep Bonnie outside, at times I have heard him jump off the chair in our room and race to the door, I think he has heard her coming. To try and solve this we have put in another cat door but it hasn't made any difference.

Bonnie is quite timid, does love to hunt and climb. She was hit by a car 2 years ago which factured her hip but seems to have made a full recovery. When they were younger they would both sleep on our bed, now she won't go near the bedroom, almost panics to get out.

They both were de-sexed as kittens when we got them.

My wife and I are away from the house all day, so we don't know what happening during that time.

Answer
Hi Rob,

It's good to hear from you.  Unfortunately you have a bit of a pickle on your hands.  Most of the rehabilitation I recommend has to do with strictly indoor cats, and as your cats come and go as they please, there is only so much advice I can offer.  Beyond that, both of you being gone most of the day makes this even more difficult.  The best I can tell you is that if I were in your situation, I would start keeping Buster in a bedroom with a litter box, food, and water.  That way, Bonnie can come and go as she pleases and begin to feel comfortable in the home again.  You can encourage this by making any time she does come in a fun and positive experience.  Give her treats, play with her with a toy, and just love on her in general.  

It is hard for me to advice in these instances as there may be many factors at work here, and unfortunately it is hard for the cat owners to let me know all of the details that may be significant.  It may be as simple as he feels as though when they are both inside, you pay more attention to her.  It may be that he's just bored and he does it because he can (dominant animals are this way).  It may be a combination of both.  Sometimes there is a medical reason behind a behavioral change, so maybe a vet check up is in order.

I can't really in all honesty tell you what I would do because my cats are indoors only, and I have raised them in a very specific way, with training, behavioral modification, and socialization.  It is near impossible to apply my techniques when the cats can just up and go outside when they please.  Have you considered keeping them indoors only?  Is there a particular reason why you don't?  Statistics show that cats on average only live to be 3-6 years old when allowed outside, as compared to indoor only cats, which live on average 15-20 years.  As long as you provide good nutrition, a clean place to sleep, a scratching post, and plenty of mental stimulation and social activity, they lead wonderful, happy lives as indoor-only pets.  Just food for thought.  I have six indoors-only cats, ranging in ages from 7 years to 1 year, all with distinctly different personalities, all on holistic food, have an filtered automatic waterer, natural cat litter, four sisal scratch posts and two cat towers, plenty of toys, and attention and training from me, all in a 873 square foot townhome. Two of them I use as animal advocates and are harness trained and go out to educate people about proper cat care.

At any rate, I hope that helps at least some.  Please let me know if you have any further questions.  Have a great day!

Best regards,

Holly Martin
Cat Care & Behavior Counselor
Texas A&M University
B.S. Animal Science