aggressive cat behavior

Question
My husband and I adopted a rescue cat 2 1/2 weeks ago. Ralph is 1 year old. He was initially a little anxious and timid. He would occasionally hiss at us but within about 3-4 days, was affectionate with me and soon thereafter, with my husband. When friends came over, Ralph was momentarily timid, but would always come back out to see what was going on and frequently let people pet him. Last weekend however, our daughter came home for a short visit from college and brought her 8 month. old cat. We have kept them separated, but Ralph's behavior has become more aggressive to everyone in the household, especially my daughter. Hissing and growling when she comes in the room. He even came up to her in what we thought was a social gesture but then again started hissing and growling. We were puzzled by this, because on the second day of her visit, he sat next to her on the sofa and purred and allowed her to pet him. The last 24 hours however, Ralph has become aggressive towards her again. She is leaving today with her cat, but I am concerned about return visits and trips to our cottage this summer where there will be other pets and people. My husband feels he was damaged as a kitten and we should return him, that no intervention will change this behavior.  I'm already attached to Ralph and don't want to take him back, but also don't want to this behavior to continue. What can we do?

Answer
Mary,

I have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news is that Ralph isn't damaged goods or beyond repair. The bad news is that cats are territorial animals and they don't like change, this includes having new animals come into their home without proper introductions. If Ralph's not neutered that can cause a more extreme reaction to changes within his territory (your home). Ralph may even have been jealous that he's not the center of attention for the moment, but there are ways to work around that to ensure that nobody gets hurt. Firstly if your daughter's not going to be living in your home on a full time basis it might be best not to bring her kitty home with her, that way Ralph won't be as likely to react badly to her presence. If your daughter is going to be living with you then you might find that a proper introduction between the two cats is in order so that peace can be maintained in the household.

New cat introductions have to be done very gradually over the space of 2-4 weeks although some cats will take longer to become comfortable with other pets. The aggression is likely related to the fact that Ralph can smell your daughter's cat on your daughter's hands and clothing so if the cat doesn't come back into your home without proper introductions you shouldn't have a problem. Introducing new cats to each other should be done by isolating the new cat in a room of his own with all of the usual kitty amenities and creature comforts for a minimum of 2-3 weeks, sometimes things take slightly longer to completely simmer down, but it'll happen if the cats are both spayed/neutered and they learn to associate each other's presence and scent with something positive.

I usually introduce newcomers by feeding my resident cats on the other side of the closed door to the room that the new cat is in, playing with a favorite toy, giving special treats and attention are great ways of creating positive associations between two cats you'd like to live together in harmony. It's perfectly reasonable for a cat to be upset that there's a new cat in their territory, normally they'd fight with each other to determine who owned a specific territory which isn't something that you want in a house cat which is why you have to work around what cats as a species are like.

If there's a small gap under the door in the room where the new cat's being housed you can watch for signs of acceptance like seeing the cats play with each other under the door and a marked decrease in tense, aggressive behavior when they smell or hear each other. Isolating a new cat in your household has the added benefit of protecting all of your cats from contagious viral or bacterial infections and gives you time to have your vet examine the new cat, once everyone's comfortable with each other and has a clean bill of health then you can begin face to face introductions - if you see aggression you'll need to return to the previous problem free step until tensions cool.

You can use a homeopathic remedy called Bach's Rescue Remedy which is a blend of flower essences that's designed to calm and reassure. This is a remedy I've used many times over the years and it's often quite effective. Since Ralph was adopted from a shelter he is still de-stressing, institutional life is especially tough for cats because things are fast paced, crowded, impersonal and noisy, there are so many cats and dogs in an average shelter and most often cats/dogs and other animals haven't been sterilized which increases the likelihood of aggression and territorial behavior. Another factor that bears mentioning is the fact that shelter animals spend days being passed over many times before they're adopted which I believe takes a toll on them as well.

I'd suggest giving Ralph 8-9 drops of Rescue Remedy daily, the best way to do that is to put the drops into his bowl of fresh water each morning. You can also gently massage one drop of Rescue Remedy into the relatively fur free area in front of Ralph's ears, it's important that you don't get any in his ears though, the flower essences are preserved in a grape alcohol solution which can sting a bit. Rescue Remedy is perfectly safe if used with common sense, you can double, triple, or even quadruple the dosage without hurting the cat and if he doesn't respond to the Rescue Remedy as quickly as you'd like you can add more to his water, just use it sparingly and have patience, it's likely to work. You can usually find Rescue Remedy in health food stores, naturopathic pharmacies, some mainstream pharmacies carry it in the area where vitamins and nutritional supplements are displayed and to my knowledge you can also purchase this remedy online. Rescue Remedy is also used by some holistic practitioners to treat anxiety in humans, so if you're having trouble staying calm enough to train Ralph you can follow the package directions. This remedy is safe for kids, adults and pets but it's not a toy so keep it out of reach of small children and pets.

I do think that it might be wise to consider checking into having Ralph evaluated and treated by a holistic vet because he may require other treatments before he's completely his balanced, happy self. These highly skilled vets are trained in conventional medicine as well as one or more alternative therapies which can include massage, acupuncture, homeopathy or Reiki to name a few available treatment options. Homeopathy can be described as being somewhat like peeling an onion, it cures one issue and there may be another underneath that needs to be treated. The nice thing about homeopathy is that it doesn't simply mask symptoms or issues, it cures them without dangerous side effects or drug interactions. My vet is a holistic practitioner and she uses homeopathy in place of or in combination with conventional therapies depending upon the situation. I've seen some pretty amazing things happen when the right homeopathic remedy is administered at the right time, so it's something to consider. I prefer to avoid the pharmaceutical approach whenever possible because the use of drugs isn't without risks or side effects, natural, drug free treatments are often less expensive, more effective and safer than medicating cats when it comes to anxiety.

I would also suggest that you consider using humane disciplinary tools, training and positive reinforcement to help Ralph understand which behaviors will or won't be tolerated within your household. There are a few humane disciplinary tools that I use fairly frequently when I need them - a squirt bottle filled with water, a can of compressed air, shaker cans or air horns can all change bad behavior abruptly.

It's very important that you don't recycle a spray bottle from household cleaning products or other chemicals, I purchase mine from the dollar store and they work well. Most cats aren't fussy about being squirted with water, they take great pride in themselves so they prefer not to be squirted and be forced to dry their fur and smooth it back into place, though there are exceptions - some cats make a game out of being squirted.

With cats who aren't persuaded to change bad behavior after being squirted with water you can use cans of compressed air, I use the cans sold for cleaning keyboards and electronic equipment. It's extremely important that nobody ever aims the can directly at the cat, pulls the trigger at close range or tilts the can on an angle when in use because these products contain chemicals that can cause frost bite. If you aim the compressed air in the cat's general direction and pull the trigger it won't likely take long for him to get the message - the air makes a hissing sound on it's way out of the can that cats completely understand.

Shaker cans are simply a can or plastic container with a small amount of dried beans, rice, pennies or lentils inside. You secure the lid onto the container and you have a shaker can. You can use your shaker can to discourage bad behavior and as the name implies you have to shake it.

Air horns sold in the form of a small can will instantly startle most cats, they're loud though so if you live close to your neighbors or you're in an apartment I don't recommend them. I rarely use this tool because it's so loud and cats have extremely sensitive hearing, I usually tell a cat behaving badly "NO!" in a sharp voice or clap my hands because these two options are effective without hurting anyone's ears.

It's important that you train Ralph and teach him what behaviors are acceptable within your household so that he doesn't become a prisoner of his own misbehavior. Well trained cats make good pets. Getting frustrated, angry or anxious when Ralph misbehaves isn't going to fix anything - stay calm, be gentle and assertive. If you don't catch Ralph while he's doing something unacceptable you can't punish him. If Ralph is misbehaving and you happen to be right there you can use humane disciplinary tools including items that I've mentioned or your own voice. Never, ever strike a cat, that's abuse and it's not an effective way to teach them anything other than to be fearful of their human caregivers.

Cats are very smart, they're trainable and they learn quickly with the right motivation - my own cats know several "doggy" obedience commands including sit, beg, sit pretty, stay, down and roll over. In order to teach Ralph acceptable behaviors or tricks you have to motivate him. Using humane disciplinary tools when he's behaving badly will communicate your displeasure. I've found that when teaching obedience commands to cats it's important to do so in a quiet, distraction free environment and have a favorite toy or treat on hand. You know your cat better than anyone else does, find out what he's motivated by. What will Ralph do just about anything for? Once you know what motivates your cat you can begin training, teaching cats obedience is pretty much done the same way as it's done with dogs, but most cats are smart enough not to do anything that feels undignified. Providing Ralph with a repertoire of appropriate behaviors to choose from will hopefully mean that he's a happy, healthy and well adjusted pet for many years to come.