very aggresive fight by the

Question
QUESTION: I have had cats ALL my life and this is a different situation for me. I took in a new kitten (found on the street) I have 3 other cats. This kitten ,male, is VERY aggressive and literally seriously attacks my most dominint cat. ALL my cats are male and have been netuered. the new one is pending but will be also soon. He is very bold and will hiss and strike at me when he is angry. I have NEVER seen a cat like this. Please advise, I have never gotten rid of any aminal I have had even if they are a litle bit of a pain.

ANSWER: Rebecca,

You need to isolate the new kitten for awhile. This is for a few reasons, preventing contagious diseases from being passed on to your resident cats, being able to track things like appetite, litter box habits, etc, allowing your resident cats and the kitten to settle down with the new member of the household. The kitten sounds like he may be lacking in social skills. It will take time and patience on your part to socialise him, but you can turn him into a more civilised part of the household. It is possible that this kitten is feral. Neutering him will take the edge of his aggression if hormones are a part of it. This kitten may also have been abused and abandoned on the street. If this kitten is afraid of being hurt it is normal that he would lash out at everyone in the vicinity when he is angry or frightened. I would suggest that you keep him isolated until his behavior is under control rather than the standard couple of weeks. Patience, positive reinforcement, love and more patience are the keys to bringing this guy around. He may need an anti anxiety medication to help with the socialization process, which you can discuss with your vet. Spend time with this little guy just sitting where he can see you, read a book or something so that he doesn't feel threatened by eye contact. Fearful or aggressive cats are intimidated or angered by excessive eye contact. When he comes over to check you out speak kindly to him. It doesn't matter what you say as long as your tone of voice is sweet, don't think about any past outbursts, live in the moment your cat does. If your kitty makes friendly advances reward him with something really yummy that he wouldn't usually get like tuna. This is a long term project that will require patience and persistance coupled with very gentle socialization. When your kitten comes around it will be worthwhile though, I have brought several abused and feral kittens around and while they may never be lap cats they are social and relatively loving creatures. I will be watching my email for updates or concerns that you may run into over the coming weeks. Please do not hesitate to contact me with further questions or concerns.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your advice, one thing I didn't mention was that I have had this cat since early fall, he has been to the vet and dewormed etc. Also he has been isolated alot due to necisity, fighting with other cats and the dog so during the day he can't be out with the other animals. Particulary my black dominant cat, who would leave him alone except for the fact that he is viciously attacked. This cat goes in and out, my only one who I let do this, so he is not in all the time.

Also I went through 2 months of patience and etc with the dog who wanted to get the kitten. He only tolerates that cats he grew up with so that was very trying and I really thought it would take longer than 2 months. The dog likes him now (he likes to play and my other cats don't want to with him) since he is the only cat that will play a little rowdy with him. All of this info might make a difference, sorry I didn't include the length of time I had the kitten and how is already isolated a fair amount of the time. I want this to work!

Answer
Rebecca,

You may well need to seek professional help if you have gone through positive reinforcement and the other suggestions that I gave. You may want to consider asking your vet for a referral to a behaviorist to help get things going in the right direction. Good luck and keep me posted. If you have any further questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me again.