My kittens seem to hate each other

Question
QUESTION: About a month ago I brought home a beautiful long haired perisan male kitten aged 8 weeks. A week back I brought home his sister from the same litter. She is a lot larger and I suspect, stronger than him. They fought a lot initially, and have finally begun to get along but I have noticed that he seems subdued and always holds his tail down low.
He used to be very energetic and playfull but he seems subdued not and almost ill. I can tell he wants to join her while she plays but he just sits and watches her.
When they have teir kitten fights he always ends up crying.
They also prefer not to stay together in the same room and dont approach me to be petted at the same time either. I was told that they will start licking and preening each other but that hasnt happend yet and its been a week since they have been together.
Is this normal, or should I be taking any action? Will he get bigger than her later? How do I get the power balance between the 2 of them to level out a bit and get them to get along better? And how do I handle showing each equal amounts of attention and love?
Please help!




ANSWER: Archana,

It takes from 2 weeks to a month for things to settle down. They are figuring out the pecking order now. It sounds like she is going to be the dominant one, and he is letting her. That is normal. Give it time and it will work out.

Have you had him checked to make sure his behavior isn't a medical issue? He may BE ill, or have pain somewhere.

A great ice-breaker with your cats would be to get a pet laser light (at PetSmart, etc.). It builds their confidence and the 3 of you can play interactively which is good for bonding,and they LOVE to chase the little 'red bug' on the floors, ceilings, and walls. It also gets the kittens used to playing together.

Feed both cats yummy cat treats (like tuna or pieces of raw steak) TOGETHER. That is so the cats will associate each other with something pleasant.

When they settle into a routine and get familiar with their surroundings and each other they will be fine. Right now everything is new: new home, new owner, new smells, etc. Don't rush it. It just takes time, love, and patience.

Tabbi


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

QUESTION: Hi!
Thanks for your advise, it is appreciated.
I had forgotten to mention that the girl who came in a week ago sometimes litters outside the box. She has been trained by the breeder and she knows where she is supposed to go, yet sometimes she does it right outside the litter box or even in a corner in the house.
She gets as much affection and love as the male and she seems a happy kitten, but I cant explain why she does this.
Hope to hear from you.

Archana

Answer
Archana,

She could have a kidney or urinary tract infection, or urinary crystals. UTIs and urinary crystals are very painful and the cats associate that pain with the litterbox and go elsewhere.

A cat will quit using the litterbox also when they are upset at you or stressed over something in or around the home. Sometimes you have to be a detective to figure out what it is.

Often cats don't like where their litterbox is located. Many are modest and like privacy. Choose a quiet spot where she can see what's coming at her. A cat doesn't want any surprises while she's using the litterbox. You should also experiment with additional boxes in your house, especially since you have more than one kitten. Urine and feces are weapons in a war over territory...some cats share litterboxes but many don't.

They also may decide they don't like the litter you are using (because of smell or texture), or the litterbox becomes too small for their liking. Try getting some children play sand from Home Depot or a building supply store and see if she prefers that and/or a bigger litterbox with deeper litter in it.

I am including a couple of links that have informational articles on improper elimination that you may find helpful. Copy and paste, or type, the whole links into your address bar:

http://www.geocities.com/heartland/pointe/9352/litterboxhelp.html

and

http://cats.about.com/cs/behavioralissues/a/outsidebox_two.htm

I hope this helps.

Tabbi