Cat came home from vet, and now our other cat doesn't recognize him. HELP? (kitten, male)

[Wants2MoveNOW]

My two male (neutered) cats were BEST FRIENDS, and super friendly and tame. But yesterday we had to take one of them to the vet...

When we brought vet-cat home, house-cat started hissing/growling at him.

I tried encouraging vet-cat to clean himself, so maybe he'd end up cleaning off the unfamiliar smell and house-cat would recognize him again, but that didn't work.

Then I tried rubbing a paper towel on the gums of house-cat, and then rubbing that paper towel on vet-cat, but that didn't work either.

So we separated them overnight (we kept one in the bedroom, and one in the living room, but they could still smell each other/interact under the door). Today I re-introduced them, and house-cat is STILL being aggressive: he's following vet-cat, and growling/hissing at him, almost antagonizing him.

And even worse: house-cat is starting to hiss/growl/snap at ME... and he's NEVER done that before. I'm afraid to go near him.

Any suggestions of how we can get these two cats to get along again??

[gizmo980]

That's actually quite common, especially if the cat was neutered or if the vet applied medications (or did anything else to affect their scent). I guess cats are so dependent on their sense of smell, they think it's a new kitty who has invaded the home! Usually this wears off after a day or two, once the unusual smells go away - so I wouldn't worry, unless it continues beyond 2-3 days.

[killabunnies]

Give it some time, vet cat smells like the vet and house cat doesn't like it (as you figured out). You might go grab some Feliway diffusers but it will probably resolve itself shortly. Still, might be worth the investment just in case it doesn't.

If I were you, I'd keep them separated and put towels with each of them to sleep on. Then tomorrow, swap towels. They'll be back to their old selves in no time. If not, keep it up for a few days, swapping towels/beds every day.

But thanks for the reminder, my two BFF boys have their yearly appointments coming up and you reminded me why it's important to bring them both to the vet at the same time.

[GotBackHome]

it's pretty normal - the one just smells funny. it will dissipate and they gey ovr it in a day or so. happened to two of mine once. doesn't always happen, but it's not anything to worry about. just make sure the other one doesn't try to attack the "intruder".

[karen_in_nh_2012]

Back in December '05 my kitty Satay had to spend several days in the vet hospital. When she came home, her litter-mate Mabel acted exactly as you described your house-cat is acting -- hissing, swiping, etc. Satay smelled different from being in the hospital. I ended up just keeping them apart -- I kept Satay in the master bedroom and would go back there for an hour or more at a time to "visit" with her (she was dying ... and even now, 6-1/2 years later, I can't write that without bawling ), so Mabel had the run of the rest of the house.

These days I have seven cats and I take them to the vet at different times. The others usually do get huffy when the vet ones return, even if they've only been gone an hour or two. Lots of "odd" smells at the vet's.

[Ohiogirl81]

This is pretty common. When we brought Cookie home from her spaying, and after she'd recovered, we let Checkers in the room with her. He took one sniff and reared up and knocked her right over, clunking her little cat head on the concrete floor. She didn't smell right -- having been spayed -- even though she'd been home from the vet for a week. We scooped her up and kept her in our bedroom away from Checkers for another week, and then all was fine.

Just be patient. Make sure they don't hurt each other, but otherwise let them get reacquainted on their own time.

[goyguy]

"Ditto" to all of the above.
It didn't make sense to me when Blaliko hissed, growled, and swatted at Seteria (her kitten) when the latter returned home from her spay operation (and staying overnight the day before.) They'd been closely bonded. And while Seteria was away her mother was wandering around the house/yard and peering in and out of the windows, clearly worried and upset that she couldn't account for her daughter's whereabouts.
Only after about 2 1/2 days passed did the drama start to ease up. By the time a week had gone by they were back to their usual shenanigans and rituals. Today it's as though the tensions had never been there.

[MsAnnThrope]

Great advice all but I have a kitty who has completely lost her mind.

I don't know what happened to her but she hardly comes home and when she does she is hissing and squawking constantly, wanting to be let out again. I only see her about one day in three.

I thought about keeping her inside but it distresses her so much I end up letting her back out again. I could get meds from the vet but she won't even let me touch her let alone dose her.

What on earth shall I do?

[Sweetbellavida]

Thank you so much for this post I have to girl cats ones spayed one is not and te spayed had to go to the vet. When I brought her home the unspayed cat was hissing and making nasty noises at her and me . My boyfriend and I thought she was in heat or something but it's been about three days and everything is back to normal thankfully (:

[Peebs]

My roommates and I are having somewhat of the same situation. But instead of the vet, it's moving into a new apartment. My cat, Donut (female) used to be super close with my roommates cat, Caesar (male) back in our old apartment. Since we've moved Donut is hissing, growling and rejecting every possibility of interacting with Caesar positively. The move is still recent and I'm sure was very stressful for the cats. I'm not quite sure what to do now because we still have to unpack a lot of boxes and I'm afraid if Donut sees Caesar while we're all doing our own thing unpacking she might hurt him. Is this kind if situation the same as a cat going to a vet? Should we try and reintroduce them to each other and into their new home after a couple a days being separated?