Why are my cats so useless? (kittens, eating, male, siamese)
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I have been a cat owner all my life and the ones I have now are terrible.
I've got three, coco, itty bitty and smokey.
Coco and smokey are sisters, siamese about 3 years old now.
Itty bitty is about 5, a tuxedo cat.
First of all Ittybitty decided to have a breakdown of some sort when I got the siamese. She went from being a devoted adoring companion to the most twitchy, jittery mess.
Yesterday I picked her up and she shrank into a tiny ball and made pathetic grunting squeaks like I was pulling out her toenails. It's just kinder to leave her alone.
Now Smokey has decided to have some sort of breakdown too, she won't stop yowling and will hardly come inside. It's like she's decided to become a hippy cat, at one with nature, unconfined by walls and her duty as a pet. If I pick her up she starts up with a low volume growling that doesn't quit till I put her back down again.
Coco is the smallest of the bunch and the Alpha kitty...in fact I'm wondering if she's behind the other two's mental issues.
She is always with me, follows me to every room, and recently I have noticed her standing at the door like a guard, fencing the other two out with her eyes.
If they eat, coco goes and hangs her head over their plate. She's already eaten and doesn't want their food, she just wants to bug them. She just stands there like a statue and they run away.
So now I have essentially, one cat. The other two are such neurotic messes that they really aren't cats at all, more like overgrown mice.
I think kitties can get moody or go through various stages as they get older, just like people.
I have 7 and they all have quite distinct personalities. Some are very sweet and get along with all the others, one is very bratty (like a teenager), one is a little monster kitty (like a kitten, wanting to get into everything), one is a total scaredy-cat/Nervous Nellie type, etc.
I don't expect them to be "useful." And mine are completely indoor cats ... the closest they get to nature is in the spring/summer when they hang out in a big screened porch. Maybe something outdoors is affecting them in some way?
Also, you didn't say how old Itty Bitty was when you got the other two, and how long you've had them? (You gave their ages, but it's not clear if you got them as kittens or adults?) Maybe they are still adjusting to each other?
They go outside to toilet and the food bowl is always full.
The point is the cats that are being bullied need to be able to eat in peace - it's not about whether they get enough but that they can eat without being harassed. I would recommend multiple water bowls and start spending time with each cat separately so they get individual attention. This should be while the alpha cat it outside or separated in another room.
One thing that is critical to understand is that cats are not like dogs. There is no such thing as an alpha cat. They are individual and territorial by nature and do not socialize much in the wild (though domesticated siblings may socialize and even form strong bonds). The trick with multiple cats--especially if you introduce one or more after others already live in the space--is to make sure everyone has their own territory.
Cats need a certain amount of "range" and it varies based on gender and whether or not they are spayed or neutered. An un-neutered male cat needs the largest territory, neutered males need a bit less, and females take the smallest territorial space. Cats territories overlap, but they will have very distinct, and separate places to do certain activities, such as eating, nesting and defecating.
It may be that one of the cats has established its territory in such a way that your other cats feel encroached upon. If Coco has claimed that space for her food, and is defending that space, the other two will not be able to eat there safely. In the wild, the less dominant cat would relocate its territory. In a domestic situation, they can't move and so they will start to show signs of stress--which is exactly what you are describing. You may need to help your cats establish their own territories in the home. The tip about separating their food areas is very good. It is also good to help make sure that each cat has a dark, quiet hiding space that it can utilize that the other cats won't disturb. Let the cat nest in there--meaning let it build its fur up in that area so it smells right.
There is a ton of reading info on the internet about cats and territories. Territorial issues are behind 90% of domestic behavior problems.
One thing that is critical to understand is that cats are not like dogs. There is no such thing as an alpha cat. They are individual and territorial by nature and do not socialize much in the wild (though domesticated siblings may socialize and even form strong bonds). The trick with multiple cats--especially if you introduce one or more after others already live in the space--is to make sure everyone has their own territory.
Cats need a certain amount of "range" and it varies based on gender and whether or not they are spayed or neutered. An un-neutered male cat needs the largest territory, neutered males need a bit less, and females take the smallest territorial space. Cats territories overlap, but they will have very distinct, and separate places to do certain activities, such as eating, nesting and defecating.
It may be that one of the cats has established its territory in such a way that your other cats feel encroached upon. If Coco has claimed that space for her food, and is defending that space, the other two will not be able to eat there safely. In the wild, the less dominant cat would relocate its territory. In a domestic situation, they can't move and so they will start to show signs of stress--which is exactly what you are describing. You may need to help your cats establish their own territories in the home. The tip about separating their food areas is very good. It is also good to help make sure that each cat has a dark, quiet hiding space that it can utilize that the other cats won't disturb. Let the cat nest in there--meaning let it build its fur up in that area so it smells right.
There is a ton of reading info on the internet about cats and territories. Territorial issues are behind 90% of domestic behavior problems.
Yes, cats are territorial but cats actually are very social animals within their own group. They form colonies "In the wild", stick together and have a ranking system.
Yes, cats are territorial but cats actually are very social animals within their own group. They form colonies "In the wild", stick together and have a ranking system.
That's pretty irrelevent to the OP's situation, because these three cats weren't a group until the OP thrust them together. They're TWO groups: the siamese siblings, and the tuxedo.
For whatever reason, there's a clash in personalities going on, and the cats frankly don't care what the good intentions are of their keeper. They're not in the wild, they're not a colony, and they're being forced to live in the same territory, which had already been staked out and claimed by the tuxedo. This is making all three of them unhappy. Keeping them apart during feeding, and giving each of them their own feeding space *and* litter box they can claim, is a good idea.
Just a shoutout for my kitty!!!
She is a legit "mouser" (barn trained since baby)...
BUT BIG HUGE ACCOMPLISHMENT today!!!
At around 9 AM (+/-) she caught a Squirrel... A squirrel!!!
Now those critters are very hard to catch & some have been taunting her for quite the while.
Loooove my cat!
(One & only baby to me)
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And mine are completely indoor cats ... the closest they get to nature is in the spring/summer when they hang out in a big screened porch. Maybe something outdoors is affecting them in some way?
