Cat Problem

Well we had the same problem, sort of, we had to remove the offending cat. It took a while for me to find her a new home but that is what we did. I felt better finding her a home instead of adding a cat to the shelter, ya know?

Let your daughter take the cat with her if she wants to keep it, otherwise frind a good home for it.

BTW - Your daughter turning 18 in a couple of weeks does not give her carte blanche to come and go and she wants. You better rein that in quickly.

Different cats have different temperaments. Also, cats DO have a hierarchy, and it sounds like Ruby wants to be Top Cat. All of her actions show this. Terrorizing, "marking" by pooing and peeing.

You can try a few things first, but you may need to ultimately get rid of Ruby.

First, try Claw Caps. They are plastic caps that you apply to your cat's claws, rendering them harmless. I would apply them to Ruby to "even up" the playing field.

Second, try Cat Attract litter. It's not expensive and it encourages litter box use. Some cats are picky and won't use a box that's being used by a lot of other cats. Ruby may be like this and you may need to get her a separate box anyway. I heard the general rule is one box per cat, even though they won't all stick to just one box. We have two cats and so far we can use one box, but when we had our other cat she'd pee outside the box unless we had two boxes.

Try using Rescue Remedy for pets on Ruby. It's a natural way to calm her down and maybe she won't be so aggressive. You can put a few drops on a cat treat or put them on her paw, ear or nose. Sounds silly, but it really does work!

Do you have plenty of cat trees and places for your cats to call their own? You have so many cats, sometimes they just need a place to call their own.

A final solution is Feliway. You can get the room warmer. It's a calming cat pheromone and it may calm all your cats. It's expensive though.

If none of these work, you may need to find a new home for Ruby. Boo was there first, and Ruby may just not get along with your cat dynamic.

We had an bully cat like Ruby except that ours would attack people too. After several visits to the Vet to rule out anything medical, the Vet actually suggested we make the bully an indoor/ outdoor cat. Her feeling was that way he could pounce on butterflies rather than the other cat (and us) and get some of that predatory energy out. We did as she suggested and it was the best thing we could have done. He came indoors to eat and sleep but spent most of his days enjoying the outdoors.

I know indoor cats live longer, healthier lives and I agree with all the supporting data. We tried it as long as we could but it just didn't work. If the choice is between getting rid of the cat or allowing it outdoors, maybe outdoors isn't so bad. In our case, we knew we couldn't find the bully another home because no one else would tolerate his behavior.

Just make sure Ruby sees the vet first and gets her shots updated before she goes out.

Honestly, a lot of it probably has more to do with the fact that Ruby is a kitten. I know she's a year old and so TECHNICALLY is no longer a kitten, but cats and dogs will have a kitten/puppy mindset up through the age of two. The fact that she's picking on Boo as opposed to the others suggests that she knows Boo can't defend as well, whether due to declaw, age, or both. Most likely, it's a combination of both. Some cats are naturally more aggressive, and it sounds like Ruby probably is. My cat certainly is. It used to be that any time I took him to my mom's house, he would terrorize their cat. My mom got a second cat who is equally aggressive, so now when we visit, he's got someone putting him in his place. (We only have the one cat.) So, I would agree the two cats should be kept separate except under supervision, that way you can "teach" the younger one how to behave.

As for the litterbox issue, it's generally recommended that you have at least one litterbox per cat. I think the "ideal" is one per cat plus one, or in your case, 5 litterboxes. (Seems like overkill, I know!!) I would say since you have 4 cats, you should probably consider having AT LEAST three litterboxes. Ruby may also need a refresher course on litterbox training... :)

HTH!

There is this stuff you can buy at Petsmart that you sprinkle in the litter and it tells cats that this is the spot to go in. It actually looks like catnip and has some sort of enzyme or pheromone in it. Also, if you place the food dish where the car had the 'accident' it deters them, they don't like to eat where they go to the bathroom. There is an oxy cleaner called Stink Be Gone, that they sell there too, it really does get rid of cat oder. It's expensive, $15.00 for a bottle, but it removes even old pee smells. Our cat peed on the sofa when she had a UTI, the cleaner took ALL the smell out. To me, it's worth the cost to not have to replace the furniture.

I am a cat lover and hate to break an animals heart, but when cats don't like each other, life is miserable for them and you. Boo was there first, please find a new home for Ruby.

The cat is young and a bully. Knows Boo can't defend himself/herself. I am not much of a cat fan, so my suggestion is to throw the offender outside and make it an outdoor cat. By the way, I'd tell my almost eighteen year old daughter that if she's leaving, so is the cat. If she doesn't take it with her, it will be gone by the time she gets back.

When everyone is home, just keep an eye on things. When everyone is sleeping or gone, invest in a cat condo for Ruby and keep her there.

I have 12 indoor cats, 1 outside cat and 6 are declawed. My cats generally get along tho the older females will practice avoidance and the two young unspayed females tend to be instigators. I usually put those 2 females in the 2 tiered cat condo with their own litter, food and water - especially when they are in heat.

Sounds like territorial issues to me. The peeing and pooping to mark turf. The challenging of the older cat without claws to defend itself. This isn't going to be a problem that goes away. It's probably going to get worse. Too many cats in the house, and it sounds like they're taking over. I think you might want to find Boo a new home. Besides, if your daughter doesn't want the cat in her room, she's probably not as emotionally invested in the cat as you seem to think. Sounds like this will be harder on you. But think about it, you can't sleep and the cats are in your space too. The fair and wise thing to do for everyone (cats included) is to pair it down and find one or two of the kitties a new home where they can fully rule the roost. The cats don't like each other and probably aren't very happy. I know the kitty with no claws is probably miserable. It's no fair she has no way to defend herself against the cat with claws. Be kind to the kitties and find them a new home.

I wanted to echo the person who suggested using Rescue Remedy and Feliway. We have two adult cats and also foster kittens on a regular basis, and one of our adult cats is not fond of having little ones in our house (though they don't share the same space). When I give our troublemaker Rescue Remedy she's much more accepting of the kittens. And any time anything changes in our house I spray Feliway throughout her territory. Seems to calm her as well.

I also wanted to recommend a site called Cat Faeries (you can Google it). They sell lots of different remedies for different cat problems.

Lastly, you might want to experiment with different litters for the problem cat. Sometimes the smell or texture of a particular litter turns a cat away from the litter box. Different friends of mine have had success with Feline Pine litter, or at least a litter that has less dust.

Our local humane society (in Marin County) has a cat expert who gives great advice - stuff you might not think of on your own. You might check to see if you have any local resources that can help you.

Good luck!

I think first like another suggested take the cat to the vet to rule out medical issues. I had the same problem with my cat where she peed on my stove of all places! Lucky me I have a glass top! Well it turned out she had a uti. And while she had it she was MEAN to our other cat! She would run up and attack him. So I would check that. And if all is well and it's still happening I would tell your daughter it needs to stay in her room or has to be re-homed.

I would say the same thing you told your daughter--either keep the cat confined or it goes. Honestly I would not keep a cat that doesn't use the litter box regularly (once you have checked for a medical cause). Can you have the cat stay in a different room (basement, garage, someplace with an easy to clean floor)?

Well, I know lots of people are against declawing (my cat is declawed by the way) BUT i would never get another cat that's not declawed as well as long as I have my original cat........I could see how she would get beat up! Is de-clawing the other cats an option? Poor baby being the only one with no claws and can't defend himself. If I couldn't stop the behavior from the bad kitty I'd have to find a new home for him :(

I would highly suggest getting a product called Feliway. It's a calming pheromone that you plug in (like an air freshener, but you don't smell it). It seems your one cat may just prefer to be an only.

Try this product - it's really worked for us: http://www.petsmart.com/search/index.jsp?kwCatId=&kw=...

Good luck and keep up posted!

I would suggest that maybe the house is too small for 4 cats.
We lived in a small house in NC with 3 cats. One kitty was very aggressive to the other two, she is declawed. Now that we have moved to VA to a bigger house she has been much better.
She still has her territorial moments, but now she has a basement with her own couch, which she is happy to share with the dogs, they see her as the alpha.

Even though this house is bigger, I think it does not have enough space for another cat. It would not be fair to the others here.

Also female cats are moody. If your daughter wants her own at get a neutered male.