Boy, that’s uncanny….
Scorpio Forecast: Your family members are suddenly acting rather oddly. Okay, really oddly. Lest you jump to conclusions, keep in mind that your special day is right around the corner. Don’t ruin the surprise.
Oh the number of horror-scopes I’ve seen this month hinting at a “special day” coming up. These writers must be psychic, no? How else could they know that, as a Scorpio, I have a “special day” coming up? Wow, gosh, gee, golly.
Right Now I am ignoring the pitiful pleas of a certain motley-colored feline who is currently confined in the big cat carrier because she has been fighting non-stop all day. So far, all I think she is learning from her “I catch you fighting and put you in solitary” treatments is to run from me when I try to pick her up. Great.
It’s making me nuts. Today I found a site that recommended these things…
When you introduce cats to each other, one of them may send “play” signals which can be misinterpreted by the other cat. If those signals are interpreted as aggression by one of the cats, then you should handle the situation as “aggressive.”
- If your cats are fighting, don’t allow the fights to continue. Because cats are so territorial, and because they don’t establish firm dominance hierarchies, they won’t be able to “work things out” as dogs sometimes do. The more often cats fight, the worse the problem is likely to become. To stop a fight in progress, make a loud noise, such as blowing a whistle, squirting the cats with water, or throwing something soft at them. Don’t try to pull them apart.
- Prevent future fights. This may mean keeping the cats totally separated from each other while you’re working on the problem, or at least preventing contact between them in situations likely to trigger a fight.
- Don’t try to punish the cats involved. Punishment is likely to elicit further aggression and fearful responses, which will only make the problem worse. If you attempt punishment, you may become a target for redirected and defensive aggression.
So.. how do you get over it? Well, this website has the plan. We do have another litter box. Gosh this won’t be fun.
bingothemonkey has made a Comment
Okay, this works on dogs and cats (since I have 3 and 2, respectively), put a bit of white vinegar in the water you spray at them. It doesn’t hurt them, but they hate it. Even better, if they’re really acting out at each other, get one of the cheap “pumping” squirtguns. After that, if they even hear the noise, they’re likely to stop. I keep mine empty and they still work. As soon as I pick a squirt gun up up, they go flying to bed. Also – unless one is clearly kicking the other’s ass, just don’t stop them.
My two cats fought so much it brought me to tears. When I backed off, they eventually became soulmates. I never separated them, they just established roles.
October 21, 2004 @ 10:28 am
infinite1der has made a Comment
Kitty continues to stomp Motley’s ass, when she actually feels like fighting back and not just smacking back. Yet, Motley just keep going back for more. Motley is just dumb; has ZERO attention span and zero short term memory.
October 21, 2004 @ 12:02 pm