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« Reply #15 on: June 13, 2008, 09:53:15 PM » |
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Butter and Stan are cuties! There's a section called The Den - Show Off Your Pet Family where people post photos of their guys. When you get some more photos, I'd love to see more!  And yes, you do know me! And my brother, too!  |
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Poco
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« Reply #16 on: June 13, 2008, 10:40:23 PM » |
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Butter and Stan are cuties! There's a section called The Den - Show Off Your Pet Family where people post photos of their guys. When you get some more photos, I'd love to see more! And yes, you do know me! And my brother, too!  This is getting more and more interesting! |
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kaffe
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« Reply #17 on: June 13, 2008, 11:25:00 PM » |
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poochman
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« Reply #18 on: June 13, 2008, 11:27:42 PM » |
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I'm happy to see so many reassuring responses about the Stan and Butter situation. It sounds as if the aggression is just a temporary thing as they adjust to their new home and establish their places in it. And from your most recent post, ideheights, it seems that the brothers are already displaying a more, well, brotherly relationship. Thanks, kaffe, for the information about your boys. It's been years since I had cats, but at one time I shared my home with three generations of kitties. I never saw them engage in the neck-clamping behavior, but then it makes sense that they wouldn't need such shows of dominance between themselves, since as parent-child-grandchild (rather than siblings), they probably naturally understood the hierarchy of their relationships. Interestingly, when we added a dog to the mix, he seemed to understand his position as "new kid" at the bottom of the totem pole. Although he was physically larger, he deferred to the cats in all things, and would even stand by quietly if one of them wanted to investigate his food dish when a meal had just been served. He would sit a couple of feet back, watching with a "Please leave some for me!" look on his face, but never made a sound or a threatening move. |
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kaffe
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« Reply #19 on: June 13, 2008, 11:31:27 PM » |
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Interestingly, when we added a dog to the mix, he seemed to understand his position as "new kid" at the bottom of the totem pole. Although he was physically larger, he deferred to the cats in all things, and would even stand by quietly if one of them wanted to investigate his food dish when a meal had just been served. He would sit a couple of feet back, watching with a "Please leave some for me!" look on his face, but never made a sound or a threatening move.
awww.... a charming, polite... and very wise doggie!  (he understands that "the meek shall inherit the earth") |
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August
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« Reply #20 on: June 13, 2008, 11:45:56 PM » |
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Ideheight, any relations to Mel? It's your chance to be a bosom. Poochman, I could have written your post! Well, except for the part about it being years since I had cats. I was born into a home of 3 generations of female cats, and we added a dog later on. The dog was a sheepdog and much larger than the three cats, but he was very keen to the fact that he was the low rank LOL. When flies tried to get into his bowl, he'd snap at them, but if any of the cats wanted a whiff, he'd stand back and watch (and drool a little ). He was so gentle and sweet.  |
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Poco
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« Reply #21 on: June 13, 2008, 11:52:35 PM » |
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What a nice dog!
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catmom5
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« Reply #22 on: June 14, 2008, 04:16:30 AM » |
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Oh yeah, my money would be on a calico or tortie! Those cats can have HUGE ATTITUDE!! (And I love 'em both)
catmom5
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JustMe
Global Moderator
Hero Member
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Herdin' Cats and 2 GSDs
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« Reply #23 on: June 14, 2008, 05:49:04 AM » |
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Have you observed them when they are going outside the box? Wondering if one isn't allowing the other in the box. Maybe put 2 boxes in different spots if that is going on? As others have said, they should work it out between themselves. The fact that you got them in the same picture is GOOD! Hope to see your pix in the Den.
We have 2 male bruiser boys who are littermates, neutered as kittens. The dominant one used to do the mounting routine, grabbing the less dominant one by the back of his neck and hanging on. They haven't done that in a long time now. These cats are 16 pounders at least. Big boys. He only did that to his brother, except for one occasion when he did it to one of our spayed females, same age as him.
We have a petite female 6-pounder a year older than them who is actually the head of the cats. Nobody messes with her, exept our little 1-year-old calico-tortie who sometimes picks fights with her.
Oh, the dominant bruiser is a strange one. Our 70 pound female dog cleans him like she is cleaning a puppy, and he loves it.
I had no idea about calico-tortitude until 7 months ago. Yikes! I want another one.
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Never forget our cats and dogs and the Pet Food Recalls of 2007; the reason most of us are here!
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Orange Fuzzball
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« Reply #24 on: June 14, 2008, 09:27:53 AM » |
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A friend of mine had two cats: a muscular 15-pound six-year-old, and an elderly and frail girl weighing about six pounds. Guess which cat was the boss? Yep, the old girl. |
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catbird
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Torti Goddess
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« Reply #25 on: June 14, 2008, 12:19:29 PM » |
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Until her departure from this world in 2005 at the age of 19+, our little, pudgy, arthritic old girl Fluffy was the absolute ruler of our four other cats, including the giant 18-lb. Maine-Coon-like Mac. Even the young, agile ones deferred to her. All she had to do was look at them! (Fluffy was a black cat with a heart-shaped white marking on her underside, so maybe she was sort of like a tux.) You are probably right that they are ignoring the cat tree because it is wobbly. If there is a way you can weight the bottom to make it more stable, that might make them feel better about it. Most cats are very conscious of their climbing and jumping security (always a few exceptions ) Regarding Feliway, here is some info: http://itchmoforums.com/write-a-pet-product-review/does-feliway-work-t1055.0.htmlIt's a synthetic version of the feline cheek pheromone (what your cats are depositing when they rub their faces on things.) It has been found to be helpful to cats that are stressed, aggressive, or having dominance/hierarchy issues, territorial problems, or spraying. It makes them feel more at home, I guess. Feliway comes in a spray, which you have to keep applying to the environment, or in a bottle of liquid that attaches to its own plug-in diffuser, kind of like those plug-in liquid air fresheners. Humans can't smell it. I have found it helpful. http://www.amazon.com/Farnam-Electric-48-Milliliters-Imitation-Pheromone/dp/B000FH708I |
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ideheights
Jr. Member
Posts: 43
Butter and Stan - Brothers in Arms
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« Reply #26 on: June 17, 2008, 01:05:21 AM » |
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Butter doesn't seem to be dominating Stan too much any more...
Maybe it's because he knows we disapprove. We were pointing at him and chanting "No, no, no..."
But now Stan's staging a counterrevolution - trying to dominate Butter in the same way! Approaching from behind and trying to clamp down on the back of Butter's neck. Butter, however, could not possibly care less...
We're going to distance ourselves from it all for a while and see if it calms down. Not as worrisome as it was a few days ago!
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Cats are smarter than dogs. You can't get eight cats to pull a sled through snow. (Jeff Valdez)
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ideheights
Jr. Member
Posts: 43
Butter and Stan - Brothers in Arms
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« Reply #27 on: June 18, 2008, 12:33:57 AM » |
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A couple people have asked to see more photos of Butter and Stan - I've posted three onto the Den. The responses are funny - people are amazed at how huge they are! Stan's pretty normal, but I have to admit, I actually cropped off the lower half of Butter's body - he looks like a manatee when he's rolling around...
Thanks, Catbird for the Felliway information; Amazon delivers to Japan in no time flat, so we'll be ordering some from there!
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Cats are smarter than dogs. You can't get eight cats to pull a sled through snow. (Jeff Valdez)
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Poco
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« Reply #28 on: June 18, 2008, 12:54:34 AM » |
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Butter doesn't seem to be dominating Stan too much any more...
Maybe it's because he knows we disapprove. We were pointing at him and chanting "No, no, no..."
But now Stan's staging a counterrevolution - trying to dominate Butter in the same way! Approaching from behind and trying to clamp down on the back of Butter's neck. Butter, however, could not possibly care less...
We're going to distance ourselves from it all for a while and see if it calms down. Not as worrisome as it was a few days ago!
That is very interesting that now Stan has taken on the role of dominator. I wonder if they enjoy the attention of a little scolding? Poco will tear up a bit of tissue or paper when we are gone longer than usual. He watches me carefully when I discover his mischief. I don't really scold him, but just say, "Oh, no!", and when I look back at him, he looks very satisfied. I don't leave important papers on the floor and he is never too destructive. It just seems to be a ritual to give him a little release from anxiety and some sense of personal power. |
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catwoods
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« Reply #29 on: June 18, 2008, 12:31:55 PM » |
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