A cat hisses at a kitten - reasons and what to do

Many cat owners don't realize that their friendly, single adult cats may have problems with a new kitten. A new kitten often wants to make friends, but the older cats in the house want nothing to do with them. Older cats often appear sad, lonely, whistle a lot, and sometimes even stop eating if they are not adapting well to a new family member.

This behavior is explained by the fact that cats do not like change, especially when it comes to their established territory. Introducing a kitten to an adult cat can be very stressful in your home, but there are a few things you can do to help acclimate your cat to being a kitten.

When cats hiss at kittens

Watching a cat hissing at kittens, you can notice that often its visible aggression in this case is a kind of lesson. It is not uncommon for babies to be trained in the form of outwardly aggressive play, in which mother and kittens mutually attack each other. In this way, babies gain the skills they need in the future to defend themselves and provide food for themselves.

When playing, the cat growls, hisses and looks very intimidating, but her aggression is not directed against the kittens, she tries to recreate possible life situations. You should not interfere with their game. If you try to take the cub, the mother may hiss at you. This defense of the kittens by hissing is her natural reaction in the current situation.

Behavioral tests and challenges

Don't give up if the first few meetings aren't positive. It may take time for older cats to get used to younger ones. A common mistake is rushing to socialize cats and then getting annoyed or disappointed when it doesn't work. Stay calm and work gradually to kitten-train your cat. Try to time your communication and gradually increase the amount of time you spend together. If your older cat is particularly aggressive towards your new kitten, consult your veterinarian or behaviorist.

Alien smell

Changing the smell of kittens, as a result of our indiscretion in handling babies, can disturb the cat and cause an aggressive reaction in it. A person, holding a kitten in his hands for just a little while, changes its smell. The mother may not recognize him and may even growl at him in order to drive him away. However, as a rule, the mother licks the kitten to return its characteristic smell.

If the cat hisses at the kitten and does not want to accept him, you need to try to return him to the smell familiar to his mother. To do this you can :

wrap it in your mattress for a while;
put next to the rest of the kittens;
rub his fur with mom’s toy.

After some time, the kitten will get rid of the foreign smell and the cat will stop hissing at him and recognize the cub. But it is possible that the mother will reject the baby because of the foreign smell, as if he is not from her offspring. For this reason, it is not recommended to handle small kittens.

Calm your old cat

Pheromones are useful in creating a calm environment for any cat. A few weeks before your new kitten arrives is a great time to use them. Diffusers, sprays and wipes are available to help your cat relax without the use of medication. Try using pheromones for at least a few weeks before bringing your kitten home.

If you suspect your adult cat will be stressed and anxious about a new kitten, consider supplements that are designed to calm your cat. They won't cure your pet, but they will help him stay calm and relaxed. They usually work best if administered several weeks before the expected stressful event and can be continued after the new kitten arrives. Ingredients typically include L-theanine, phellodendron, magnolia, whey or milk proteins, and other natural ingredients that are considered safe and effective for pets.

New pregnancy

In cats, the period between conceptions can be quite short. If she had the opportunity to leave the house, then a second pregnancy is not excluded. Then she will not be able to feed the kittens and will try to get rid of them. Expecting new offspring, the cat will show aggressiveness towards her kittens and will hiss at them in an attempt to drive them away. In this situation, it is necessary to isolate the kittens from their mother and feed them from a pipette or nipple.

How to train a cat to be a kitten

Although an older cat will sometimes accept a new kitten right away, it usually takes some time to adjust to the changes. Sometimes cats never fully accept a new kitten; they simply coexist, staying away from the other cat in the house. It's important to make sure that no matter how your cat feels with the new kitten, things remain calm and that you have a better chance of forming a friendship from the start.

First week

When you bring your kitten home, let your cat smell him while he's in the crate or in your arms. Go straight to the previously assigned room, groom your new kitten and let him explore. His litter box, food bowls, bed and some toys should be easily accessible. Do not allow the older cat to have unsupervised access to the kitten.

At night, when you are not at home and cannot supervise the kitten and the older cat, keep the kitten in a specially designated room with the door closed. When your cat gets curious, she can stick her foot under the door, sniff under the door, and listen to the kitten. Do this for about a week, depending on how your cat deals with the changes. Remember to pay close attention to your older cat after playing with him. They will need your attention and support, and the smell of the kitten on your clothes will help them get used to the newcomer.

Encourage time together

After a week, allow the kitten to explore the house under your close attention. Allow your older cat to observe this exploration and leave if she wishes. Do not force interaction between cat and kitten. If your cat has a favorite interactive toy, such as a feather wand or laser pointer, try playing with both cats at the same time. This will stimulate mutual activity. You can also feed them treats at the same time and feed them from different bowls at the same time. Make sure there is enough space between feeders so your older cat doesn't feel threatened.

Reward any positive interactions your older cat has with your kitten with praise, treats, and physical affection. You want your cat to associate the kitten with joy and positivity.

Let your cat establish a hierarchy

Cats need order, and the new member of your family needs to know where he stands. Your older cat may have a period of time where she tries to establish a hierarchy with the new kitten, this is one of the steps in how to train a cat to be a kitten. They may hiss and hit your kitten when they do something your older cat doesn't want. This is completely normal, and while they are just whistling and knocking, try not to disturb them. Your older cat begins to take on the role of the dominant cat in the house, and the kitten is taught its limitations as the new cat.

Mature kittens

Cats are very sensitive not only about territory, but also jealously protect their offspring. If the mother shows aggressiveness towards the kittens, then there is a good reason for this :

She might be sick.
There is no milk.
The kittens are already teething and they are causing her pain.
The kitten is weak, not viable, she does not allow him to have a pacifier so that there is more milk for the rest.

Cats sometimes nurse kittens for up to a year, but most often the maternal instinct lasts for up to six months. After which the mother refuses to feed them, showing that they have already grown up enough and it’s time to cope on their own. You notice that the cat has begun to hiss at her kittens.

No matter how cruel such behavior may seem to a person, it has a good reason. When a cat hisses at her own kittens, this does not mean she is cruel, it’s just that ancient instincts that guide her have awakened in her. You can't punish her for this! A cat's hissing at kittens always has a good reason.

At this moment, the babies must be given to another owner. If you want to keep one of them for yourself, you need to monitor the behavior of your pets, since the mother, emphasizing her primacy in the hierarchy, may be aggressive towards the baby. In this situation, she will not only hiss at the kitten; more aggressive actions are also possible. After a couple of weeks, the cat will calm down, take a position and stop hissing at the kitten.

How to Prepare for a New Kitten

Preparation is key to successful kitten training. If you prepare your cat for the new arrival and make the changes less drastic, she will be more likely to adjust to her new roommate. Give yourself (and your older cat) plenty of time to prepare for this adjustment by following these steps.

Calm your big cat

There are pheromones that can be used to create a peaceful environment for any cat. A few weeks before the new kitten arrives is a good time to use them. Diffusers, sprays and wipes are available to help your cat relax without medication. Try using pheromones for at least a few weeks before bringing your kitten home.

If you suspect your cat will be stressed and anxious about a new kitten, consider supplements that are designed to calm your cat. This will not poison your pet with the medicine, but will help him calm down and relax. They usually work best if administered several weeks before the expected stressful event and can be continued after the new kitten arrives. Ingredients typically include L-theanine, phellodendron, magnolia, whey or milk proteins, and other natural ingredients that have been shown to be safe and effective for pets.

Prepare your home

Before your kitten comes home, you will need to introduce new items such as food bowls, beds, another litter box, and toys in and around the house. Start putting these items in new places a week before you need to kitten train your cat so that your cat can get a feel for them and get used to all the new things. If you can, try including items that already have kitty scent on them. Make sure you are prepared for your kitten. If you are stressed and unprepared, your older cat may notice this and be negatively affected by it.

Designate a small room, such as a bathroom, for the kitten to have privacy in for the first week or so. Your older cat should be able to walk up to the door of this room to hear and smell the kitten, but without interacting with it in any way. Place your kitten's things (litter box, food bowls, etc.) in this room along with a toy that belongs to your older cat.

Prepare your cat

Make sure your older cat is healthy. The added stress of an unhealthy cat will only make things worse, and you want your cat to not only be mentally prepared for a new kitten, but also physically ready to handle it. Take your cat to the vet to make sure she is healthy and up to date on her vaccinations. Respiratory illnesses are common in kittens, and you want your older cat's immune system to be ready to handle whatever comes her way. If your cat or kitten is itching or biting, you will also need to update your rabies vaccine to avoid any problems.

Who is a cat's owner?

As a rule, for a small kitten the owner

becomes the person who teaches him, feeds him, caresses him, plays with him, takes him to bed.

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How to help a cat in heat

Estrus is a difficult period not only for herself, but also for the whole family. Intrusive behavior, endless yelling, torn wallpaper and the unpleasant smell of marks cause irritation. Patience runs out, the owner makes a decision: “Something needs to be done. Anything to stop this bacchanalia.” But, unfortunately, there are not many safe methods for putting a cat to rest during sexual activity.

Ideally, a cat should give birth once every year and a half. Such frequent births undoubtedly affect the pet’s life expectancy and generally worsen its health. Especially if the owner is not a professional breeder. The best way to prolong life is sterilization. This is the only way to stop the periodic riots of hormones forever without harming your pet.

Estrus usually lasts about two weeks, and the frequency varies from six months to several days. If the owner is lucky, the hunting period is expressed only in the increased contact of the pet and frequent gentle rumbling. But this happens extremely rarely. Usually, a healthy cat behaves completely differently during heat: it screams for days, rolls on the floor, walks on half-bent legs, and constantly clings to a person, seeing him as a sexual partner. The owner is faced with a dilemma: how to help the pet without compromising her health? In addition to sterilization, there are several ways to alleviate the animal's condition.

Without using drugs

The methods listed below do not always help, but in many cases the cat calms down at least for a while, which brings relief to both the pet and the owners. And most importantly, they are absolutely harmless to the cat’s health.

You can stop the cat's screaming for a while by bathing your pet. Licking will not only give the family a few hours of silence, but will also calm the cat, reducing stress levels. You can bathe your pet only if the apartment is warm and warm.

Prepare your home

New items for your kitten, such as bowls, beds, another litter box, and toys, should be placed in and around your home before the kitten comes home. Start putting these items in their new places about a week before your new arrival so that your adult cat can smell them and get used to all the new things. If possible, try to include items that already have kitty scent on them. Make sure you are prepared for the kitten's arrival. If you are stressed and unprepared, your older cat will be able to tell and feel the negative impact.

Designate a small room, such as a bathroom, where your new kitten can retreat and spend the first week or so. Your adult cat should be able to come to the door of this room to hear and smell, but not have any interaction with the kitten. Place kitten belongings (such as a litter box and food bowls) in this room along with a toy that belongs to your older cat.

Causes of aggressive behavior

In fact, there are many reasons to attack or scratch the owner. If a child cuddles and nurses a cat all day long, it is not surprising that the pet will begin to snarl and hiss. Before moving on to solutions, let's look at the roots of the problem.

Character of the breed

Not all cat breeds are equally friendly. Among cats there are people with difficult characters. For example, Siamese, Thai, Russian blue cats. A difficult character makes him jealous of toys, sleeping place, and selective in his contacts with strangers. What can I say, even family members get it from the fuzzy fussy ones.

Excessive importunity, excessive attention, the desire to stroke or sit on your lap often causes the cat to respond aggressively. Favorite toys or litter tray should not be moved and left in the pet's care

At best, the cat will indicate dissatisfaction by hissing; at worst, it will attack the owner.

Protection of offspring

In the first weeks after giving birth, the cat jealously guards the kittens. It is almost impossible to separate your pet from newborns, and any gesture or loud noise can be considered a safety hazard. A cat in the postpartum period is extremely suspicious of uninvited guests and other animals.

But such aggression, caused by maternal instinct, will soon subside. As soon as the kittens open their eyes and begin to walk more or less confidently, the influence of the mother cat weakens. You can fearlessly approach her and even pick up the cubs.

Street past

Some owners bring home cats or kittens straight from the street. But there is no certainty that the previous owners (if any) treated the pets well. Perhaps they ignored him or beat him. If this happened in childhood, the kitten might be left with the idea that all people are cruel and evil.

In addition, only the strongest cats get food on the street. Therefore, it is quite difficult to predict the behavior of a pet even after many years of domestic life.

Wrong games

Many people have a question: why does a kitten attack its legs or bite its hand? The answer lies in playing with your pet incorrectly.

Playing with your kitten is a great idea, but don't overuse open-handed play. The pet bites funny and it doesn’t hurt at all, but with age, when his teeth and claws get stronger, he can seriously scratch him. Simply because he’s used to it and it’s possible. The situation is similar when using other parts of the body when playing with a kitten.

Interference in the struggle for territory, food

The point is relevant for owners of private houses and summer cottages. Showdowns between your pet and the local cat population will be commonplace. Often it will come to fights for authority, females and territory.

If the owner unexpectedly intervenes in the cats' confrontation, the pet may respond aggressively. At best, the owner will scare away the fighters and they will run away hissing and screaming. At worst, unite with the offender and make the person extreme.

The situation is similar with food. Of course, cats are not dogs, but they will defend a bloody piece of meat or a saucer of milk to the last. Hissing and scratching can be costly for the troublemaker.

Fear

There can be many reasons for fear, from unfamiliar surroundings and people to pain. Usually there are several degrees from mild to severe. The first is characterized by the careful actions of the animal, uniform exploration and sniffing of the room, people or other animals. In general, mild fear stimulates the animal to survive.

In severe forms, the animal tries to hide, growls or uses its claws. In the most extreme case, the pet loses control of itself and poses a danger to others. Leave the room immediately, closing the door until the animal calms down.

Pain is also often the cause of aggression. Sometimes the owner does not notice the pet’s apathy for a long time; the pet hides in a secluded place and licks its wounds

When the owner pays attention to the pet, it growls and snarls, not letting it get close. Cats react poorly when their tail, belly or armpits are touched.

What does hissing mean?

Recognizing the language of animals is not that difficult. A hiss on it indicates a warning. Felines try to avoid conflict and set boundaries with body language and sounds. The hissing cat says that there is no need to mess with a dangerous animal.

Hissing can also mean that the cat is scared of someone. This reaction happens to all living beings, including kittens, especially if the kids irritate their mother with their actions. The hissing cat is scared, but will fight back if necessary.

Why was hiss selected? Animal psychologists are of the opinion that felines imitate snakes as animals that frighten many. Thus, the cat gets the opportunity to threaten with the expectation that the person or animal will bypass.

Negotiation table - what to do with aggression?

When animals show aggression, you should never physically punish them, but, of course, you need to scold them. Slapping the tail or flicking the nose is strictly prohibited. But experts recommend distracting the cat and scaring it with a sharp clap or water.

When the owner notices that the cats, instead of fear and aggression, begin to show interest in each other, showing a friendly attitude, they need a few more days - optimally 10-14 - to keep them in isolation and then release them.

Under no circumstances should you allow your baby to bother your cat. Otherwise she will get irritated.

So characteristic

There are cats that greet newcomers very negatively and categorically do not want to be friends with them. If this is natural in the pet’s character, then one can hardly expect that she will welcome the kitten with open arms. In the end, she feels like a mistress - strong and independent.

There are quite peaceful cats. They get along with the kids quickly and accept them peacefully.

There are independent ones. They will likely tolerate the kitten, but will keep it at a distance. It is quite possible that the small one's constant attempts to communicate will eventually lead to the fact that adult cats will begin to treat him condescendingly and even patronize him.

Encourage time together

After about a week, allow the kitten to explore the house under your close attention. Let your adult cat observe this exploration and step back if she wants to. Do not force communication between cat and kitten. If your cat has a favorite interactive toy, such as a feather wand or laser pointer, try playing with both cats at the same time. This will stimulate mutual activity. You can also give them both treats at the same time and feed them from different bowls at the same time. Be sure to leave enough space between food bowls so your older cat doesn't feel threatened.

Reward any positive interactions your older cat has with your kitten using praise, treats, and physical affection. You want your cat to associate the kitten with joy and positivity.

The cat does not let the cat near during mating: what to do?

Many cat owners want to breed them. This is especially true for owners of an expensive cat breed. But despite all the efforts of the owners, sometimes the female refuses to let the cat near her. The reasons for this behavior of a pet can be either a reluctance to mate with a certain male or serious health problems. To exclude possible diseases, it is necessary to visit a veterinarian before breeding animals.

1. Puberty
2. Reasons for aggressive behavior
3. What to do if the cat won’t let the cat near?

Prepare your cat

Make sure your adult cat is healthy. Adding additional stress to an unhealthy cat will only make things worse, and you want your cat to be not only mentally prepared for the arrival of a new kitten, but also physically ready to handle it. Take your cat to the vet to make sure she is healthy and up to date on her vaccinations. Respiratory illnesses are common in kittens, and you want your older cat's immune system to be ready to handle whatever comes into the house. If your cat and kitten scratch or bite, you will also need to keep your rabies vaccine up to date to avoid any problems.

Although older cats sometimes take on a new kitten right away, it usually takes them a little time to adjust to the changes. Sometimes cats never fully accept a new kitten, but simply coexist, staying away from the other cat in the house. You want to be sure that no matter how your cat feels about the new kitten, things will remain peaceful and you'll have a better chance of forming a budding friendship right from the start.

How does a cat make growls and hisses?

A growl is a vibrating sound produced by the four vocal muscles at the bottom of a cat's larynx. In large cats - lions, tigers, leopards and jaguars - in addition to these organs, there is also such a part of the articulatory apparatus as a flexible ligament that replaces the hyoid bone. This combination makes the “scream” so loud that it can be heard several kilometers away. Real growling is characteristic only of large cats. The rest of the family does not growl, but roars.

Maine Coon

Animals hiss while exhaling forcefully, extending their tongue in a special way and pushing their lower jaw forward. Absolutely all cats are capable of hissing, but growling or roaring is a talent that is characteristic only of some species. In particular, British cats, sphinxes, Maine coons and some others can growl.

How to understand a pet

To understand your pet, you need to love it and watch it. And then it won’t be difficult to translate her hissing into human language.

If a cat has huddled in a corner, hisses, and has its ears flattened, it is most likely scared. The animal is looking for a safe corner where it can hide. The fear will go away on its own, you need to leave the pet alone

Excessive attention can cause even greater panic and then aggression.

Is the cat in a high stance, holding one paw raised and hissing, are its ears not flattened? This is a signal that the cat is now going to attack the one he has chosen as the target of the attack. It's better to move away from him.

A cat's hiss can be difficult to explain. There is no danger, the owner strokes his pet, and in response there is hissing and aggression. What should you think about? Perhaps the animal is sick, and touching or stroking causes even greater pain

Alternatively, the cat is in a bad mood, she is tired, and human attention seems intrusive to her.

What can confirm the presence of the disease? This is apathy, lack of appetite, change in normal behavior. You shouldn’t wait to see how it all ends; it’s not difficult to take your pet to the veterinary clinic to find out the problem.

How to understand a pet

To understand your pet, you need to love it and watch it. And then it won’t be difficult to translate her hissing into human language.

Excessive attention can cause even greater panic and then aggression.

Alternatively, the cat is in a bad mood, she is tired, and human attention seems intrusive to her.

The cat needs to find food

If a mother cat and her babies spend most of their time outdoors, sooner or later she will understand that it is time to look for food - both for herself and for her children. It is much easier to look for something edible without being distracted and without making noise, which kittens inevitably make due to their “inexperience.” Mom knows she can bring something home if her kids don't scare off the prey. She will turn around and hiss at any kittens that try to follow her. Of course, they are unlikely to be ready for this and are likely to get scared, and then, stumbling, return to their place, waiting for their mother.