Kitten acts strange around the other household cats

by jennie
(plattsburgh ny)

My kitten who is 7 months old is really loving and affectionate. At night time she sleeps with me and purrs and is content. But as soon as i bring her out in the morning from the bedroom she immediately runs hides and is really scared, sometimes for hours at a time. Then if i pick her up and bring her in the bedroom she is fine and purring again. I have 2 other cats 1 1/2 years old, one girl, one boy. The female is very moody and aggressive. Sometimes shes nice to kitty and other times shes will smell her then whack her. As a pet owner it is really taking a toll on my feelings i just want everyone to be happy. Any advice, suggestions, or insight would be greatly appreciated.

Answer by Kate
Oh dear I am not sure that you will like my response. but unfortunately it is true that cats are generally not animals that like to live together in groups (unlike dogs) and in the wild they usually keep themselves to themselves.

Some people are lucky and have cats that will get on fairly well but these are usually litter mates or have known each other from when they were very small (there are exceptions to this but not that common).
In most cases where you have a house with several cats the best reaction you get is that they tolerate each other and give each other a wide berth if they can.

In your case it sound to me like the other cats are stamping their mark on the house and the occasional swipes etc are normal, ie they are letting your kitten know whose boss.

I don't know how you introduced your cats to each other, but if you can take a few steps backwards and re introduce them again using the method described on this page https://www.our-happy-cat.com/introducing-cats.html It may allow your cats to get along a little easier and to alleviate some of the stress and nervousness to your kitten.

Lets hope that over time your cats learn to get along.

best wishes Kate

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