Is there anything I can do?

joyce2009

I have a nutured 10 year old tom cat who for the past week has been hassled by another tom.I'm worried that he'll get hurt. I've tried keeping him in at night but he sits at the front door crying to get out for a pee as he wont use the litter tray. I will usually wait for him to come back in which he normally does but this other tom is hanging around at night now he wont come in. They usually start crying to each other and if i hear it i run out and chase him away(water pistol in hand), but last night i must have slept through it because the amount of hair clumps out my back garden this morning was unreal. My guy is ok from what I can tell only a little scratch on his ear but I'm afraid he'll get bitten. So is there anything that I can do to stop the other tom from hanging around?

Shanao

Any idea if the other tom is a feral or owned? If not owned, try contacting a local rescue about their trap/neuter schemes, that at least would get rid of most of his aggression towards other tom cats.

zef

Hi, I have a 7 yr old neutered tom, i used allow him free reign about coming and going but he would come home in bits after getting into fights too. The worst was when he was rambling in the snow 2 yrs ago and was missing for 2 days, he is long-hair & came home (just about) he could hardly walk, his whole side was covered in ice, fur frozen, and a limp so bad he could hardly walk. He must have been lying in a frozen puddle at the side of the road.
Apart from the vets bills it was upsetting to say the least.
I now keep him in , esp at night.
If you let a cat out, you cannot protect them, they are at the mercy of other cats, dogs, evil cat-haters, cars , yada yada.
Yea he used go mental wanting out at night for aaaaages, but i just put up with it. Also he is meticulous about his litter tray so guess i was lucky there.
He is now an indoor cat and has settled into it, even got a kitten in the summer for company for him.
I have not got any suggestions as regards deterring the other cat, would you consider making him an indoor cat too? After 10 years you must be very attached to him. Best wishes.

joyce2009

He is one of 3 cats that I have, I also have his mam and a few months ago our 'lovley' neighbours moved house and left behind their beautiful kitten, so I took her in too. They are in the house 90% of the time and just go out to pee,the kitten will use the litter tray but he wont, he will how ever pee up against things in the hall if i dont let him out:rolleyes:. I'm not sure if the other tom is feral or not I've never seen him around before (I live in a small cul de sac so I know all the neighbouring cats) but he does look well fed. So it looks like its just going to be me running around my garden in my pj's with a water gun looking like a loon.:D

Zapperzy

joyce2009 wrote: »

He is one of 3 cats that I have, I also have his mam and a few months ago our 'lovley' neighbours moved house and left behind their beautiful kitten, so I took her in too. They are in the house 90% of the time and just go out to pee,the kitten will use the litter tray but he wont, he will how ever pee up against things in the hall if i dont let him out:rolleyes:. I'm not sure if the other tom is feral or not I've never seen him around before (I live in a small cul de sac so I know all the neighbouring cats) but he does look well fed. So it looks like its just going to be me running around my garden in my pj's with a water gun looking like a loon.:D

How many litter trays have you? There should be 1 per cat plus one extra. Some cats just don't like using a tray that has pee or poo in it (especially from another cat) so will hold out. The peeing up against things is probably more to do with another cat invading his territory and him feeling the need to mark his territory. A feliway plug in may help with this (along with cleaning the spot thoroughly).

+1 on keeping him indoors, mine is an indoor cat, just requires a little more effort to keep them occupied. There's also the option of cat fencing the garden (although expensive it keeps your cats safe, few members here have it so may be able to answer wether other cats can still enter your garden), or building a small enclosure and just allowing them out when when the coast is clear.

Has the stray cat got a collar? Is he friendly enough to pet? You could try putting a collar on with one of those barrels with a note inside with your contact number asking to contact you to confirm he belongs to someone. If you get no reply you could presume he's a stray/feral and neuter him (and release him again or rehome him).

Also is your cat up to date with vaccinations (inc. the Felv)?

Westernman

Unneutered cats are more aggressive and territorial and my advice is if its a feral cat find your local vet and ask about the trap/neuter and release scheme.