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Why does my cat pin down my kitten and bite her neck?
I have a 6 year old male cat named Rusty and a 6 week old female kitten named Luna. Rusty has been around other animals before (he grew up with a dog and he used to live with another cat). Luna is very playful and follows Rusty everywhere. Lately Rusty had been pinning Luna down and biting her neck, making her cry. He doesn't let go until I make him. Why does he do this and what should I do?
Don't tell me about how young Luna is, I already know.
Will this stop when I get Lunda fixed? I can't until she's older.
Rusty IS fixed btw.
13 Answers
- Ariane deRLv 710 years agoFavorite Answer
It's dominance / rank. Rusty is reacting typically to a new cat in his territory by making sure she understands that he is the top cat -- like the cat version of the "alpha". Hopefully it's just a phase and he'll ease up on this behaviour.
>> If may help if the human family member(s) show you respect his position as the top cat and do things to reinforce it -- always greet him first, pet him first, feed him first. Make sure you show him a lot of attention during this time.. I know it may not seem "fair" to a human but but really it's better for Luna too if Rusty does not feel like she is a threat to his place in the territory and in your affections
>> You can also do things like give them a treat when they're together ( but not so close that they might fight over it) so that Rusty will associate Luna with positive things. And when he's in the same room with her and is behaving well, give him lots of praise and positive attention.
>> Sometimes Feliway spray or dispenser can also help calm a territorial cat.
Depending on what's going on right before this happens, it's possible that it could be both dominance and a sort of discipline of a unruly kitten similar to what mother cats do. It sounds like you do realize that she was separated too young from her mother and siblings. If kittens get to stay 12 wks or so with their mom and siblings, they learn things like bite inhibition and also they learn better how to communicate with other cats. So SOME of what's going on could be he is giving her some stern "lessons" that a kitten should get from their mother about being "polite" etc.
Him doing this out of dominance would not be affected by getting her fixed. However, NOT getting her fixed would mean he may later start to mount her and bite her scruff as part of trying to mate. If he is not neutered he would almost definitely do that. Even some neutered males will. ( and it could happen sooner than you expect -- some kittens go into heat that young as young as 4 months! but a pregnancy that young is very risky)
Getting HIM fixed now might possibly help since intact toms usually have increased territorial aggression.
Anyway, hopefully this phase will pass. This is pretty normal behaviour and I'd usually say to just let them work it out.. as long as he was not actually biting so hard to draw blood and as long as she doesn't get terrified and shy but instead keeps coming back and following him around.
But this is a very young kitten. so you'll have to maybe be more careful than with an older kitten to make sure she's not being hurt. (Usually they're NOT actually hurt even though they do cry since they don't like being held down. It's more a ritual and the dominant cat does not intend to actually hurt the other one - just show him / her who is boss. )
- 10 years ago
A) It's a dominance thing and you should just let it play out
B) Its also just natural for male cats to try to mate with female cats even if the male (not the female) is fixed. What he is doing by biting the back of her neck is holding her still which is what cats do during mating, it prevents the female from running or fighting the male.
The best thing you can do is get her fixed when she is old enough and occasionally separate them if he is getting too rough. Good luck and hope this helps!
Source(s): I have two cats, a boy and a girl. - 10 years ago
I have the same problem with my six year old male cat doing that to one of my female 5 year old cats. He has recently started doing it, and i just get the spray bottle out or tap him on the nose or knock him off of her. Try using a carrier as a punishment if the other stuff fails that works for my cat most of the time.
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- 10 years ago
Boy cat likes girl cat. My male cat who's fixed does this to our unfixed female cat. Now chasing and putting into a corner, that's more of a dominance behaviour. A bit more than the usual rumble and tumble cats do around the house. Usually I have to get the spray bottle out.
- 7 years ago
Why would you slap the poor cat man that's not right and kicking him out into the street is still abandoning him. He deserves better than THAT poor baby
- 10 years ago
He is teaching her..he is the boss! Also this helps them learn self defense!
I have had bunches of cats over the years..all of them do it..to teach the little ones..it's normal!
- 10 years ago
1. Sounds like he's asserting his dominance.
2. Get them both spayed and neutered. 6 weeks is too young to get spayed through.
