Kittens/Cat problems

louisaj28

Hi all
Hoping you guys can help with some tips and advice!

So I have a 4 year old male cat, last year was hit by a car and was injured pretty badly but almost fully recovered. He's not been getting outside since it happened, unless he is in his harness with me walking him. He was in the cattery when we were on holiday and we were offered to adopt 2 kittens who had an awful start in life and were living in the cattery. One is a female who is 1 years old and the other is her male kitten who is around 5 months....so, we adopted them....

Ok, so now we have 3 cats. At first, we kept the kittens in their own bedroom, introduced them slowly to our big boy and now they are let out of their room during the day but locked up at night.

Now the problem is that they are just running about mental, chasing each other constantly and the big boy is attacking the male kitten. Don't know how much is play fighting and how much is malicious...The big one has also started chasing the female kitten as she seems to be trying to be the dominant cat and wants to take control of the house! The little male doesn't seem too bothered about the big one chasing him and biting him as he just wants to be his pal! He always wants to be with him.

I haven't let the little ones outside yet as I'm terrified they will go on the road where the big one was hit. They have plenty of toys and scratching posts etc to keep them amused and love to watch out the windows.

I am just getting to the point where I think they all should be able to go outside as this will burn off some energy and keep them entertained.

My husband is at the point of handing them back to the cattery as he doesn't see things improving. They chase each other through the house and have scratched the leather suite and wrecked the dining chairs and breakfast bar stools with their claws.

I just don't know what to do for the best.

I should say that at the weekends when we are at home more, things are a lot more relaxed

How can I calm them down and have them living in harmony?

Should I let them all go outside, even though there is a dangerous road? (we have a lovely big outside terrace which is elevated and my husband thinks if we install some cat proof fencing , they could go outside here but I think they should be able to run around in the garden. Although we have a big garden and the back of the house there are just fields, the road is at the front of the house and cats will be cats and want to explore. There is no way to keep them from going in that direction).

How can I stop them scratching the suite?

Any help with any of the issues would be most appreciated. Things are beginning to have an impact on the relationship with my husband as we are arguing about them ( we usually don't argue at all!).

Many thanks x

libbylou77_2

HI,

Well, I am no stranger to cats being mental and tearing round the place! I have 7 of the crazy things.
A few years ago we had one that died after being hit by a van. It was devastating, after that I panicked about the others going out. Anyway, when we moved to our new house, as there were alot of dogs in the area, busy road and it was a strange location, we built an enclosure that it attached to the house. It is a fair size and offers them enough space to have a run around and climb up posts and jump on shelves etc. They seem happy enough with their little "garden" and having no experience of the rest of the garden, other than "keeping an eye on it" through the wire mesh, they are now a little less crazy than when we first moved in and it was being built for 6 weeks.
It is horroble worrying about them going out, but maybe if you can "cat proof" your garden to stop them getting out, then the new ones won't know any different. Maybe only let them out during the day when you are in and keep them in a night. They soon get used to a routine. I know some people say that cats should just be let out, but what is the harm in trying to keep them safe, that is what I say. I don't want to loose another to the same fate!

As for the scratching furniutre, make sure they have their own stuff to scratch and keep a water spray bottle handy for a quick spritz if they are scratching what they shouldn't. You can also try scenting it with lemon or vinegar, though you will have to check how it reacts with the material!!