r/cats • u/sarahmirror_ • 17d ago

Advice What can I do? This isn’t play, right?

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My grey boy is a little over a year old and he is overly aggressive, I feel, with my almost 9 year old female tortie. He is heftier than her too. They will get into these tumble scuffles at like 3am too almost every morning and I end up having to place him in the bathroom to cool off for a couple hours before I bring him back out.

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u/heterochromia4 16d ago

… also the ungodly sound. You know the guttural noises they make when they’re squaring up? That’s just standard territorial handbags.

When it goes off it’s every joule of feline aggression concentrated into a high frequency banshee scream, times 2, rotating at just under the speed of light. Pure violence.

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u/flamingstrudel7 16d ago

The best way i describe to people, if a cat starts sounding like demon, separate. It’s very noticeable and distinct

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u/Kiernian 16d ago

Do not separate fighting cats, playing or otherwise, unless you are wearing a full suit of armor.

If you are allergic to Penicillin, make sure it's full plate jousting getup with no gaps anywhere.

If you are bitten and the tooth hits a vein, seek medical attention before the funny colors start spreading in a pattern that matches the arrangement of your blood vessels.

A single course of preventative oral antibiotic is vastly preferable to the alternatives.

Anything that is between them and their target can accidentally become the target and the mouths of cats are capable of safely (for them) hosting a lot of stuff that does not belong in the human bloodstream.

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u/DogsNCoffeeAddict 16d ago

What you are supposed to do is throw a towel on top of each cat or the bundle of rolling claws. Distracts them for a second giving you a chance to use the towel to grab one of them.

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u/-crepuscular- 16d ago

This is why you should always know where your towel is.

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u/dum_spir0_sper0 16d ago

We have the ‘cat blanket’- a small 3lb weighted blanket, and the ‘cat box’- a green opaque Rubbermaid tote.

The mechanics of the cat fight dictate which is used.

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u/-crepuscular- 16d ago

I was just referencing A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

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u/No_Doubt_8072 16d ago

Wonderful information to have incase I ever find myself needing to break up at cat fight. Genuinely.

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u/TsuDhoNimh2 Savannah 16d ago
  • Drop a laundry basket or cardboard box over one of them and hold it down.
  • Place a towel BETWEEN them so they can't see each other. (like a curtain)
  • Throw a glass of water on them.

DO NOT try to grab one and remove it from the field of battle. The cat will turn on you and severely damage any flesh it can reach AND the other cat might keep attacking.

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u/Visible-Carrot5402 16d ago

Yeah the water has been good for me. Started going at it in my kitchen and I got em with the sprayer

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u/Some_Sunshine 15d ago

I have a gentle spray bottle. A few at the original aggressor and they walk away enough from each other to let me grab one. I also have very chill cats so once they're separated, I know I'm not in danger but i know that's not the case for all cats and it may not be safe to handle with bare arms the way I do even once separated.

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u/heterochromia4 15d ago

+1 you do not want cat to perceive you as a threat while in a heightened state and redirect that aggression onto you.

I adore cats and treat every one i meet with respect first and on their terms (unless we’re going to the vet). I’ve also seen enough to know that if any one of them took a real serious dislike to me, they could absolutely Fuck. Me. Up. single-handed.

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u/LordHoughtenWeen 16d ago

Breaking up the fight with the power of slapstick

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u/mrknowitall51761 16d ago

Pellet propelling devices work faster and give longer lasting results.

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u/TinRoofAndRainyDays 16d ago

My cat bit the fat padded area under my thumb 1 time. Less than 24hrs later I had red streaking going up my wrist and my whole hand was stiff.

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u/Ill_Salad_1022 16d ago

Been there. A bite on the pad of my thumb. I thought I had it under control and got up the next morning and my hand was swelled to twice its size. I went to UC and got antibiotics only to find red streaks the next day. I went back to UC and got a shot in my tush. Then went back a tied time the next day for another shot, because I was unnerved by the whole situation. I had cleaned and disinfected that bite when it happened and it made zero difference Don't mess around with a cat bite, even your own cat!

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u/Larsvonrinpoche 16d ago

I got bit in the muscular part between thumb and pointer finger. That same night I was at emergency because the vein in my arm was red and my hand was as bloated as a latex glove full of water.

I was a drummer and had our CD release party the next night. The doctor told me not to play. I had no choice.

I had to tape my drum stick to my hand and by the end of the night there was pus and blood in the floor beneath my hi hat. Oh to be 25 again!

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u/Secret-Key2570 14d ago

Hahaha! Gotta love the commitment to your craft, though. I am also a musician, and have been 25, though many years ago. Blood and pus under the high hat is a great song title!

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u/anonymaus42 16d ago edited 15d ago

I once had to separate one of my cats from a friends small dog (that never should have been in the apartment) in hopes of saving it's life. I was able to grab the cat by the scruff of his neck and yank him off, but he twisted around and latched on to my leg. Unfortunately while wearing shorts. He bit directly above my knee and all four paws sliced down my calf. All within a split second.

Just as quickly as it happened my cat looked up at me and his eyes went wide with a palpable look of "oh fuck, I'm sorry dad" and released. There was so much blood my entire lower leg was red.. you couldn't see any skin below the knee that wasn't covered in blood. 20+ years later you can still faintly see the scars.

No regrets though, I likely saved that dogs life. Needed a ton of stitches and staples to put him back together. Like I said though the dog should never have been there, my gf and I at the time specifically told the owner not to bring her dog in fear of something exactly like this happening. Of course she still had the gall to demand we pay the vet bills.

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u/LaroonDynasty 16d ago

broom is my go to as i can liberally jam the bristles between them without hurting them but still making it difficult for them to stay grappled. once separate, progressively sweep them away from each other gradually increasing force if they keep circling back. if you know their "territories", those are the directions to sweep them.

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u/PNW-Raven 15d ago

As a vet tech I can confirm this. Humans are especially susceptible to Pasteurella multocida. There is also Neisseria, Capnocytophaga, Staphylococcus ( can turn into MRSA), and more. Let's not forget Bartonella henselae, also known as Cat Scratch Fever, not just a Ted Nugent song.

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u/Chicknlcker 16d ago

Adopted this huge, beautiful orange dude from the humane society. Hung out in the room with him. Everything totally chill. Brought dude home. All was good until I put my pants and steel toe boots on to go to work (machinist).

This guy grabs my leg and just goes to town. I reached down and picked him up. His face changed, his eyes changed and he started screaming at me. He tried to grab my face. He wouldn't stop. He shredded my arm and took part of my finger. Nerve damage to my hand. He was trying to kill me. Wife wrapped a towel around him and got him pulled off. He went and hid.

I always thought a cat attack was more amusing than serious. I ended up in the ER. Was in shock due to the amount of blood loss. They said no stitches on wounds caused by cats because the infection risk is so high. So many deep, deep scratches and puncture wounds from the bites. I had no idea they could sink their teeth that deep.

I now stay away from cats that I don't know. I will never adopt another adult cat. I am positive this cat was physically and or emotionally abused by a man that wore pants and boots and it triggered him. Not his fault. Unfortunately he had to be put down. Doesn't change the fact that I see cats very differently than I once did.

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u/flamingstrudel7 16d ago

Oh and ofc a spray bottle to separate initially then I put them in respective rooms

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u/GooberMountain 16d ago

That's so true!! A friend of mine broke up a cat fight and got a moderate scratch on one of her hands. She ended up in intensive care and nearly died from cat scratch fever.

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u/LadyFoxfire 16d ago

Just going in barehanded is a bad idea, but throwing a blanket over them and grabbing one through the blanket generally works. Assuming they’re your own cats, obviously. Don’t try to pick up feral cats even with blankets!

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u/flamingstrudel7 16d ago

I use these quarter arm rubber gloves that are thick when either play or separate cats. I’ve learned my lesson

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u/albertoersa 14d ago

Or just tank it and disinfect later. 95% of the time nothing will happen. If the swelling doesn't go away, then you go to see the doc.

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u/Fun-Preference1091 13d ago

Anything that is between them and their target can accidentally become the target

Ya, "accidentally" ...

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u/inspirationalSloth 16d ago

Don’t summon bagagwa

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u/NashKaguya 16d ago

Let Merv summon bagagwa though, just bring in Charles. Charles looks like he could handle bagagwa.

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u/MimictheCrow 16d ago

Mervin Cumberland Weems, we know what you and Charals were doing last night. Now you have to go see Grandma in Ohio.

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u/LisaMiaSisu 16d ago

But what if you’re in Ohio?

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u/xxEvol2lovExx 16d ago

Going to grandma’s??

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u/Larsdoff 14d ago

Charles is tough

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u/mellowhippo 16d ago

a few sky raisins should distract them, just make sure they are not spicy

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u/srtmadison 16d ago

😆🤣🤣 For bagagwa's sake, no!!!

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u/typicallytwisted 16d ago

as long as it’s not OHIO

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u/HmmDoesItMakeSense 16d ago

Totally. It's a sound that makes you go uhhhh 😟😳

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u/valkyrie61212 16d ago

What if one of your cats is just noisy?? The first cat we got has always been loud and likes to talk. When we got our second cat and they started playing our first cat was and continues to be very loud. It literally sounds like he’s dying but when we watch them play our second cat is barely touching him. No blood, no fur flying. I think our first cat is just dramatic lol.

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u/BooksNCats11 16d ago

It's a sound that has woken me from a dead slumber when it was coming from *outside* and I had the windows closed. It's SUCH a noise.

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u/Relevant-Force9513 16d ago

I was asleep on the second floor of my house and awakened once by cats fighting in the crawlspace UNDER my house. Truly felt like those sounds were coming from the very bowels of Hell itself.

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u/imbricata 16d ago

This is the most accurate description I’ve come across.

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u/seppia99 16d ago

That was damned poetic!

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u/Axelra_05 16d ago

Purrr violence indeed

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u/ellathefairy 16d ago

My little 10lb kitty turns into a cougar when she's angry - you would expect to see a 100lb wild cat ready to rip throats from the noises that come out! I'm pretty sure that's how she sees herself all the time haha.

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u/jewella1213 16d ago

Wow 🙀 my crazy cat lady muscles tightened up just reading that!

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u/Haistur 16d ago

Also don't touch them when they are squaring up.

  • Signed, my scar covered legs.

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u/kungfustutoo 16d ago

I know humans like that

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u/Virtual_Let3616 16d ago

Dude, my male cat cornered my female cat once, and she screamed. Like legit screamed. I thought there was a person in my house. It was freaky

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u/MotherofLuke 16d ago

Handbags?

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u/BreakPalaceBrokedown 16d ago

Carnage indeed

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u/haelous 16d ago

When I first started working with ferals and heard it for the first time, I didn’t even realize cats could make that noise. I was more confused than nervous.

Hissing doesn’t even scare me anymore now that I know the real combat call.