In cat colonies, also refereed to as a cat community, there is always a pecking order know as a hierarchy.At the top of the hierarchy there is normally a dominate breeding female. This breeding female is the most dominant figure in the cat community and provided the other cats know their place in that community it can be quite harmonious. Hierarchy among cats is a natural phenomenon that cats do desire to bring balance.Causes for unbalance among a cat colony are:
Thankfully some owners are responsible and get their cats neuter or spayed within the first six months of age. Early spay and neuter can help prevent issues such as fighting. It is only when a cat tries to move up in the order of dominance that a fight ensues and this generally happens when males are trying to win the favor of the female. Cats are often more vocal when greeting one another than dogs and even when you hear cat fights in the night, they are never quite as violent as they sound. Most of the interaction in these “cat fights” involves who can make the most noise and often no contact is made at all. In circumstances where a fight does occur, a cat can sustain injuries that might result in a visit to the vet as these injuries can cause abscesses, cuts and tears to the ears and face, and scratches to the eyes. The risk of infection increases if your cat has been fighting with stray cats. Diagram showing variables and constants that can cause unbalance to a cat hierarchy:
Cats that are brought up in the same household together can form a colony thus will generally get along well without any trouble and will greet one another by rubbing themselves against each other, and sometimes they will lie down and let the other cat groom them. But if your household is under siege from unhappy, unbalance and angry cats what can you do to correct the situation? Every situation is different but bellow are some suggestions:
Occasionally they might take a swipe at each other even in an established colony, but this will generally not cause any harm as they aren’t attacking one another. A simple swipe may be to just reestablish boundaries. They can use the same behavior with their owners and this is particularly more common with the long-haired and hybrid varieties as they can get a little overexcited when playing and end up scratching and biting. This is not actually a cat behavioral problem as such, as it is just like children getting a little overexcited and can easily be stopped by not playing with them when they appear to be getting agitated.