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How to stop my female cat from growling and hissing at my male cat?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Cat | Ragdoll | Female | spayed | 9 lbs

I have 2 Ragdoll cats, one male , one female. 3 years old. Both desexed. Both very active, running around. Mainly indoor cats. My female cat growls and hisses when the male cat comes near her. Been going on for 3 months now. How do i stop it ??

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on March 16th, 2017

Great question! I can give you a method to help them get along. I would separate the cats, and slowly reintroduce them to each other. Take the cat who is aggressive (Sami), and put her in her own room with her own food, water, and litter box. Keep the door closed, and for a few days, feed them both treats on other side of door so they associate each other's smell with a good experience. Then let Beau in the aggressive cat's room while Sami is in a cat carrier. They can smell each other, but not be in contact. If either becomes upset or show signs of aggression, remove Beau from the room, and try again later. Praise them when they interact appropriately. When they are interacting well with each other through the carrier, you can let Sami out of her room, and see how she interacts with Beau. Praise them when they interact appropriately, and separate them with any sign of aggression or upset. I would get a cat tree with lots of shelves to give the cats vertical space to get away from each other. I would keep Sami in her room when you go out until they are comfortable with each other. I hope this helps!

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Other Answers

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    Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 9th, 2016

    It sounds like Sedona doesn't like Emma. I would separate the cats, and slowly reintroduce them to each other. Take the cat who is aggressive (Sedona), and put her in her own room with her own food, water, and litter box. Keep the door closed, and for a few days, feed them both treats on other side of door so they associate each other's smell with a good experience. Then let Emma in the Seonda's room while she is in a cat carrier. They can smell each other, but not be in contact. If either becomes upset or show signs of aggression, remove Emma from the room, and try again later. Praise them when they interact appropriately. When they are interacting well with each other through the carrier, you can let Sedona out of her room, and see how she interacts with Emma. Praise them when they interact appropriately, and separate them with any sign of aggression or upset. I would get a cat tree with lots of shelves to give the cats vertical space to get away from each other. I would keep Sedona in her room when you go out until they are comfortable with each other.

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    1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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