My cat won't let our new kitten out. Is it aggression or fear?

Question

Our one year old cat is being very over protective with our new kitten . The first few days she was hissing at her all of a sudden yesterday she started being very over protective with her . Now she will not let the kitten come out from underneath the bed to eat or use the litter . We were thinking maybe there was a spider or something that has gotten my older cat to be in mommy mode. We want to know if this is an obsession or there is a spider or something that scared her . Pet's info: Cat | Domestic Shorthair | Female | unspayed | 2 years and 4 months old

Dr. Strydom, DVM · Accepted Answer

Hi there. I don't think the cat is being overprotective of the kitten. If she is not letting her out from under the bed is because she is asserting dominance and is basically bullying the kitten. This is aggressive behavior. When inserting a new kitten or cat to a household you need to introduce them slowly. Here is an article on how to do this. Cats are not like dogs where you can just throw them in together and they usually get along. http://www.catbehaviorassociates.com/how-to-introduce-a-second-cat/ So, I would go back and start over basically using the article's techniques. Next I would get Feliway diffusers and put them in your house. These release "happy cat pheromones" which helps to calm the cats. These things work amazing!!! Please, if you do anything at all, do this. You can usually buy this in most large pet stores and even some vet offices carry it. I hope this helps. You really need to go back to introduce them the right way or you are going to have MAJOR issues in your house with the cats. Best wishes. If you have any additional questions you are welcome to ask!

My cat won't let our new kitten out. Is it aggression or fear?

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