# Please help- sister cats now hate each other



## Bey&flower (Sep 25, 2017)

I have two fighting cats and I'm out of ideas for how to resolve it, so am hoping you might be able to help!

The cats are sisters and I adopted them when they were 4 years old, 2.5 years ago. They always got on really well, surprisingly well for cats in fact.

One (Bey) recently had to have an X-ray at the vets, she came back with a cone on and the other one (Flower) freaked out completely. Hissing and growling and running away.

That was almost two months ago, the cone is long gone but they are still fighting. Flower is terrified of going anywhere near Bey, she just growls and hisses but in a terrified way, and Bey responds by attacking her. 

I've had to separate them and it's so upsetting, I don't know what to do. I had the awful thought that I might need to rehome one but it's too upsetting to eve consider.

Any advice greatly appreciated!


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

Unfortunately it's quite a common occurrence for two cats who are normally the best of pals to fall out when one of them goes to the vet and comes back smelling different. The fact that Bey came back wearing a cone collar made Flower even more upset. I would not have let Bey come in to meet Flower wearing the collar.

I have had the same thing happen in the past when I took one of my girls (aged 4) to the vet without her sister. The two sisters are normally very close, and spend all their time together. As soon as I brought the one sister back from the vet the girls began fighting, so I separated them immediately.

It is vital that your two are not allowed to fight, as it will damage the relationship. The more they fight the harder it will become to heal the misunderstanding between them. Cats are not very forgiving of each other unfortunately, when they fall out.

What I did with my girls is as follows:

1/ I kept them separate.

2/ I cleaned the fur and paw pads of the girl who had been to the vet, with a no rinse shampoo (Ring 5 Quick Clean from Purrsonal Touch).

3/ I began scent swapping, between the two cats. This means taking a clean soft cloth and wiping it around the cheeks and neck of the stay-home cat and then wiping it around the cheeks and neck of the vet visiting cat. I repeated this several times during the day and evening.

4/ Next day I allowed the girls short periods of time together under my supervision. Any negative behaviour and I separated them again. I had to be very watchful when they were together and jump in the second I noticed them glaring at each other.

5/ It took me about 3 days before the girls were Ok being together again, and about 2 weeks before they were fully back to their normal selves.

Since then I always take both girls to the vet together, even though only one cat needs to be seen by the vet. They are both a bit edgy when they get home (as both hate the vets) but at least they don't attack each other.

I think as your situation has gone on for 2 months you'll need to go much more slowly and carefully with the reintroductions than I did. I recommend you treat the reintroduction process rather as you would with 2 cats who are strangers to each other.

Start by keeping them completely separate from each other for 4 or 5 days to give them time to calm down. Then start the scent swapping (as I described above) for a couple of days.

Then start very short periods of exposure under your watch, e.g 5 minutes at a time, then separate.

Do not be tempted to do too much too soon. You need the two cats to have some positive experiences of each other to build back their relationship to what it was.

During the time you have them separate start them both on a course of Zylkene in their food. It is a calming supplement which is good for anxious, stressed cats. Put the contents of one 75 mg capsule a day in their food and mix it in. Keep going with the Zylkene for a month.

http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pets/merch-groups/feature/dog-calming/zylkene-75mg-for-cats-and-small-dogs-20-capsules-(online-only)

Also, some diffusers such as Feliway Friends (Pheromones) or Pet Remedy, around the home will help calm the atmosphere too. Some people find Feliway works best for them, others prefer Pet Remedy.

http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/p.../pet-remedy-plug-in-diffuser-with-40ml-bottle

http://www.petsathome.com/shop/en/p...at-scent-diffuser-and-refill-for-kittens-48ml

Good luck, please let us know how things go.


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## Bey&flower (Sep 25, 2017)

Thank you SO much for such a thorough response. I appreciate it a lot. I will give your approach a go and let you know how I get on. Fingers crossed...!


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## Yorkshirecats (Oct 5, 2016)

This happened with my sibling cats - not for the same length of time but exactly the same. Our female went in to get spayed and her brother did not recognise her at all and was hissing/growling at her. It was heartbreaking because the poor female clearly recognised him and wanted to be with him. I posted on here- and followed the advice Chillminx gave and a few days later they were best of friends again 

I hope your two manage to mend their relationship x


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