The Bully Cat

Unfortunately, bullies are not just human-kind, they are a fairly regular presence in the feline world too. Research has shown that several factors may result in a bully cat, one of which is the kitten being removed from it’s mother at too young an age…for whatever reason. However, none of the research seems to be particularly conclusive and there are probably several contributing factors in the early years of the animal.

The bully cat tends to pick on just one cat in the household. Learning the signs of when he (or she) is getting ready to pounce on the victim is key to diverting the energy elsewhere. However, there really is no reliable “fix” to the bully cat. 

In the case of a male bully cat, neutering will offer some help, and diversion will offer some help. Diversion tactics offered a millisecond too late will have little to no effect, so observing and learning the signs are very important, and then presenting the diversion just before the bullying begins. Diversion can be play, a treat, attention, anything fun and positive that appeals to the cat.

In my personal experience of bully cats, they have all been male and the victims have always been female, however I am sure that female bully cats exist too. On of my own cats was a bully cat, and he bullied our female for his entire life (about fifteen years), though once he passed about age ten, incidents became infrequent to not at all.

The bullying situation is very much about observation and figuring out when to intervene and how to intervene without making the situation worse, as “once a bully always a bully” applies in the cat kingdom.