ot - zany cat? how to deal

[tr-ray]

Okay, I wasn't sure where to go but maybe you DISers who are very pet knowledgeable can give me a little insight.

My DH and I have had two cats for over two years now (one we had for a year before getting the second).

ONe cat is very very laidback, the other is much more hyper and 'in your face'. They're both females, both spayed/neutered, but the one we've had the longest is older (maybe 5 or 6 years old) compared to the other which is only about 2 years old.

Well, on 09/26 DH and I proudly welcomed our DD into the world, and within a few days she came home.
Both cats were allowed to 'check' the baby out, so to speak, and really wanted nothing to do with her. The zany cat -- the younger one -- however, started hissing at people randomly. She never before hissed at anyone, ever! DH and I would just squirt her with the water bottle, and she'd run and cower in another room. But in the past week or two, she's been having lots of 'hissy fits' (no pun intended) where she hisses at DH or I without being provoked.

Today, Dh and I put DD on her little playmat to play. I picked her up to change her, and turned back to see the cat sitting on the play mat. She hissed at DH, and wouldn't move even when he stomped his foot near her (that usually works, lol). She continued to hiss and growl, and only got up when i pulled the mat out from under her.

I am really torn about what to do. In a rash moment of anger, I told DH we're taking her to the shelter. I feel so badly that I feel this way, as she can be a very loving cat, but I am soooo scared that she may hurt my DD.

Can cats be jealous? It seems like she's upset that she's taken a backseat to the baby, but I cannot pick her over my DD's safety.

(thank you if you've stuck with me and read this whole thing.)

 

[ilandrazdsw]

Congratulations on the birth of you DD!!!

OK, I have 4 cats (3 female, 1 male), all strickly indoor, all fixed & all declawed in the front (please no flames for this...it was declaw or removal from the house). My oldest (Cabby) is 13 yo, the twins are 2, and the male is also 2.
I had Cabby 6 year before my DS was born. She was truly the ONLY child and SPOILED! I worried about her with DS, but she showed little interest at first...then she became protective of him. She didn't hiss or go on the attack, but would watch him almost making sure he was fine and that no harm came to him. She had been protective of me since nearly when I adopted her at 6 months and moreso after I started having seizures.
My DS was 3 and DD was 1 when the "twins" came along. They were 4 weeks old and rescue cats. As they have grown one has become a "scardy cat" and runs if the kids come in the room or the door bell rings. The other one is my DD's cat. DD can do ANYTHING to her and she comes back for more. The male came to us at about 4 months (another rescue) and will let the kids do almost anything with him. He runs into DD's room and up on the bed when I open her door in the morning and then follows her foot to foot until he gets the attention.
What I am trying to say in all that rambling is...maybe your cat isn't upset, but being protective. Don't put the fuzzball out just yet. Keep an eye on the situation. Maybe let DH try giving a little more attention to the cat or (this may sound crazy) let the cat see you and dh on the floor playing with the baby and that the baby is fine...and give attention to the cat the same time.
Hope it all works out.

 

[tr-ray]

Thanks for your input.

I am wondering if it's because she hasn't had any petting in the last day or so... I know this morning (I'm still on maternity leave), she came into the bedroom meowing up a storm wanting to cuddle, and I promptly threw her out of the room twice because I was snoozing, lol.

So she may have been upset about that...

Sigh, I just don't know what to do.

 

[CrAzY4DL]

Yes, you definitely need to up the lovin'! Cats are very territorial and super jealous. When we had first DD, our cat Jolie who made the move with us from Hawaii back to California, she LOVED DD. When DD crawled, she went straight for Jolie and promptly dug her hands knuckle deep into her fur and pulled. Jolie just looked at her like she was crazy and made this weird meow, like a MEW MEW get your frigging kid MEW MEW! LOL She never swiped tho.
I agree, you and DH play with baby on the floor and if cat doesn't come near, get her and bring her there with you and make a big fuss over cat.

We recently welcomed a new spastic rescue cat to our household and it sure is fun!!! We have the stodgy old (7ish) extremely fat cat and now this new crazy skinny as a rail 9 month oldish cat and their dynamics are hilarious!!!

 

[susykt4]

As long as she's just hissing, give her a little more time. Our cat was NOT happy about my daughter being born. She hissed at her as a baby, hissed at her as a toddler, and then my son was born. For whatever reason, the cat LOVED my son from the start. My son was a MUCH worse baby who cried all the time, etc. He's six now and the now 12-yr-old cat continues to favor him over the rest of us. The cat sleeps with him and calls for him and follows him around. The cat still doesn't particularly like my daughter (now 8) but she's never done anything worse than bat at her (without using claws.)

 

[Suzanna1973]

Don't stop givin lovins to the cats!! They don't know why there is a new person in their home, but if the lovins stop because the new person came along, they may never like that new person.

 

[tr-ray]

Thank you all.

I wouldn't want to give her up so quickly, either. DH and I will have to sincerely try harder to make sure that our kitty is hugged or petted a few times a day! Hopefully that will help curttail these hissy fits!

 

[jmpurdy]

Hello! It may very well be the smell of new baby! Cats are very in tune with smells and anything new to the household (4 legged OR 2 legged) is looked at as new and they are freaked out about the smell. Many times when one cat in a household goes to the vet, they come home and promptly get attacked just because they SMELL like the vet. It's not the vet of course, it's that they smell different than they did before.
This may sound weird, but take a towel and wipe down baby and then wipe down the cat. This may go a long way to helping the stress the cat is feeling. There is also something called Feliway (a pheromone) that calms cats that simulates the smell when they rub their cheeks on you!
They are really 'marking' you! Feliway comes in a spray to spritz in certain areas (baby's room?) and also a plug in diffuser that lasts a month I think.
It's not so much jealousy, but the new smells. Hope this helps and I am happy to help with any further questions. Yes, I work for a feline veterinarian!

 

[ilandrazdsw]

Yes, you definitely need to up the lovin'! Cats are very territorial and super jealous. When we had first DD, our cat Jolie who made the move with us from Hawaii back to California, she LOVED DD. When DD crawled, she went straight for Jolie and promptly dug her hands knuckle deep into her fur and pulled. Jolie just looked at her like she was crazy and made this weird meow, like a MEW MEW get your frigging kid MEW MEW! LOL She never swiped tho.
I agree, you and DH play with baby on the floor and if cat doesn't come near, get her and bring her there with you and make a big fuss over cat.

We recently welcomed a new spastic rescue cat to our household and it sure is fun!!! We have the stodgy old (7ish) extremely fat cat and now this new crazy skinny as a rail 9 month oldish cat and their dynamics are hilarious!!!

My Cabby was HUGE!!! Since the twin kitties and the male came along she has dropped a ton of weight and is now healthier. She had been on Science Diet Weight reduction for awhile, but the spunky young cats (who love to play with each other) got her up and going...even if it was just as self defense . The vet had suggested adding another cat... ...but it really did work--even if we went a little overboard with adding 3 .