I took in a stray male cat, now approx. 7 1/2 mos.
old. He got his 1st shots, worming, fecal exam,
flea treatments. I would like to get him neutered
next week. The problem: He started attacking/now
relentlessly pursuing my three-year-old spayed female.
He has her so frightened, she won’t come out of
my bedroom. This started about 4 weeks ago. Will
neutering resolve this since he was a stray found
along a back road?

Gizzy
Kittanning, PA

Neutering your cat may help with the problem, but it is not guaranteed to solve it.

Cats, like humans, are territorial creatures. Actually, comparing cats’ territoriality to ours isn’t really fair to cats. Humans are much more territorial than cats. Humans often purposefully kill conspecifics (that is to say, other people) who who violate our territory (for instance, prowlers). Cats almost never go that far.

But cats certainly do try to reject other cats if they do not want them in their territory. And, in the case of your male cat, your home is his territory.

Testosterone is a hormone that helps to drive aggression and territoriality in some individuals. Neutering your cat will reduce his testosterone levels. This may help with the problem. Neutering your cat definitely is the first step I would recommend in dealing with this.

If the problem persists after your cat’s testosterone levels have decreased (which can take a few weeks), then I recommend that you implement a behavior modification protocol.

Try to create a core territory for your female cat. The simplest way to do this is to split the house into two sections divided by a door. The male cat will not have access to the female’s section, and vice-versa. Over time, the male may cease to consider the female’s portion of the house as part of his territory, and he may be less likely to harass her in her core territory once you decide to open the door.

I do not recommend squirting water at the male or punishing him when he harasses the female. This may only serve to rile him up, and it could cause him to attack her more aggressively.

Hopefully, over time the two will learn to live in peace.

Photo: Booger defends his territory against a heterospecific.

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I am a housekeeper. I have a new client, who is
new to the area she has three dogs, two Yellow Labs and
a German Shepherd. The shepherd is trained and is
very aggressive. She comes over to me with a stiff
tail, barking, and acting like she wants to bite
me.

Linda
Spokane WA

My advice is the same regardless of whether your client is in denial or actually wants you to be afraid of her dogs. Get a new client.

The person you describe is irresponsible at best, and evil at worst. It is incumbent upon dog owners to train and socialize their dogs properly. It’s one thing for a dog to growl at an intruder or prowler. But threatening a person who has been invited into the house never is acceptable.

Perhaps the dogs will not attack you. But perhaps they will. Do you want to be the guinea pig in this experiment?

Furthermore, you are entitled both morally and legally to a workplace that is safe and free from intimidation. Your client’s house hardly fits the bill.

I do not recommend that you try to befriend the dog or socialize it on your own. Based on your description, this could be dangerous. Training and socializing the German Shepherd is the responsibility of the owner. She has failed her dog in this regard.

Your best bet is to walk away from this situation. There are plenty of responsible dog owners in this world. Perhaps one of them needs a housekeeper.

Photo: Mocha’s snarl is just for show.

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I have four large dogs. Two of them are friendly and
no problem in public. The other two are male
littermates (almost three years old) and dislike people.
No matter what I try they just do not like people,
especially kids. They bark but never advance. I
have taken them out in public for walks and they
are fine as long as no one stops to talk to me or
asks to pet them. Do some dogs just not like
people?

Name Withheld
Marysville, WA

Wow. Your question seems appropriate for Halloween because your situation is very scary.

Dogs evolved to live among humans. As everyone knows, most dogs are amazingly well-adapted to life in two-legged society. But there are exceptions.

Dogs that display aggressive tendencies towards humans are dangerous. Large dogs that threaten children are beyond dangerous. You need to address this situation immediately.

I recommend that you keep the two dogs in question completely isolated from people (especially children) until you have sought the advice of a veterinarian who has special training and is certified in canine behavior.

If you don’t tackle this problem immediately and aggressively, a child may be harmed. You could end up with a lifetime of guilt–and a prison sentence.

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What techniques can deal with jealous
rivalry in dogs? I have two Yorkies that are
squabbling quite a bit if one gets more attention
than the other. I am at my wits’ end.
Thanks.

Donna
Blanchester, VA

The key point of your question is that the fighting occurs when one of the dogs is receiving attention from you.

Dogs and people see the world from different perspectives. Humans generally favor equality. If we have two dogs, our idea of fairness is to treat them as equals. We give them equal amounts of attention, love and kindness.

Dogs, however, are not proponents of equality. They establish dominance hierarchies among themselves. In a pair of dogs, one is likely to be dominant. The other will be submissive. In the dog world, the dominant dog has first rights to toys, food and attention from the people in the house.

As long as the submissive dog respects this entitlement, peace will reign. However, some submissive dogs realize that they can challenge their dominant sibling by enlisting an ally: a person in the house. The submissive dog may fail to respect the dominance of his cohort when he knows that mom will back him up. The dominant dog responds by starting a fight.

The key to ending these fights is to realize which of your dogs is dominant. The dominant dog should be the first to receive attention, food and toys.

I am not saying to neglect the submissive dog. However, if you look at the situation from a dog’s point of view, your life may become more tranquil.

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I rescued a two-year-old dog from the local
animal shelter. I was told that she was one of
many dogs taken from the home of a hoarder and had
lived most of her life in a crate.

Gerry
Norco, CA

Not long ago I treated a female Border Collie that was having trouble giving birth. She was very sweet and friendly at first. But once she successfully delivered a puppy, that changed. If I approached the room where she and her puppy were located, she would lunge at me to keep me away from the puppy.

Protective maternal instincts are natural in dogs. Based upon your description, it sounds very likely that Lily is confusing her toys with puppies. This is leading to defensive growling that could escalate to outright aggression over time.

Maternal instincts in dogs are driven by hormones. Spayed dogs lack the hormones that cause protective maternal aggression. Therefore, the simplest way to deal with this problem is to have Lily spayed.

If Lily already has been spayed, two things could be going on. First, if she was spayed recently, she could still be under the influence of lingering hormones. In that case, the behavior should resolve over time as the hormones clear out of her body.

Second, there is a chance that the behavior you are witnessing is an expression of dominance rather than maternal instincts. Dominant dogs aggressively guard toys, food and anything else of value to dogs.

If spaying Lily does not solve the problem (or if she is already spayed), your best bet will be to consult with a behaviorist about managing dominance issues among your dogs.

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