Mounting behavior

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Blueandbluer
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Joined: Wed Dec 21, 2016 1:58 pm

Mounting behavior

Post by Blueandbluer »

Hello, I wanted to see if you had any advice about a particular behavior my cat has starting doing recently. I have 2 older cats, one 14(m) and one 19(f). I had a third, also a male, that I lost to cancer last spring. All were spayed/neutered as kittens. When the other male cat became ill, the 14(m) took to mounting him, which was very stressful on him. Now my 19(f) is starting to slow down, due to advancing kidney disease, and I'm finding the younger cat is doing the same to her. Every day, several times a day, he bites her neck and mounts her. I'm worried about the stress on her.

Why is he doing this? Is there a way to discourage or stop this behavior?
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Lilith
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Re: Mounting behavior

Post by Lilith »

Hi and welcome :)

When I bred Siamese I had a neutered female who would mount a girl in call :o

It's a dominance thing and nothing to worry about I think, unless the neck-gripping is causing wear and tear on the fur/skin, or the errm underneath cat is being bothered or bullied by the mounting cat.

How does your girl behave? Does she just submit or does she show any signs of distress such as growling or struggling or crying? How do she and the male interact normally?

A lot of cats enjoy being scruffed; one of mine used to 'hide' under the bed with the back of her neck actually protruding for me to grip and slide her gently along the carpet ... she was an extreme case but when you look at the way mother cats carry their kittens, you can imagine what a calming back-to-kittenhood sensation it may be for a cat; in fact if I have to handle a cat who's strange to me I'll scruff the neck and support the back end.

It does sound as if your boy is extra-dominant despite neutering, and I've never heard of a cat mounting a poorly cat, but if the girl doesn't object to his behaviour and is coping as well as possible ie eating/enjoying life, it may be bothering you more than it is her. I agree it's odd though! (But then cats can be very odd lol.)

Hopefully there will be more advice/knowledge from other members soon but hope this helps for now :)
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