What do you do when one of your kittens doesn't recognize the other one?
My kittens are the best of friends, bffs, besties if you will. For the last 2 1/2 months they have been inseperable. They play, sleep, eat and bath together.
A few weeks ago it was time for them to get spay and neutered. I took them to the vet together. I had to turn their crates so they could see each other in the car because the meowing was so loud. Once they could see each other they quieted down and were fine.
My kittens are the best of friends, bffs, besties if you will. For the last 2 1/2 months they have been inseperable. They play, sleep, eat and bath together.
A few weeks ago it was time for them to get spay and neutered. I took them to the vet together. I had to turn their crates so they could see each other in the car because the meowing was so loud. Once they could see each other they quieted down and were fine.
After the surgeries Charlie got an nervous stomach and I had to take him back to the vet because he had diarrhea. When we got there the vet had to wash him and give him some medicine. Upon returning home from the vet, Chloe looked at Charlie as if she had never seen him before. Instead of receiving a warm welcome, Chloe hissed, growled and ran away. As if Charlie didn't have enough problems, he now had social anxiety to face. She behaved like he was a stranger cat who was invading her territory. My two former best friends turned into enemies.
This was a case of mistaken or forgotten identity! This odd behavior I've learned is called nonrecognition aggression. It seems that the cat left at home doesn't recognize its housemate when she/he returns from an outing. This can be due to a new smell picked up from the vet's office, the smell of medicine, the sick smell or simply a change in behavior upon returning. Remember this is a species that will stop eating if they can't smell that their food is really food.
How was I going to get my cat's to appreciate each other once again? It was a slow process that took patience and little understanding, but ultimately... it was worth the sacrifice to my daily routine. Learning how to introduce old friends was an art form. I started by separating the kittens. Then I took the blanket they sleep on and rubbed on Chloe and then on Charlie. This didn't do anything. After several hours I moved on to more drastic measures. I needed a strong smelling odor that the cats would find pleasant...Tuna!! I took canned tuna water and wet my hands and then stroked both the kittens. It encouraged them to groom themselves, caused them to smell the same and covered the vet/sick smell. The first time didn't really work, but the second time I did this (the next morning) Chloe was beginning to remember who Charlie was.
Although it still took a few hours to get back to their normal loving relationship. I walked into the room later that day to find them cuddled up, Chloe resuming her role of mom and offical cat cleaner and Charlie as lovable couch potato.
What have I learned from this experience? Cats are weird. And from now on we travel as a family. When one goes to the vet.... We all go.
