How to deal with a cat that is attacking my kitten?

OK, so I have an 8 month old kitten who is the most gorgeous little thing on Earth. Last night (or early this morning) he was attacked by something. I assume it was a certain black cat that lives a few doors up from me. Usually my other cat deals with him (my other cat is a nice, well built male) but on this occasion I think he must have been AWOL because we heard a major commotion outside then shortly after my poor little fella was whining outside our window. We brought him in and he has bite marks on his legs, is breathing heavily and generally looks to be in shock.

Now while I believe my kitten will recover I am fighting the urge to do some horrible things to this certain black bastard. Calling the pound would be useless as the thing ducks into the next yard and disappears without us getting near him. So I am considering either making a nasty slingshot or building a cat trap. What I would like to know is if their are any suggestions from you guys as to either how to build an effective set-and-forget cat trap or is their another method I could use to deter this bastard from coming onto my property and attacking my cats?

Any suggestions (however unpleasant) are welcome

[edit on 26/10/2008 by Kryties]

You witnessed the natural territorial behavior of the MALE cat.
While your older cat may seem to get along nicely with him while you are all inside the house, once outside he's on his own.
If the black cat is overly aggressive, and is always coming into YOUR yard, then I would take action.
What kinds of By-laws are in place for roving animals where you live?

It's one of those things that happens. Sooner or later dominance will be established and they will start respecting each other and getting along. I've seen it happen lots of times with cats.

Avoid the temptation to do something to the black cat coz that's just not nice. It's just doing what cats do and I find the suggestion that you want to hurt it somewhat offensive.

If you really want to stop the other cat coming on your property, which is really damned difficult, try chucking a load of water over it everytime it comes in your yard. That can work.

If you do anything else you better watch yourself with respect to animal cruelty laws.

Keep an eye on your kitten and it will all be fine.

Peace,

MGGG

Aside from making your cats indoor cats which many people feel is cruel (debatable ) I'd say let nature run it's course. cat's have a heirarchy and the pecking order has to be established and maintained. It's really not the fault of any cat in question. Make sure your kitties are fully up to date on shots, and if possible go visit the neighbor with the black cat and strike up a conversation, maybe even meet the little brute himself that way you can ensure that the other cat is also up to date on shots.

Cat's rarely kill each other though deep neck bites are common as are some nasty scratches. Just keep an eye out for any serious wounds and treat as they come up (if they come up).

The other cat is trying to teach your youngster the rules of the neighborhood. When you see the other cat you can try growling at him likely your cats may chime in as well...this is a language the bully can understand (sounds stupid but it works sometimes).

Get a dog. All my cats are in love with my dog, but the outside cats run from her.

reply to post by justgeneric


Thankyou all for your replies. I think I need to mention that although I was very angry at the black cat yesterday I would never do anything to cause harm to it. I was merely getting my anger out in writing

The thing with the black cat is that it comes into our yard once or twice a day and it took my older cat about 6 months to learn how to stand up to it. The fact that it attacked a kitten was the final straw for me. I've built a home-made cat-trap. It's just a trap that lures the cat into it and when the cat steps on the trip plate it releases the door which swings down and traps him inside. I think Ill try it out tonight (although I wouldn't be surprised if I manage to catch my older cat in it hehe, he's not too bright). If I do catch the black cat i'll ring the nearest RSPCA and see what they say to do from there.

Anyways, i'll fill you all in tomorrow on how the trap went.

reply to post by groingrinder


We do have a dog but she is locked in the back yard (can't let her out front or she would run onto the road) and our cats, while she doesn't hurt them, she tries to play with them too roughly so our cats prefer to stay out the front.

Originally posted by AccessDenied
What kinds of By-laws are in place for roving animals where you live?

I live in Sydney, Australia and I checked my local council's laws regarding stray and agrressive cats and it states that I can either borrow or make a trap and catch it. Once I catch it I can take it to the pound and the owners will then have to pay a fee ($100 I think) to get it out. Seems like a good solution to me, perhaps the owners would think twice before letting their cat out or even make sure it cannot leave their property.

I have a cat trap that I use. It is basically a box with expanded metal screen on one end and a door that comes down on the other. The door is connected to a bait bar that I put a bowl of tuna under. The cat hits the bar trying to eat the tuna and the door closes behind them. Cats do not like to go into an enclosed box. That is why one end has the expanded metal screen.

The water is the best idea...

We have several cats and this happens...

A pail of water works wonders

reply to post by groingrinder


Yes I looked into that and have made my trap just a frame with chicken-wire around it so it does not appear enclosed to the cat. So I shall set it tonight and hopefully not manage to catch my own cat in it hehe.

Failing that I will try the water solution but the only problem with that is getting close enough to the cat to douse it. The bloody thing sees a human and dashes off before you can get near it. Wily little bugger he is