Are my 2 cats fighting or playing? One is a new kitten?

Question

Hi, I have a 1 year old female cat, and I just got a new kitten. The older one will watch the kittenf or a while, and then they swat at eachother a bit, and it seems like the kitten is just playing, but the older one will hiss a bit and almost seems serious. I've only had the kitten for a few days, so is this just the older one getting used to the new one?

Answer 1

yeah for a while the kitten is the one just playing. my kitten used to do this to my cat. my cat would put the kitten in a head lock and bite its muzzle.but now he stopped and just swats and chases her,and there friends. your cat will get over it.

Answer 2

It's normal.

They can be territorial & not (at first) like the presence of a new cat.  But - in the end, it sounds like they are playing & getting to know each other.

A true cat fight would have broken out by now.

Answer 3

Same thing happened with mine. The younger one wanted to play and the older one just wanted it to go back to where it came from. The older one (Opal) hissed at Harley (the younger one) for about a week. Then Harley would try to play bite Opal and she'd get mad and attack him. After a couple of weeks, it ended up just being play fighting. In fact, we've had Harley a little over a month now and we've had him quaranteened in the bathroom b/c he's sick, and Opal has been sitting outside the bathroom door whining b/c she can't play with him. Then when I let him out, they play fight for a few minutes and fall asleep in a big ball in the living room. It's precious.,

Answer 4

Yes, this is what occurs when a new member is becoming a part of the family circle.  The older one is going to make the little and new one understand who is the leader of the pack so once it does they will be at peace with one another.

Answer 5

I think that the kitten is just trying to play  with the older one.  The older one is clarifying that she is older and in charge.  I think that the older one will get used to the kitten soon and might start playing with the kitten.  Although... I guess that swatting could count as some kind of game...

Answer 6

They are just working out the dominance.  My cats do this quite often and are the same age.  No one gets hurt.  They are just working out the pecking order.  So long as no one is being injured it should be fine.  

Answer 7

the older cat might be protecting her territory and that she doesnt want another cat poking around there. if you look at the older cats eyes when theyre doing that and the black parts of her eyes are huge and take over most of her eye that probably means shes serious. hissing usually means"stay away" and "let me be".

Answer 8

The older cat is just getting use to the kitten, give it about another week and they will be cuddling on the couch together.

She's trying to demonstrate, I was here first, I'm incharge! I had the same problem with my 14wk old female and my new 5wk old.

Perfectly normal