Older cat scared of kitten when being chased?

Question

We rescued a kitten and brought it home. We have a 11 year old cat that always used to be the sole cat ruler in the house. Both are males, older one fixed and the 8 week old will be fixed when of age to do so.

We did our very best to slowly introduce the two. Initially the kitten was quarantined to a room in the house, and then we let the kitten explore the house while the other was sleeping outside. Initially they ate at different times but they are now ok to eat in separate corners simultaneously.

The older cat used to hiss alot at the new kitten. The hissing is pretty much gone except that the younger one chases the older cat and the older one seems scared. It runs quickly away and just now I found the older cat on the edge of the balcony ledge while the younger one was on the balcony floor. The older one seemed scared and just hissed at the little one.

Is this normal? I don't want that the new kitten bullies on our older cat. What can we do?

Answer 1

Hey!  Why does either cat have access to the balcony?  This is a sure way to lose both cats permanently.  Anyway, the younger cat may be testing the waters and limits of the new home.  I just brought in a new 3 month old female kitten that is very playful with my 4-15 year old cats.  She had the 15 year old male on the run yesterday.  I found the males are fearful of the kittens.  I think they think a mother female is around to jump on them if they hurt the kitten.  They usually work it out abit later.  In the mean while, don't let the kitten get too abusive toward the older cat.  Pretty soon you will see the two playing together.  It seems the older cats like the kitten play revisited by the young kitten's presence.

Answer 2

Yeah, my baby two year old just runs away from my moms annoying new car alarm (It's actually a kitten..), older cats usually just want to be left alone with their human friends or by themselves. Everyone knows kittens can be annoying sometimes!

Answer 3

i dont think hes scared he is an old cat set in his ways and is not as playful and just cant be bothered with the other cat but knows it is a baby and will put the kitten in his place once it is older

Answer 4

The older cat probably isn't scared, it just wants to be left alone. He probably feels like the younger cat is taking over his territory. Give it time, eventually it will stop. Make sure you give the older cat extra attention so he knows he's not being replaced.

Answer 5

Your older cat has probably has already passed that stage of playfullness....think of it like this: your older cat is like a teenager  trying to get away from a younger sibling who can't understand the meaning of "I don't want to play right now"....It is completely normal....it's simply sibling rivalry...For now just show your older cat that he is still very special to you and eventually the younger cat will understand that the other cat doesn't want to play....in the meantime you might try seperating the 2 cats for maybe an hour or two a day just so the older cat doesn't get too annoyed.....

In time they will learn to live together....

PS Good luck to you and your kitties....