Question about my cats fighting.

Factual Questions
1

I have two cats I took in almost a year ago that were abandoned by thier previous owner when she moved out of the building. When they first started staying with me, they chased each other around and wrestled all the time, quite clearly playing.

I haven’t seen them do this in a while. Recently I’ve noticed the male (Tom) chasing the female (Jeri) and either trying to play with her or attacking her. Jeri will run from him, and when cornered will growl and occasionally hiss at him. When Tom’s doing this, his tail twitches like an agitated cat, but neither of them scream like they’re actually fighting. I’ve also noticed that Jeri will sometimes get up and run from Tom when he wanders close to her, no matter what he’s doing. Tom will eventually stop, or will stop when I get up and yell at him (I don’t yell, I just hold him down on the ground from above and repeat No in a firm voice).

I’ve had them for almost a year now, and Jeri has never gone into heat, and has never displayed any signs of it. Both of them have been outdoor cats, but Jeri hasn’t been outside in months and doesn’t seem to care anymore, and Tom has been kept inside for more than a week (since I found out I was moving to another city soon). I know that in the past when Tom has been kept inside too long, he starts acting out, but this seems to happen regardless of whether he’s been out or not. I don’t know their ages, but I would guess that Jeri is older than Tom, and neither of them are kittens.

Has anyone seen this before? Does anyone know if this is bad, or if it’s just how cats behave? Is this a buildup to Tom attacking her for real, or is he just playing? Is it something I need to ask the vet about?

2

Probably. You seem unsure about the female’s reproductive status. Is the male castrated? Is the female spayed? If “no” to either, that needs taken care of. Normal cat play can be rough. Looking at their body language can help differentiate play from true fighting. As a last resort, there are medications that are very helpful, Feliway (a pheromone) being one.

3

I don’t know if either has been spayed or neutered, but like I said, the female hasn’t gone into heat for a year, and the male has never done anything sexual to her (that I’ve seen anyway).

They look like they’re playing, but Jeri hisses and growls at Tom, and doesn’t seem to be playing, just running from him and fighting back when he corners her. It’s not pleasant to be woken up by a cat giving a warning growl just under your bed.

4

My oldest cat started acting like that a while back. I’m pretty sure that she was just getting old & tired and didn’t want to play so much any more … We ended up getting a new kitten, now the two younger cats tussle all the time & grandma cat happily watches from a safe vantage point on top of something tall. (Maybe not a reasonable solution for you, or not until after your move …)