The kittens broke out in a knock-down, drag-out fight while I was doing the dishes. Oh it started harmlessly enough with the usual play-fighting, and then I noticed it progressed to Myu not wanting to play-fight anymore, which is when I start keeping an eye on things. First the growling started, then I noticed the ears getting laid back, and then hissing. They broke it up on their own after a few seconds, but then they’d just get right back to it. Finally, when the yowling started and I saw that Ronin had Myu pinned the the ground and was chewing on her leg, I jumped from the sink to the pile of kittens in one ninja-like move and snatched up Ronin with my soapy and wet hands. I hissed in his face and tossed him into the bathroom for a time-out. He was not amused.

The problem is he is at least a pound heavier than Myu, and he’s much larger and more aggressive. It also seems like Myu is a late-bloomer and is developing mentally and physically slower than he is. This is starting to cause problems, because she just doesn’t want to spend all day every day getting beat up on, and who would? He’s going to have to learn how to play-fight nicely, or the play-fighting is just going to have to stop. I guess that means I have to up my playtime with the kittens and wear them out more.

The funny thing is Ronin’s time-out didn’t last too long. Myu proceeded to sit by the bathroom door and whine loudly until I let him out again. See, they do love each other, but Ronin has zero impulse control and he just isn’t learning that when something hurts someone, be it kitten or human, you should stop doing it. We’ve tried to make that point with loud noises, but I guess we need to move on to nose-tapping and time-outs. I’m hoping when we take them to get them neutered next month Ronin will settle down just a little bit. No guarantee with that, though a little less testosterone in his system can only be a good thing at this point.

Just like any children, they can be a handful and a pain in the butt. I still love them to pieces. We are just going to have to find a solution for Ronin constantly harassing Myu. If physical behavior modification doesn’t work (I don’t hold out high hopes seeing as I have spent much of the day hissing at and nose-tapping Ronin to no avail), I might try that Feliway plugin with relaxing kitty hormones in it, and someone else suggested Rescue Remedy, a homeopathic treatment (though I do not put much faith in homeopathy). I knew he was going to be a problem child from the first week we had them. He’s still lovable, but damn we need to cut back his aggressive tendencies or Myu is going to be a miserable cat.