We’ve had two barn cats, a male and a female (neutered and spayed) for several years now, who I believe showed up from a feral cat fix and release program. They get along fine and stay close to the barn. Recently, another male (neutered) turned up, who I think must have been a resident at a nearby barn that sadly burned down. He was a bit timid at first, but once he felt secure, he began to chase the other male cat out of the barn. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to encourage peaceful existence? Thank you!
Just like with horses, you can’t really engineer their herd hierarchy, you just make sure that the lower-ranked members have a safe place. If you otherwise don’t mind keeping him around, I would create another cat haven-- do you have any other outbuildings? Garage? Give them very separate feeding and sleeping spots, especially in winter. ( have insulated/heated nooks in 4 different outbuildings so everyone can find a place.
Or trap the new cat and bring to the shelter. Or if you are comfortable doing so, dispatch him yourself–we’ve done that on occasion if an aggressive, feral cat shows up that mounts a sustained* campaign to chase off our own cherished barn cats, who have earned their place at our farm and are affectionate with us. (*allowing for an initial period of instability while the hierarchy shakes out). I’d do the same for a raccoon or other animal that threatens my animals, I see no difference between them and a feral cat.
You have to protect your resident cat. Trap the bully and try to re-home it but youyr obligation is to your own cats.
Thanks for the responses. I’m hoping that they can come to a peaceful coexistence soon. The bully hasn’t been physical with our guy, but just chases him. I’ll try the separate cat haven. I already feed in separate areas of the barn. Rehoming the new guy will be the last resort.
I have managed to have my barn cat and the ferals co-exist okay, with some trial and error along the way. Mama cat, who has been around the longest and gave me my barn cat (as a kitten), really dislikes my Riley for some reason. Riley is very submissive and wasn’t coming in to eat anymore, so I slowly moved the ferals food through the pature out back to my tractor shed. It worked thankfully and we have been co-existing now for several years. Mama still doesn’t like Riley, but Riley is a bit more this is my place so just leave me alone if they do see each other. The tractor shed is made up for them as well - beds for winter, and they can get out of the weather, etc.
Mama never attacked Riley either, just chased her and made her uncomfortable to come in. Giving them lots of space from each other really helped - when they were fed in different parts of the barn, that didn’t work. The physical space and making the tractor shed more inviting really helped in my case.
Good luck, hopefully you can find a situation that will work to keep peace and make them all happy.
Perhaps our female sensed that I was at the end of my wits with this situation. She has always tolerated our male, but clearly has had the upper hand (paw?) in that relationship. Well, since yesterday, she’s been running interference between him and the new guy, who seems to be keeping his distance. I’m feeding her and our guy in the tack room while I"m there, and the new guy in the back of the barn. So far, so good! Thanks for all the suggestions!
