I have 2 male neutered cats. A few times they howled and seemed very upset when

1. 52

   Romeo and Silverposted 15 years ago

   I have 2 male neutered cats. A few times they howled and seemed very upset when they were inside the house, while a strange cat was outside the back door. Is it a territorial thing?

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2. 93

   melbelposted 14 years ago

   Yes. Male cats, even neutered ones, are very territorial. I've had two male, neutered cats who would freak out when another cat came to the door.

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3. 82

   hglickposted 14 years ago

   Yes,
   Cats, in general are territorial, and will definitely hiss, spit or howl If they see one of their own, hanging out near their pad.

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4. 62

   Kristal Wozniakposted 14 years ago

   Yes this is territorial behaviour. I have 2 cats, one male and one female and both act like this when there is another cat outside. Basically your boys are telling the other cat that 'this is our house, go away!' they fluff up their bodies to make themselves appear bigger and scarier, and the howling is to let the other cat know that they mean business and is basically a warning of 'don't mess with us!'

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5. 50

   rohan-noronhaposted 14 years ago

   Male cats usually have a specific territory mainly confined to their homes.They do not like any outsiders.

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6. 61

   James Appsposted 14 years ago

   A definite yes.  The neutering takes away the spraying to mark territory in most cases but does not eliminate the need to establish their own territory.  I think cats are mostly little lions and will tolerate other cats in the same household or pride but will naturally want to repel others.  The howling is a warning. Quite musical if you are tone deaf.  All cats are territorial.

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7. 60

   mistywildposted 14 years ago

   It's a very territorial thing, since they can no longer spray to mark their "territory" the next best thing is a vocal warning. I have the same thing happen with my inside/ouside cat, he will not let another cat, male or female onto our property. He makes it very clear this is HIS home.

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   MC's Momposted 14 years ago

   Absolutely, cats in general are territorial animals - regardless or gender (I have two spayed female cats who rival countless male cats I've had over the years in terms of how territorial they can be), your cats are simply trying to discourage the feline visitors. I would encourage you to attempt to make the area around your home less inviting to neighborhood cats because in some cases territorial disputes like this can end in a peeing contest literally, unfortunately it may mean that your kitties urinate or defecate outside of the litter box which would be bad news for them if you couldn't work with them to get past it. You can help to reduce the chances of your kitties developing behavioral issues like house soiling in response to territorial issues I'd suggest that you consider applying temporary or permanent privacy film to the windows where your kitties would most likely see an unwanted feline intruder - sometimes out of sight really is out of mind for cats.

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   S.Shieldsposted 14 years ago

   Yeah It is a territorial thing.. I have a lot of strange cats peeking in my windows and my male howls at them lol

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    PurpleMountainsposted 13 years ago

    I usually hear the outdoor cats calling to my cats, who are strictly indoor, in taunting howls.  But, my cats also howl for other reasons.  I noticed my female will howl if she is calling me to help her.  For example, when my male cat is bothering her for the cat tree position or wanting to clean her (which is actually another territorial act) to claim her, she howls for me.  She will actually get up and find me.  The whole time she howls until she finds me.  My male cat has tried to howl with my Rott.  That's new and wierd.  I'm not sure if the dog is howling to scare off the outdoor cats who are terrorizing my indoor cats; or, if the cat is howling to chime in with the dog just being a dog.

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11. 50

    leannecookieposted 13 years ago

    sounds like it. it most likely that they want to get out as having two male cats in a house can cause problems even when they are neutered as the terrioty isnt big enough. the best thing would be to let them out if u havent already

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