Not that this answers your question, but it's just another reason why people should be responsible enough to keep their pets-- ALL pets, not just dogs-- on their own property.

Hey, is there any chance that you're paigect's neighbor?? Heeheehee...

Anyway, now for some actual advice: Is there any chance you could trap him? You could contact your local Humane Society and have them loan you some "have-a-heart" traps; they might even come and set them up for you. I would also report this incident to whatever authority handles this in your area (police, animal control, whomever)-- there is a possibility that this "bully cat" could be carrying any variety of diseases for which you and your pets-- and your naighbors and their pets-- could be at risk.

In the meantime, make sure your cat is UTD on all his shots/vaccinations (which you're probably already done, since your vet treated your kitty twice from injuries from thei other cat), and I wouldn't let him out AT ALL unless he's directly supervised by you, or enclosed in some sort of space where the other cat can't get to him. (Someone posted in another thread about a chicken-wire enclosure that sounded like a great idea. Not that this would prevent fighting through the fence, but it would at least reduce the chance of serious injury.)

Along these lines I had a strange encounter last week. My indoor cat was meowing in the front room, so I wnet to the glass door to see what was the matter. I saw one of the low-key "free-range" cats who lives across the street but hangs out all over the neighborhood. I rapped on the glass to shoo him off the porch.

He ran to the steps, but then turned back to look at the corner. I rapped on the glass again, and out of the corner burst one of the really mean free-range cats. (We all call her Screamin' Mimi!) She ran to the door, stood up on her hind legs and began hissing and spitting at me. I knocked again on the glass, and she went ballistic, began climbing thru the screen door to get at me.

I was past startled -- if I hadn't had the door shut, I think she would have shredded my legs!

Several years ago, I made my cats "indoor only" pets, because of this & other hazards out there:
dogs
kids
autos
anti-freeze
coyotes
deliberate poison
neighbors who might trap them (& take them where???)
other cats who are *not* bullies but who might have feline leukemia, FIV (feline AIDS), FIP, who knows what.

I'm curious what can be done about this, too. If keeping your cats indoors is not an option, what do you do when a bully cat moves in? Many years ago, a cat like that moved into our neighborhood and kept beating up my cat. I spoke to the owner, and he told me, "I'll talk to my cat about it. I'm sure I can reason with him." Of course, he did nothing. My sweet kitty had a torn ear for the rest of her life.

I would freak out if someone trapped my cat, though! But if I found out my cat was bullying others, I'd get advise from my vet. I think there are drugs available that can calm down agressive cats.

Cheers, from
SwampWitch

I'd bet my bottom dollar the "bully" cat is a tom. Un-neutered male cats (well, females, too!) are fiercely territorial. They spray to mark territory and will take on any other cat perceived as a threat to their breeding rites.

I've always let my cats outdoors and I've always neutered them! Even in areas where there were intact males my neutered males were unscathed. They presented no threat.

If you really make an effort to understand the behavior of cats the neutered ones are really "non-issues". Once the sex drive is removed they interact with each other quite amiably, though the "posturing" is quite common initially.

joyce, next time that cat is around spray it with a garden hose on a strong (but not harmful) setting. Do that a couple of times and he is less likely to come to your yard.

But what if the cat owner who allows the cat to roam into your yard objects to your spraying the cat?

I'm just following a thought here. I'm not saying Joyce shouldn't. It is hard to follow what the proper etiquitte is when people allow their cats to roam.

My suggestion to keep your cat safe is to keep your cat indoors for all of the above reasons given and more..

My mother used to throw a pitcher of water at the cats if our cat we fighting with another on our property. It isn't going to kill them or even injure them and sure does break up a fight fast!

I am no longer concerned with "proper etiquette" where loose, roaming cats are concerned. I have spoken with all of my neighbors who let their cats roam into my yard and they know that I do not want their cats a) crapping in my garden, b)fighting my own indoor cats through my windows and C) killing birds in my backyard. I spray them with whatever's at hand... water, peppermint soap plant spray and yes, pepper spray that one uses to ward off bad guys. It's amusing to see how many cat owners of outdoor cats feel they have any right to complain about the things that happen to fluffy while he or she is outside.

I can't believe this thread. Now we are on, it's ok for me to let my cat roam, but the lady down the street has a mean cat that I don't want around! She should controll her roaming cat, and how do I keep my roaming cats safe from the mean roaming cat? PLEASE! YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!

Please don't spray cats with pepper.

It isn't necessary, since a big dose of water will serve just as well, it's excruciatingly painful, & it could result in injury or blindness.

and it isn't the cat's fault, it's the owner's fault.

My experience is that an intact tom will attack other cats, neutered or not, to expand his own territory.

Years ago, an intact tom, whose owner I could not locate, came around, off & on, for months.

I knew that he either had a home or at least another "watering hole" where some kindhearted person fed him, because he was in good shape, not under-nourished, etc.

When he arrived one day nearly dead from an abcessed wound (probably a catfight injury), I got my vet to lance & drain the injury &, since he was anesthetized already, neuter him.

He stayed around for several days before he returned to his old habit of merely checking in every so often.

But his visits became less frequent, & now I haven't seen him for a long time.

The last time I saw him, he was decidedly sleeker, shinier, & a little heavier.

My guess, my hope, is that when he checked in at his other home, the people there were horrified to discover his injury, & they took him in to protect him from the "owner" who had allowed him to get hurt!

Yes, don't blame the cat. It's the owners fault. I'm on the fence about inside/outside and think there are two sides. But, I live in the country on five acres, don't own a cat and don't want one. But I grew up with a beloved cat that was inside/outside in a spacious subdivision. She lived to seventeen and as none of the neighbors ever complained, ever, I think it was fine.

"I can't believe this thread. Now we are on, it's ok for me to let my cat roam, but the lady down the street has a mean cat that I don't want around! She should controll her roaming cat, and how do I keep my roaming cats safe from the mean roaming cat? PLEASE! YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!"

lisa11310, that is priceless!

Please don't spray cats with pepper.
It isn't necessary, since a big dose of water will serve just as well, it's excruciatingly painful, & it could result in injury or blindness.

and it isn't the cat's fault, it's the owner's fault.

I do understand that it's the owner's fault. I have seen many suggestions to turn the garden hose on interloping cats to keep them from returning and frankly, I don't know what planet these folks live on because this does NOT work for me! Incidentally, pepper flakes scattered about do not work, nor do citronella sprays or markers that one may attach to plants and shrubs. Sonic cat repellants are useless as well. I have been living with this problem for four years now and have pleaded with the neighbors to keep their cats indoors or tethered in their yard. They know that their cats fight my cats through the windows at four a:m, they know their cats kill birds at my feeder and they know that I am very unhappy. They don't care. If you knew what it's like to wake up in the wee hours from a deep sleep to hear a cat fight taking place in your own bedroom window...all summer long...you'd understand why I reach for the pepper spray. The cat that got zapped actually DID stay away for a good, long time after the pepper spray...so, it seems to be the most effective weapon in my arsenal at this point. I will put away the pepper spray when my neighbors begin to take responsibility for their animals.

Ever since I let 3 prey driven greyhounds out the kitchen door, the yard has been amazingly cat free. (*)

(*) I did not know there was a free range cat in my yard, or I would have sent him away first. Scared the daylights out of me. I do not want to see any kitty get hurt! But that's one of the risks cat owners take when they let their cats roam free. size>

If the bossy tom cat goes away, I guarantee that another will take it's place. I'm sorry, but there is nothing you can do to control the wild, you can only control your own pets.

"But what if the cat owner who allows the cat to roam into your yard objects to your spraying the cat?"
Oh man....I am ROTF laughing at that one! Really,WHO CARES?Obviously the owner of the cat doesn't care enough to keep it inside or confined to their property in some way,and a little water is not going to kill the cat.I can think of a lot worse things I would consider or that someone not quite as nice as me might do,AND they would be perfectly within their legal right to do so if the animal is on their property! Good lord people,this is CATS we are talking about,not someones KID! Get one of those power attachments that you use to wash cars with and set it on a fine spray and use it! I'll bet Mr. Roamin' Cat will think twice before coming in your yard again.It works and I've never known a cat to melt in water! Cynthia has a good idea too!LOL
Junebug-I feel for you.If all else has failed for you I don't blame you for resorting to the arsenal.Sometimes there is just no other way.If the owners don't care about them anyway then they won't miss them,or will just replace them with more roaming cats.It's a never ending viscious circle,huh?
Oh,and about the pepper spray(someone said not to use it cause it could cause injury to the cat),if it can be used on humans with no permanent injury,why would it be dangerous to cats?
I keep hearing that it isn't the cat's fault,it's the owner's fault and I'm really tired of that scenario.I guess the cat's just need to have a heart to heart talk with their owners! Yeah,that makes about as much sense as not doing anything about the problem because it isn't the cat's fault!

I am not a cat owner. I have dogs. I have argued with my mom for years about this issue because she lets her cats roam. I think that there is a simple solution to this problem. Contact the humane society for some live traps whether you know the owner or not. When they come and pick up the cat, the owner will have to PAY to get it back. If that happens a few times, I am sure that they will learn via their pocketbook to keep their cats contained, either inside or on a leash. It doesn't hurt the cat, but the owner will get the message.