If you're a responsible pet parent who has neutered your male cat or cats, it might alarm you to catch your cat attempting to mount another cat. Rest assured, you're not alone; neutered male cats sometimes act out humping or mounting behavior on other kitties, including other male cats. Here are the main reasons why your neutered cat might be acting this way and what you can do to make it stop.

Domination

Cats don't always get along with each other, even if they come from the same litter. While cats will typically act out their frustration at other felines by fighting or yowling at each other, or even marking their territory by spraying, some cats will look to mounting to show their dominance.

In this instance, mounting has nothing to do with mating, and neutered males may do it to other males. Rather than attempting to mate, your cat is instead showing how powerful it is to the other cat in an attempt to prove itself as the alpha cat of your household. Your cat is essentially holding the other kitty down to prove its superiority. In this instance, there is no attempt at penetration, and the act may re-occur any time the so-called alpha cat feels threatened.

Mating Behavior

While neutered cats cannot procreate, they can still be affected by the presence of a cat in heat. If one of your female cats is currently in heat or an outdoor feral is, the pheromones that cat is currently releasing may be triggering your neutered male. In this instance, your neutered male cat may attempt to mate with the cat in heat, or it may try to act out the mating behavior on any cat it can get a hold of.

Rest assured that if your cat is trying to mate and has been neutered, he will not get your other cat pregnant. However, if you do have a female cat in heat, he may be able to mate with her nonetheless. This can be a painful and stressful experience for your female cat to have, so try to keep your cats separated if your female cat is in heat.

Prevention/Treatment

Depending on whether your cat is acting this way to dominate others or in an attempt to mate, there are two possible solutions.

If your cat is trying to dominate another cat, you need to find a way to get the two to feel comfortable around each other. Try using pheromone collars or room sprays to help your kitties feel at ease. You should also play with both of your cats regularly in order to tire them out and get them to cooperate in a fun activity together. This should help your cats to get along better and be more willing to play together, rather than trying to beat each other up.

If your cat is trying to mate with another kitty, your best course of action is to get the female fixed. If the female cat that's in heat is a stray, try setting up a cat trap in order to take it to a veterinarian, such as Jesup Veterinary Clinic, to be spayed. You can also set up cat repellants to keep the female cat away from your home, which should help to reduce its influence on your neutered male.

Seeing your cat hump another kitty can be a shocking sight, especially if you've gone to the trouble of having your cat neutered. Follow these steps and visit your veterinarian to help reduce the likelihood of your cat exhibiting this behavior in the future.