Are my cats BOXING?

I recently adopted a lynx point Siamese mix, male, 15 lbs, neutered, three and a half years old, named Oscar. I have been fostering my daughter's two cats, Michi, 3 years old, Siamese mix, six lbs, female spayed and Bacchus, DSH, male, neutered, 9 years old, 22 lbs. Bacchus and Michi have been with me for four months and have gotten very attached to me, expecially Bacchus.

This morning the two males started dancing around each other, tails switching rapidly. They didn't growl or hiss. They were totally intent on each other. Every once in a while one would reach out and bat at the other. When they connected, it looked as if they were really hitting each hard. Fortunately, both are declawed. Then they both sat up on their haunches and started BOXING!

They stopped boxing and started the whole dance all over again twice and then Oscar just stopped and left. As he walked away, he kept turning his head to look over his shoulder at Bacchus.

What were they DOING? Does this mean that I can't get another male cat when Bachhus and Michi go home to my daughter in two weeks? I wanted to get Oscar a playmate, but I don't know if Oscar was actually having a problem with Bacchus or if they were playing. It was so strange, I've never seen cats act that way.

I'm confused...

 

max and mikey box...mikey actually slaps max alot. i can hear it. konks him on the ole noggin...konk konk!! (i can see why, since max can be very intrusive sometimes) but its just playing rough. they are both boys. i never worry about it, but that is because they are so loving toward each other...they have never hissed or growled. sometimes they make loud noises when they are playing rough...but each of them defers to the other...neither one really gets agressive. i just consider it rough play. think about it in terms of boys wrestling and knocking each other down. :roll:

are they growling? max and mikey twitch their tails too... :m29:

 

:m23: and welcome. All my cats love to "box" every now and then. Monty and Rene, Rene and Milo, Milo and Monty. You get the point. Pumpkin is the only grouch that doesn't like to box play. She hisses when someone trys to box her and she runs away. It's all part of normal play. It's good exercise too, the chase and box. LOL's. You'll know it's too rough if you start to see biting and fur clumps on the floor. Then it's time to break up the fight. Overall, all my kitties are good buddies. Love to see pics of your furbabies if you have any! [-o<

 

Pudcat and Fudgie do this too. They square up to each other, staring intently, swishing their tails. Fudgie normally has a paw in the air as well so he can ward of a lunge from Pudcat. Then sometimes one of them leaps and they roll over together trying to give each other a few nips, and sometimes Pudcat will walk away. If Fudgie tries to walk away Pudcat always chases him.

I find it hard to know who is Top Cat. From this behaviour it seems like Pudcat is, but Fudgie always eats first. I think they're equals of a sort
I know they do wrestle a lot and like Lynn's M+M's they don't growl and Fudgie only hisses now and again (but then Fudgie hisses if his toy mouse 'escapes'!) They seem to be having fun together so I let them be unless it seems like one of them is being a bit too rough, or I'm trying to get to sleep and their fighting on my feet :roll:

If Oscar is okay with Michi, perhaps you could get a spayed female as a playmate.

 

My cats, Hunter and Anna..."fight" with each other a lot. Mostly in the morning time. Anna is 14 years old and Hunter is 1....Anna never had other cats around her and Hunter is rather rambuncious. Anna is a Huge cat (lost weight since getting Hunter)....
But Hunter will taunt her....squaring up to her making himself look "big"...Anna growls at him, and then he paws at her head....tap, tap,...then it's on...
Anna usually takes him to the ground...he runs away....and then it starts all over again.
Never any blood, clumps of hair, or loud yells like one of them is in pain so...I don't worry about it.

It's my understanding that that is what cats do :roll:

 

I read somewhere that when cats are playing together they won't make any noise - when they start hissing, growling, spitting the play is over. But they tend to be silent when horsing around. Sounds like they were having fun

 

Raz and Lex play alot like this... only modified where Raz is so small compared to fatty Lex.

i've seen Lex catch a pouncing Raz in mid air with one arm, and body slam him to the floor. :shock:

Raz would just jump sideways tail and back staight then go again lol it's too funny.

when lex gets carried away he'll make Raz cry.. thats when i put them on time outs to cool off boys will be boys. :mrgreen:

 

Footsie actually does that to me! He'll get on his haunches and bat at my knee. I likes to do it when I'm brushing my teeth and such. I always assumed he was trying to get my attention.

 

omg..my res cat Jazzy who is 5 spends her whole day (when she is not sleeping) chasing after Caesar and Romeo just to whack em on the heads and then run off....its kinda like they are playing tag..first time i saw it i thought she was hurting them..but come to find out she isnt using her claws...running around boppin them on the heads..lmao..

 

my dog abby will start with buster. she'll growl and put her paw in front of his face then he'll wack her and she'll run into anouther room and run back and do it all over again. if you get in her way whe goes after your ankels. shadow will start with buster, but i think its because she doesn't like him, because it gets really violant.