I have 2 cats; one is young (8 months) and the other is 1.5 years old. During play, the older cat always takes the role of the chaser and the younger cat always runs away. I had read somewhere that during play, cats should switch off who is chasing and who is being chased. The younger cat provokes the older cat into chasing her by batting at him when he is close and generally being a provoking younger sibling.
The issue that arises is that after the chase has concluded, the older cat puts the younger cat in the equivalent of a chokehold, which often results in the younger cat resorting to hissing at the older cat, indicating that the older cat has taken it a step too far.
My question is, is this type of behavior normal? Does the older cat normally take the role of the aggressor constantly and always chase the younger cat, or is this some type of dominance play?