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- Dec 29, 2022
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We have 3 cats in our family: we've had Luna and Boo for 5 years (we were told they are from the same littter, we adopted when they were 1.5 years). We adopted Dobby 1 year and 2 months ago, she is 4 years old now. We tried introductions according to Jackson Galaxy's guide and kept them separate at the beginning. Boo accepted Dobby in a few weeks, and they can live peacefully around each other. Luna is a completely different story. It all started one day a few weeks after Dobby arrived in the house (at this point, I had done scent swapping and site swapping). The cats were separated by a pet gate, and Dobby started crying because she wanted to be on the side I was on. This triggered Luna, who darted towards the pet gate trying to attack Dobby. Luna is an anxious cat in general, and I think she confused Dobby's high-pitched crying with territorial noises.
It's been over a year since then, during which we tried to slowly introduce them. We've been making progress along the way, but it's been incredibly slow. Feeding through a slightly open door didn't work, so we moved to a screen door. We got them to eat on the other sides of a screen door, and Luna then looking at Dobby and walking away. After this stage when trying to get them in the same room there was a fight. We changed to feeding them through an initially covered and then uncovered baby gate. We made progress this way, to the point where Luna eats and then stays in the same room for a while - a few minutes at first, then up to 1.5h. We tried to keep her entertained, either through play, treats, or watching her youtube birds channel. She always still checks to see what Dobby is doing on the other side of the room, and she gets anxious if Dobby is not in sight. This is only if separated by the gate. If she ever sees Dobby outside of this routine, she charges at her and tries to attack. There have been fights along the way, a few times when we accidentally let them meet. The 2 of them are fully separated at this point.
Rehoming is not an option - Dobby has been abandoned by her previous families, and we won't be the next ones to break her heart. It would also devastate us.
I am just looking for any success stories you lovely people might have with long-term introductions, for a bit of hope. It's been super stressful to keep them separated at all times like this. And of course, any advice is appreciated.
It's been over a year since then, during which we tried to slowly introduce them. We've been making progress along the way, but it's been incredibly slow. Feeding through a slightly open door didn't work, so we moved to a screen door. We got them to eat on the other sides of a screen door, and Luna then looking at Dobby and walking away. After this stage when trying to get them in the same room there was a fight. We changed to feeding them through an initially covered and then uncovered baby gate. We made progress this way, to the point where Luna eats and then stays in the same room for a while - a few minutes at first, then up to 1.5h. We tried to keep her entertained, either through play, treats, or watching her youtube birds channel. She always still checks to see what Dobby is doing on the other side of the room, and she gets anxious if Dobby is not in sight. This is only if separated by the gate. If she ever sees Dobby outside of this routine, she charges at her and tries to attack. There have been fights along the way, a few times when we accidentally let them meet. The 2 of them are fully separated at this point.
Rehoming is not an option - Dobby has been abandoned by her previous families, and we won't be the next ones to break her heart. It would also devastate us.
I am just looking for any success stories you lovely people might have with long-term introductions, for a bit of hope. It's been super stressful to keep them separated at all times like this. And of course, any advice is appreciated.