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- Nov 18, 2018
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Hello! Long time lurker, first time poster.
Some background: we were a two cat household before our kitty, Bruce, passed at the end of August. He and Logan, our remaining cat, were happy housemates but not especially affectionate towards each other, but they'd sometimes play and would certainly provide company to each other when we were away. Logan seemed okay for awhile after Bruce's passing, but as time goes by he seems to be getting more and more lonely. He's 11 and as far as we're aware he's never been an "only" so we think he'd appreciate another feline companion around.
Our local shelter is trying out a new program to "foster a friend for the holidays" where you give a cat a home and some love for the week of Thanksgiving and bring them back the following Saturday. I was curious, so I went to the shelter and found two adult cats who I think would be a good fit as a companion for Logan (and us). It's tempting to bring them home for the week to see their real personalities, but let's be real. I'll fall in love and there's no way they'll go back at the end of the week. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but hubby and I will be overseas on vacation for a week starting Dec 5.
I sort of see this from two perspectives. On one hand, I don't want to leave Logan alone for a week if he's already feeling lonely. This will be our first long trip since Bruce passed. We have a friend who'll come and check on Logan after work every day, but otherwise the house will be empty. The other option would be to bring home a new family member now and spend the next two weeks doing introductions before we leave.
When we introduced Logan to Bruce it only took a few days before they were roaming the house together, so there's precedent for Logan getting used to a new cat relatively quickly. Of course, that was 7 years ago, and doesn't take into account the personality of a new cat (though both potential additions have lived with others before which is a good sign). In your experience, is a proper introduction like doable in two weeks? Or is this folly and we should wait until after we return? Would it be better to have two semi-introduced cats in the house separated by baby gates if they're not fully comfortable by the time we leave, or have Logan wait out our vacation by himself?
Thanks for your input!
Some background: we were a two cat household before our kitty, Bruce, passed at the end of August. He and Logan, our remaining cat, were happy housemates but not especially affectionate towards each other, but they'd sometimes play and would certainly provide company to each other when we were away. Logan seemed okay for awhile after Bruce's passing, but as time goes by he seems to be getting more and more lonely. He's 11 and as far as we're aware he's never been an "only" so we think he'd appreciate another feline companion around.
Our local shelter is trying out a new program to "foster a friend for the holidays" where you give a cat a home and some love for the week of Thanksgiving and bring them back the following Saturday. I was curious, so I went to the shelter and found two adult cats who I think would be a good fit as a companion for Logan (and us). It's tempting to bring them home for the week to see their real personalities, but let's be real. I'll fall in love and there's no way they'll go back at the end of the week. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but hubby and I will be overseas on vacation for a week starting Dec 5.
I sort of see this from two perspectives. On one hand, I don't want to leave Logan alone for a week if he's already feeling lonely. This will be our first long trip since Bruce passed. We have a friend who'll come and check on Logan after work every day, but otherwise the house will be empty. The other option would be to bring home a new family member now and spend the next two weeks doing introductions before we leave.
When we introduced Logan to Bruce it only took a few days before they were roaming the house together, so there's precedent for Logan getting used to a new cat relatively quickly. Of course, that was 7 years ago, and doesn't take into account the personality of a new cat (though both potential additions have lived with others before which is a good sign). In your experience, is a proper introduction like doable in two weeks? Or is this folly and we should wait until after we return? Would it be better to have two semi-introduced cats in the house separated by baby gates if they're not fully comfortable by the time we leave, or have Logan wait out our vacation by himself?
Thanks for your input!