Adopting Adult Cat Into Home With 2 Kittens?

[Plumeria]

Hello everyone,

I lost my beloved 9 year old cat, Leroy, to cancer last month. He entered my life just 12 days after I moved to Philadelphia from Japan 6 years ago, and was the focal point of my life. Since I lost him, the boyfriend and I “adopted” 2 kittens that are now 3 months old. I say “adopted” because 1 is a ragdoll that the boyfriend purchased from a breeder. The other is a black DSH that we did adopt. The kittens are wonderful, inseparable, and I love them, but, I really wanted a mature adult cat at least 2 years of age that I could connect with and form a deep bond with. The boyfriend grew up with dogs and wanted a pet that he could play with, which is how we ended up with kittens. Now, do you guys think it would be ok for me to adopt a 3rd cat that is an adult? Do you think all the cats would be able to get along or coexist cordially?

I went to the shelter and found 3 cats that I liked:

- A quiet (likely nervous, traumatized) 7 year old female surrendered due to the owner’s death.

- A friendly 10 year old female returned to the shelter due to inappropriate urination around the house. Paperwork said the owner cleaned the litter only 2x a week. Maybe that’s why. I clean my boxes multiple times a day. Gets along with other cats.

- A 1 year old stray mama cat surrendered with her kittens. Ragged and dirty looking, tiny at only 4.5lbs. Was defensive and swatted at the officer during intake, but was very friendly with me and appears to have settled down. I’ve found former strays to me maturer than their years so her age is not an issue.

Any opinions or advice is welcome.

 

[rubysmama]

Condolences on the loss of Leroy. RIP sweet boy.

And congrats on the adoption of your 2 kittens.

Can you post pics of them?
How To Add A Picture To Your Forum Post

My family, and now myself, only ever had one cat at a time, so I have no experience with multi-cat households. Therefore, I am probably not the right person to offer advice, but you did ask for "any opinions" and IMO I would leave things as they are. And though the ones you've described definitely need a loving person to take them home, I'd be so afraid that the adult cat might not get along with the kittens, and result in aggressive behaviour and/or litter box issues.

That's just my opinion, of course. Hopefully other members, who have had more than one cat at time, will reply with their opinions too.

And, BTW, your kittens are only 21 months away from hitting that 2 year mark.

 

[ArtNJ]

Older cats (two years of age being a loose benchmark) often have trouble with kittens. Shockingly, they seem scared of the little balls of fluff. They don't hurt the kittens, but their anxiety and stress is often very very real and can sometimes cause lasting stress in the household. So right away I'd rule out the first cat if you have a real reason to believe its "likely nervous, traumatized" and also rule out the second cat, since if the kittens make her nervous, the problem with inappropriate urination could become very hard to get a handle on. The third cat is under two, and would likely have the best shot at adjusting. However, with her background apparently including difficulty...well, you never know. The ideal match would be a cat under two that is active, healthy and well adjusted ... and she isn't quite that. Its a bit of a risk, but the best shot of the three.

 

[NewYork1303]

Out of those three, I'd pick the mama cat. She's more likely to tolerate kittens than either of the older cats. Senior kitties are very unlikely to get along well with two young kittens, especially when adjusting to a new home.

 

[Plumeria]

Thank you everyone. I will take your advice and hold off on adopting an adult cat at this time.