Another kitten to cat introduction question

[CatHarbor]

Hi there!

I adopted an 8 week old male neutered kitten (Fernando) about 10 days ago. I followed the Jackson Galaxy method and kept the two cats separate and fed them on opposite sides of the door. Candidly we fumbled a bit on the way - our resident cat (Susan, 3 YO spayed female) was really worked up and was scratching and meowing at the door once she realized someone new was in the house. In an attempt to ease her concerns, we gave her a visual through a gate we put up. Everything appeared to be fine and we decided to see what would happen if we let her smell him. So, we let them have there first face-to-face introduction on day 2. Our resident cat Susan chased the kitten underneath the bed, the kitten popped out unscathed.

From this moment we decided to go back to the gate. At first our resident cat was crouching, eyes dilated, staring at the cat. But once we played on either sides of the gate, we feed them their meals, and have since had 3 more face-to-face introductions that each lasted a few minutes. The first went well, and we ended it on a high note - Susan just watched the kitten play. The second interaction Susan got fired up and went behind a bannister and started swatting at him in what I saw as an aggressive way. The final interaction Susan would chase him around a bit - they would each jump on a chair or beneath it and then Susan's tail puffed up and she swatted. Normally the kitten would submit but now he is doing a little crab walk and seemingly getting big?

After these interactions we decided to take it back a notch and now they are back to the gate. We feed them meals on each side pretty close to the gate - Susan is sometimes hesitant but eventually relents and eats near him. Now Susan has taken to running over to the gate and pawing through it to hit Fernando. It feels aggressive but candidly I can't remember if her ears were back but her eyes do look dilated. My question is - is this ok? Is this her asserting her dominance over him? Or is this seen as a negative interaction and I need to take a few steps back?

Thank you for reading - all of these posts have been so helpful for me!

 

[ArtNJ]

They are playing, your fine. Let them be. Sometimes its just that easy with a reasonably young resident cat.

You can put a video up somewhere and link it here if you want more confidence in the recommendation. But they are playing.

How do I know? Well the biggest clue is that the kitten was crab walking. That means the kitten was trying to initiate play. They don't do that if they are are scared. Even if the kitten squeals and runs away, if it comes back in a few minutes and acts like nothing happened or especially if it tries to intiate play, thats a clear sign that the big cat was just a tad too rough, but the kitten doesn't view it as a serious issue. And you can trust the kitten's judgment.

No hissing or growling from the older cat is also a clear sign.

 

[Falena]

I agree with ArtNJ, I've just introduced a new kitten to my older resident kitten (4mth and 8mnt old) and although a smaller age gap, the interaction itself sounds similar! There was a lot of swatting, even biting and rolling with each other and although it looked rough, the two of them have quickly become best of friends. They now snuggle up and sleep together but still play this way
As long as no one gets hurt, they're just playing albeit rough to our eyes!
Perhaps with an 8 week old you might have to keep a closer eye and clap or make a louder sound to get the older cat to ease off a little because he's so small. But otherwise it sounds pretty normal to me (:

 

[CatHarbor]

Thank you so much for your quick replies / guidance. It is incredibly comforting to know that the kitten is doing ok!

Susan (older cat) is still exhibiting some hissing and growling on the other side of the gate and sometimes stalks then lunges at the gate to paw at Fernando. After, she usually struts away then comes back for more. At this point, I never know if I should just let them have their time on either side of the gate or if I should end the interaction.

I will absolutely take a video later on to share so you can see!

Thanks again,

 

[BoaztheAdventureCat]

Hi there!

I adopted an 8 week old male neutered kitten (Fernando) about 10 days ago. I followed the Jackson Galaxy method and kept the two cats separate and fed them on opposite sides of the door. Candidly we fumbled a bit on the way - our resident cat (Susan, 3 YO spayed female) was really worked up and was scratching and meowing at the door once she realized someone new was in the house. In an attempt to ease her concerns, we gave her a visual through a gate we put up. Everything appeared to be fine and we decided to see what would happen if we let her smell him. So, we let them have there first face-to-face introduction on day 2. Our resident cat Susan chased the kitten underneath the bed, the kitten popped out unscathed.

From this moment we decided to go back to the gate. At first our resident cat was crouching, eyes dilated, staring at the cat. But once we played on either sides of the gate, we feed them their meals, and have since had 3 more face-to-face introductions that each lasted a few minutes. The first went well, and we ended it on a high note - Susan just watched the kitten play. The second interaction Susan got fired up and went behind a bannister and started swatting at him in what I saw as an aggressive way. The final interaction Susan would chase him around a bit - they would each jump on a chair or beneath it and then Susan's tail puffed up and she swatted. Normally the kitten would submit but now he is doing a little crab walk and seemingly getting big?

After these interactions we decided to take it back a notch and now they are back to the gate. We feed them meals on each side pretty close to the gate - Susan is sometimes hesitant but eventually relents and eats near him. Now Susan has taken to running over to the gate and pawing through it to hit Fernando. It feels aggressive but candidly I can't remember if her ears were back but her eyes do look dilated. My question is - is this ok? Is this her asserting her dominance over him? Or is this seen as a negative interaction and I need to take a few steps back?

Thank you for reading - all of these posts have been so helpful for me!

First impressions are SUPER important! The combination of you rushing through the introduction and adopting a kitten that was taken from his mom and litter mates way too early (younger than 12 weeks of age) is, in my opinion, a recipe for disaster.

My kitten was taken from his mom and litter mates way too early and he struggles with social awkwardness around our other cats to this day because he never learned during that critical 0-12 week window how to behave properly with other cats. My cat Boaz is one of many examples of cats who struggle to get along with other cats because they never learned how to interact with them appropriately at a young age.

Even when the kitten turns 12 weeks old, he still needs to have a kitten buddy to go home with him so that they can continue to learn from each other how to behave properly when mom and the other siblings are no longer there.

My Dad's senior cat Pretty Kitty used to go after my kitten Boaz like how Susan is doing to your kitten now. Pretty Kitty was irritated by the kitten's high energy and playfulness and she had to discipline him a lot. For the sake of safety, though, we wouldn't leave them together for long periods because Pretty Kitty was VERY hostile in the beginning. Her wariness and hostility dwindled dramatically when my Dad and my brother brought their kittens home so Boaz could have other cats to play with closer to his age.

I suggest you consider adding another kitten to the family. Let me know what you decide!

 

[CatHarbor]

Hi there,

Here are a few short videos to show some of the behavior.

• Video 1
• Video 2
• Video 3
• Video 4

One interesting piece of context. Before I took these videos, Susan went up to Fernando's base camp room and hissed beneath the door. But after watching these over a few times, they actually don't seem very aggressive and more playful. What do you think?

 

[Falena]

I'm absolutely not even close to being an expert, having only owned the two current cats I have for a long time, so take my observation with a pinch of salt. But those videos look very playful/intrigued to me! I think the banging from the gate make Susan's swipes seem harder than they actually are maybe? I know in the moment there's nerves playing a role too that make us feel particularly sensitive. I was also a nervous wreck doing my recent introduction and my big kitty Akila was certainly giving the new guy some pretty hard bops on the head at first, no claws but it seemed aggressive in the moment.
Little Fernando would be sure to let Susan (and you) know if he were uncomfortable or frightened by avoiding her I believe.
And in my short experience, the bigger cat/kitten does appear to be hunting the new guy at first, but that's how they engage in play and establish a hierarchy of sorts, I think she's very unlikely to actually hurt him with him being so young.
But I'd definitely wait on someone with more experience to chime in

 

[ArtNJ]

If there is still hissing and growling at the gate, thats exactly what the gate is supposed to deal with. It lets the cat hiss and growl, and see that nothing bad happens, and get over it. So heck no, no need to limit the gate time. Very very rarely, a cat is so stressed that full visual access is too much, and one either needs to back up, or use a towel to block part of the gate and slowly raise it. But I agree with Falena , the videos look very good! That said, if there is still significant hissing and growling, you can let the gate do some more work. If not, you might well be ready to let them mingle . . . and if you get a little light hissing and growling at that point, thats ok.

 

[CatHarbor]

Thank you so much for your insight - so incredibly helpful. I might start doing some face-to-face introductions today, appreciate the support and will let you know how it goes!

 

[Alldara]

Hi there,

Here are a few short videos to show some of the behavior.

• Video 1
• Video 2
• Video 3
• Video 4

One interesting piece of context. Before I took these videos, Susan went up to Fernando's base camp room and hissed beneath the door. But after watching these over a few times, they actually don't seem very aggressive and more playful. What do you think?

That's play for sure. Your older cat is copying the kitten with the Crabwalk.

I know you were filming, but just want to ensure that you're throwing toys for both usually so your older cat doesn't become jealous.

Once you can tell that they are playing with toys instead of focused on one another, you can let them into a space with lots of hide-y places together. Places small enough for the kitten to catch a break and places high up for your cat to watch the kitten.