Cat to cat introductions -are we doing everything ok?

[robertskitty]

Yay! I'm so proud of my boys. Before they were ours they were inside/outside cats and I wasn't sure if that would increase the difficulty or not. This morning I haven't opened the door yet but yang has been trying to reach under the gate and door all morning. He's trotted over a few times that she's meowed too.

 

[robertskitty]

This morning was a bit more vocal. Yang groaned and moaned hissed once (though at his brother) and did 2 gate bats. Yin was less chatty but still friendly. There were several nose touches through the gate. I'm going to gave to avoid treats, yang got too food possessive of them and hissed and groaned.

All in all I'm still pleased with the progress. I feel bad for Calypso. She wants out so bad. Hoping things will continue to go well so she can be out sometime later in the week.

 

[robertskitty]

So it's been an eventful morning. Calypso has figured out how to knock down her baby gate. She 'let herself out' this morning while I was in the other room. I couldn't get to her before the boys without running which I didn't want to do to cause any extra tension, so I figured what the hell we will see what happens. The boys were much more interested in meeting her than she was with meeting them. They calmly approached and tried to sniff her and she would hiss and posture and creep away. She got bopped by them both and if they got too close she'd retreat under the couch. I let the unscheduled meeting continue until they both were just bopping her back under the couch when she came out. I then put her back in her room but didn't get the door closed all the way because after 30 seconds the sound of crashing baby gate came again. She again darted under the couch to watch all the goings on. The cats waited by the couch for a bit then wandered off. When she came out I put her back in her room and shut the door firmly. No more kitten escape today.

Thankfully the dog was outside or else I think she would have been a lot more freaked out.

 

[shadowsrescue]

You can either try to stack 2 gates on top of each other or try the screen door trick.  If you use the screen door, you might also want to keep the gate in place too for extra protection.  I knew if my boy wanted out badly enough, he could have pushed himself hard enough and gone through the screen.  The baby gate prevented that.  When I used both the gate and screen door, it allowed my cat inside the room to feel more like he was a part of the household.  My other cat could visit at the door and the gate inside the room could hear what was going on as well as see something more than just the inside of his room.  Only one time did the screen door fall and that was my fault as I hadn't tightened the tension rods enough and one slipped off.  Once the cat gets a taste of life outside the room, it is hard to get them back in their room.  My boy still uses his room for night time.  He whines and cries if left out and he loves his room for night.  Yet as soon as he has eaten breakfast he wants out so fast!!

 

[robertskitty]

After letting Calypso roam the house for several hours with the boys locked up, we introduced her to them one at a time. First Yin was introduced. They touched noses several times and then moved on to playing together. They play fought over possession of a chair for several minutes and continued to have positive interactions. We then introduced Yang. He wandered around and looked at her but never really approached her. He simply ignored her. There was no hissing or growling. We let them wander around the house for about 45 minutes. All of the interactions were positive. For some reason, whenever Calypso gets close to the couch she darts under it and hides, sometimes seconds sometimes minutes even if the other cats are not around. Is this a safety thing? Should we put towels under to block her running under or leave it there as a safe place of escape even if shes 'escaping' at moments that seem completely random?

We were going to be gone for several hours so we locked her back into her bathroom for while we were gone. When we got back we let her out. We have company so Yang hid (he doesn't care for company) so Yin and Calypso got some more one on one time. Yin tried several times to play with Calypso and she growled and hissed to tell him to stop. When she did he backed off and quit trying to play fight. She continues to explore the house and interact well with Yin. I fed them together. Calypso ended up eating some of the wet food of Yin's plate and he was fine with it. After dinner she has been running around and exploring but still telling Yin to knock it off if he tries to play so he's just wandering around being his normal self. I will post again in an hour when the company leaves and Yang comes back out from his hiding spot.

We still have yet to introduce her to the dog, who has been living outside during these introductions. She doesn't mind being outside but tomorrow it will rain so I am not sure how that will work. The two times Calypso has seen Ein she's puffed up, hissed and ran for cover. I'm trying to avoid her running in a 'prey' fashion because our boys like to chase when she does. I know to introduce Ein on a leash but I don't know how to keep her from being too afraid. Ein is a corgi, so shes at eye level and if the cats hiss she just walks off but I don't want to risk her bolting and getting the boys chasing her.

 

[robertskitty]

Calypso got to meet Ein tonight. She is still a hissing mess if Ein gets close so we locked up the boys to avoid misplaced aggression. Ein still is confused and sad about the hissing and wants so much to be friends. I can't do treats and food distraction with Ein or play distraction because she loves the cat toys. Any good distraction methods? Ein is very good and stays far back but Calypso hisses when she gets close.

By the end I'd the night Ein could get within 2' without getting hissed at but Calypso was so sleepy Calypso could hardly hold her head up so that may be why.

Definitely looking for dog introduction suggestions.

 

[robertskitty]

Oh, forgot to mention, started Ein on a leash and moved to letting her walk around.

Getting some of that calming pheromone spray tomorrow to help ease any extra tension.

 

[cbowdidge]

Last weekend, my sister got a Maine Coon mix named Martini. The other cat she had, Sotches, suffered a saddle thrombus and heart failure four weeks ago and had to be put to sleep. My cat, Merlin, and Sotches were best friends. Merlin is fine when Martini keeps his distance but when Martini approaches to say hi Merlin hisses. I know cats don't usually become friends right away, Merlin and Sotches took a week to get used to each other before becoming friends.  Merlin might still be a bit confused. Sotches went downhill very suddenly. He was fine earlier in the morning then suddenly was in distress and as rushed to the vet to be put to sleep. Sotches and Merlin lived together for five years, and suddenly Sotches was gone and now there's a new cat. It's a lot to adjust to for a cat. He is the type of cat who likes being centre of attention so maybe a bit jealous that everyone flocks to my sister's room to see Martini. Merlin is still getting attention but I'm thinking of setting aside special time for Merlin. He was the younger cat, Sotches was a year older (Merlin is six though he acts like a kitten, Sotchy was seven). Martini is a year and a half. 

 

[shadowsrescue]

When I did dog introductions, I kept my dog on a leash at all times.  Some times when I was busy working I used a carabiner and attached the leash to the carabiner that was attached to my belt loop.  Other times I wrapped a leash around a sturdy table leg and attached her there.  My dog is well behaved, but certainly wanted to sniff the cat which the cat did not want!!  I rewarded the dog with each good deed.  I would also sit on the floor with the dog beside me and on a leash and allow the cat to approach.  The cat had to learn to trust the dog as well as to trust me that I wouldn't let the dog hurt him.  It took a few weeks for us, but my dog is very large and the cat I brought inside was a feral. 

Sounds like all is going really really well for you!!!

 

[shadowsrescue]

 
Last weekend, my sister got a Maine Coon mix named Martini. The other cat she had, Sotches, suffered a saddle thrombus and heart failure four weeks ago and had to be put to sleep. My cat, Merlin, and Sotches were best friends. Merlin is fine when Martini keeps his distance but when Martini approaches to say hi Merlin hisses. I know cats don't usually become friends right away, Merlin and Sotches took a week to get used to each other before becoming friends.  Merlin might still be a bit confused. Sotches went downhill very suddenly. He was fine earlier in the morning then suddenly was in distress and as rushed to the vet to be put to sleep. Sotches and Merlin lived together for five years, and suddenly Sotches was gone and now there's a new cat. It's a lot to adjust to for a cat. He is the type of cat who likes being centre of attention so maybe a bit jealous that everyone flocks to my sister's room to see Martini. Merlin is still getting attention but I'm thinking of setting aside special time for Merlin. He was the younger cat, Sotches was a year older (Merlin is six though he acts like a kitten, Sotchy was seven). Martini is a year and a half. 

It would be best if you started a new thread to get some really great answers.  Yet, many of the answers you are looking for can also be found in this thread.  You will need to do proper introductions on the new cat and your cat Merlin.  Here is a link http://www.thecatsite.com/a/introducing-cats-to-cats

Cats don't do very well when they are just thrown together.  Give it time and follow the guidelines of properly introducing cats and you will be on your way!

 

[cbowdidge]

We didn't throw them together, we kept them seperate and let them gradually become aware of the other. Sotchy and Merlin were thrown together and yeah that didn't work out at first, though it only took them a week. I'll sdtyart a new thread for more feedback

 

[robertskitty]

Today we went for our weekly visit to my husband's parents. We left Calypso out with the cats and locked up the dog. All seemed well when we got back. Calypso was under the couch but she hides when she hears the front door open so no way to know when she went under.

We let Ein out. Ein really wants to be friends and Calypso says no. She is however letting Ein nose to nose with her on occasion without the hissing so slow progress. Ein will stay locked up while we are gone and out when we are home until they chill. Calypso we are not going to lock up anymore. She and the boys are doing great.

 

[robertskitty]

Let Calypso stay out all night with the boys while Ein stayed in the bedroom with us (We have a no cats in the bedroom policy since we keep our valuables in there). Came out this morning to all three cats dozing contentedly different places. Everything seems well with them. Calypso puffed up but didn't hiss at Ein when she walked by this morning but we are still closely monitoring their interacts.

 

[shadowsrescue]

You have made remarkable progress!!  It won't be long and all 4 animals will be best buddies!!  Congrats to you and all your hard work and determination.