Cause for concern?

[hannahe01]

Hey all. I posted a thread yesterday or the day before regarding my resident cat mochi and my new cat guart.

introduction with the cats has gone relatively well so far, no fighting, not a whole lot of aggression, and new cat is very confident in the new space.

When I got home from work today, I was playing with both of them (giving my resident cat the most attention) and gave them some catnip. New kitty LOVES IT. my resident cat never seemed to be much affected by it in the past but this time it was different. He definitely displayed signs of aggression after ingesting some of it. New kitty was bathing herself when mochi came up and swatted/bit her. New kitty hissed and ran off. No blood or anything major but it was freaky. Should I be worried? He’s never done that before and I don’t know if it’s the combination of the catnip and the new cat or if aggression just took awhile to rear it’s head. Mochi is chilling in my bedroom for now. Under my bed sleeping (his new favorite napping spot ever since new cat came along.)

they were getting along just fine yesterday. (

 

[hannahe01]

I’m thinking maybe it’s overstimulation as well. New kitty wants to be wherever he is allllll the time. Sometimes he tolerates it and others he’s visibly annoyed. Sigh. Cat intros are way too stressful

 

[Mr. Meow]

Catnip can cause many different reactions in cats, from the super zoomies to a deep sleep that a can opener couldn't wake them from.
It's possible that the catnip caused him to misinterpret the other cat's behavior.
Also, catnip works differently if it's smelled or ingested.

 

[Mr. Meow]

Just an fyi, smelling catnip usually results in a stimulant effect, where eating it tends to calm/mellow cats out.

 

[hannahe01]

Catnip can cause many different reactions in cats, from the super zoomies to a deep sleep that a can opener couldn't wake them from.
It's possible that the catnip caused him to misinterpret the other cat's behavior.
Also, catnip works differently if it's smelled or ingested.

She for sure got the zoomies and he didn’t seem to be anything other than pissed off. I’ve been letting them be together 24/7 for the last few days since it’s been going so well and now I’m worried about leaving them home when I go to work tomorrow

 

[Mr. Meow]

You should be fine leaving them alone while you're at work. Most likely both of them will find a place to sleep.
For now, I'd remove any catnip items and only use it in small doses, during a time you can monitor them both. Try to give them an outlet that isn't the other cat when they have catnip (laser pointer, cat wand, kick stick etc) so they can use their energy on something more positive.

 

[hannahe01]

You should be fine leaving them alone while you're at work. Most likely both of them will find a place to sleep.
For now, I'd remove any catnip items and only use it in small doses, during a time you can monitor them both. Try to give them an outlet that isn't the other cat when they have catnip (laser pointer, cat wand, kick stick etc) so they can use their energy on something more positive.

Will do. I put the catnip sock away lol. She has tons of energy and I’m sure he has pent up energy too. They play with eachother occasionally. She wants to play all the time, but he barely plays with me ever since getting her. I’ve tried and he just doesn’t want to! It’s only been about two weeks since they’ve been introduced so I know it takes time for things to settle. I just wish it would so I can stop stressing and relax in my own home lol

 

[Mr. Meow]

You're right, it does take time, hopefully I can help you relax a bit by telling you that everything will be just fine. You've got this!