- Joined
- Apr 4, 2020
- Messages
- 12
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Hi!
So I've been wanting to adopt a third cat into my family for a long time now but I always end up chickening out because I'm afraid it will ruin my relationship with my existing two cats or cause them unnecessary stress.
Kitten wise I'll likely be adopting a cat no older than a year old and they probably won't be a feral rescue.
Now for some background on my current cats and why I'm concerned. So both of my cats are rescues. One is male and the other is female, both neutered. They were adopted at the same time when they were around 3-5 months old. They are not litter mates but they get on pretty well and don't fight outside of playing. They are both 8 years old now.
They started out extremely shy but they improved greatly over time. They are both super affectionate with everyone in the house and love to be petted, sleep on my lap and are generally big pushovers
The problem and source of my worry arises with how they react to change. While they are super chill normally, they are terrified when anyone other than us enters the house or even if we do something a little out of the ordinary like run to answer the door instead of walking at the pace they are used to. They do recover quickly though after a scare and are perfectly fine with a few minutes.
They are both mostly indoor cats but they spend a few hours each day outside and don't roam too far. While they don't fight much, they do react territorially to any strange cat that may come into our garden.
So I was wondering, given their personalities, is it realistic to expect them to accept a new cat into the family? Or do you think they may take it badly and retreat into their shells?
I'm aware of the go to method of separating the new and existing cats and slowly trying to get them used to each other, but I can't tell it'll work in this case for sure and that stresses me out
I would love a new cat but I would hate to harm my current kitties with my selfishness.
Has anyone had an experience introducing a new cat into a situation like this or just advice in general? I would really appreciate any help you could provide me.
Thanks,
-Gwen
So I've been wanting to adopt a third cat into my family for a long time now but I always end up chickening out because I'm afraid it will ruin my relationship with my existing two cats or cause them unnecessary stress.
Kitten wise I'll likely be adopting a cat no older than a year old and they probably won't be a feral rescue.
Now for some background on my current cats and why I'm concerned. So both of my cats are rescues. One is male and the other is female, both neutered. They were adopted at the same time when they were around 3-5 months old. They are not litter mates but they get on pretty well and don't fight outside of playing. They are both 8 years old now.
They started out extremely shy but they improved greatly over time. They are both super affectionate with everyone in the house and love to be petted, sleep on my lap and are generally big pushovers
The problem and source of my worry arises with how they react to change. While they are super chill normally, they are terrified when anyone other than us enters the house or even if we do something a little out of the ordinary like run to answer the door instead of walking at the pace they are used to. They do recover quickly though after a scare and are perfectly fine with a few minutes.
They are both mostly indoor cats but they spend a few hours each day outside and don't roam too far. While they don't fight much, they do react territorially to any strange cat that may come into our garden.
So I was wondering, given their personalities, is it realistic to expect them to accept a new cat into the family? Or do you think they may take it badly and retreat into their shells?
I'm aware of the go to method of separating the new and existing cats and slowly trying to get them used to each other, but I can't tell it'll work in this case for sure and that stresses me out
I would love a new cat but I would hate to harm my current kitties with my selfishness.
Has anyone had an experience introducing a new cat into a situation like this or just advice in general? I would really appreciate any help you could provide me.
Thanks,
-Gwen