Integrating kitten(s)

tx_kat

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Aug 17, 2010
Messages
131
Purraise
14
Location
DFW Metroplex, Texas
We have two 3-month old kittens left from the feral litter we caught a month ago.  My husband wants to definitely keep one of the kittens (Casper), and he wants to possibly keep the other kitten (Abby).  We currently keep the the kittens in their own room, with baby gates stacked across the hallway so they can't get out, while we integrate them into the "family". 

We also already three adult cats - all "former ferals" - who are all about 2 years old. Angel is the least socialized and hisses and growls at the kittens through the gates whenever she walks by.  Gidget is the most social with us, but she avoids the kittens as much as possible and sometimes hisses at them.  Demon is very social with my husband, somewhat with me, loves the kittens (except when they pile on top of him), and has been into their room for short periods of time and has done very well. 

I know the process can take a few months, but do you think it will be easier to integrate two kittens or one kitten into such a situation? 
 

rafm

TCS Member
Super Cat
Joined
Jul 29, 2011
Messages
959
Purraise
40
Location
Texas
One or two won't make much of a difference. At least with 2 they have an ally. :lol3:

Just take the intros slowly, follow all the steps outlined on this site and you should be Ok.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #4

tx_kat

TCS Member
Thread starter
Adult Cat
Joined
Aug 17, 2010
Messages
131
Purraise
14
Location
DFW Metroplex, Texas
These (http://wvcats.com/integrating_kittens_with_cats.htm) are the steps that we followed a couple of years ago when we found our Gidget and introduced her to Angel and Demon.  Of course, A&D are only 3-4 months older than Gidget, so there wasn't much of a size difference between them all when we finally let Gidget roam around 24/7.  The kittens we have now are only 3 months old, so they're not big enough to handle Angel (17 pounds) and Gidget (11 pounds).  Demon has shown an interest in the kittens since they first arrived inside more than a month ago, and he has made it to the "longer, carefully supervised visits" step.  He is free to leave when the kittens get too rambunctious for him.  The girls, however, are stuck on the "visual familiarization" and "positive associations" steps.  I could probably "tempt" the girls with kibble or treats to hang out on the other side of the baby gate, but I almost hate to do that since they are making such good strides switching from wet to dry.

I know having two kittens can be easier in a way because it gives them someone to play with instead of constantly bugging the adult cats, but this is the first time in my life that I've had to deal with introducing two kittens to an adult cat (one kitten or another adult, yes; but not two kittens).  I guess I was wondering if it might be easier for the girls to accept / deal with just one kitten instead of trying to mesh two new kitten personalities into the family, but it sounds like it won't make much, if any, difference.
 
Top