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- Nov 17, 2005
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- Purraise
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Hi Pam! I'd love any suggestions you may have to make this work.
I have a very large cat family - and recently ended up with 2 more cats due to a family situation. All are S/N.
My feline family includes:
Lola - 3 y/o seizure kitty
Gumby - 3 y/o former feral, very skittish & sometimes an aggressor towards other cats
Dorian Grey - 8 y/o lovebug known as "Uncle Dory", a doting type
Fafeena - 18 y/o former farm cat
Cow - 9 y/o w/ heart issues
Lucy - 13? y/o w/ somewhat "feral" tendencies - doesn't want to be touched, runs from me - has only been w/ me since Jan
Sophie - 9 y/o pure Himi (declawed)
Sheaba - 13-14 y/o foster kitty, growls when she sees other cats & avoids them, but non-aggressive (declawed)
Believe it or not, other than two of the cats they all get along very well. Sheaba growls when other cats approach her, which causes Gumby to run her down & "attack". So the two are closely supervised, with plenty of 'escape' places for Sheaba. I keep hoping I can find a rescue to take Sheaba in or an adoptive home soon.
The two newbies are Hugo & Holden, a pair of 4 y/o (declawed) brothers. They've had issues in the past with inappropriate urination. They have had dozens of urinalysis done, and were briefly on Amitriptyline (they were taken off after negative side effects). They've never lived with other cats besides each other. They pretty much always peed on soft things. They've peed on a couch, blankets, rugs, a bed (and the bedding on it). They had automatic litterboxes, which I dislike. They have been allowed to keep one of their automatic boxes, however have 2 additional litterboxes. One of which has Cat Attract litter in it.
I have had them for about a month now, perhaps a little more. They started off in a large bedroom with cat trees, toys, etc. They now have access to both bedrooms upstairs, with a screen door between them & the rest of my kitties. They are becoming accustomed to seeing the other cats & my small dog. They do still hiss some should another cat slip upstairs. They have had access to my bed & bedroom for 2 weeks. They have yet to pee anywhere but a cat box in my house. For the first two weeks I kept all blankets picked up in the bedroom they were in, so as to not have any problems. They have a Feliway diffuser going for them, too.
Can you offer any suggestions on how to integrate them into the house hold, without hopefully causing any 'out of the box' moments? I'm in no hurry to introduce them to the rest of their new feline family. They, however, run down the stairs sometimes if they get a chance. They are becoming more & more "door darters" as time goes by.
I have a very large cat family - and recently ended up with 2 more cats due to a family situation. All are S/N.
My feline family includes:
Lola - 3 y/o seizure kitty
Gumby - 3 y/o former feral, very skittish & sometimes an aggressor towards other cats
Dorian Grey - 8 y/o lovebug known as "Uncle Dory", a doting type
Fafeena - 18 y/o former farm cat
Cow - 9 y/o w/ heart issues
Lucy - 13? y/o w/ somewhat "feral" tendencies - doesn't want to be touched, runs from me - has only been w/ me since Jan
Sophie - 9 y/o pure Himi (declawed)
Sheaba - 13-14 y/o foster kitty, growls when she sees other cats & avoids them, but non-aggressive (declawed)
Believe it or not, other than two of the cats they all get along very well. Sheaba growls when other cats approach her, which causes Gumby to run her down & "attack". So the two are closely supervised, with plenty of 'escape' places for Sheaba. I keep hoping I can find a rescue to take Sheaba in or an adoptive home soon.
The two newbies are Hugo & Holden, a pair of 4 y/o (declawed) brothers. They've had issues in the past with inappropriate urination. They have had dozens of urinalysis done, and were briefly on Amitriptyline (they were taken off after negative side effects). They've never lived with other cats besides each other. They pretty much always peed on soft things. They've peed on a couch, blankets, rugs, a bed (and the bedding on it). They had automatic litterboxes, which I dislike. They have been allowed to keep one of their automatic boxes, however have 2 additional litterboxes. One of which has Cat Attract litter in it.
I have had them for about a month now, perhaps a little more. They started off in a large bedroom with cat trees, toys, etc. They now have access to both bedrooms upstairs, with a screen door between them & the rest of my kitties. They are becoming accustomed to seeing the other cats & my small dog. They do still hiss some should another cat slip upstairs. They have had access to my bed & bedroom for 2 weeks. They have yet to pee anywhere but a cat box in my house. For the first two weeks I kept all blankets picked up in the bedroom they were in, so as to not have any problems. They have a Feliway diffuser going for them, too.
Can you offer any suggestions on how to integrate them into the house hold, without hopefully causing any 'out of the box' moments? I'm in no hurry to introduce them to the rest of their new feline family. They, however, run down the stairs sometimes if they get a chance. They are becoming more & more "door darters" as time goes by.