Introducing 3rd kitten to a bonded pair

[Knicks2021]

Hi all, long time cat lover, first time poster

Long story short, several weeks ago we adopted a pair of lovely Maine coon kittens who are now about 5 months old. We had been on a couple of waitlists with breeders and weren’t expecting it to happen, but someone ahead of us backed out and we are so grateful as they’re wonderful kitties and are already a great addition to our lives.

Our dilemma is that in the midst of this, we had also been on a waitlist for a Birman kitten since we weren’t sure which (if any) waitlists would pan out. As it turns out both did, and we just learned that we now have the opportunity to adopt this kitten as well next month. So a couple of questions:

1) the Maine coons would be about 6 months old while the Birman would be 14 weeks...any issues introducing kittens at that age? Do they tend to adapt quickly compared to older cats, and is the introduction protocols the same? We wouldn’t want to do anything to disrupt or mess with our current babies, but if introductions tend to be smooth then we’d love to make it happen.
2) any insights about how these breeds tend to get along? We’ve had Maine coons in the past and loved them, but not birmans. However we’ve heard wonderful things about them from others.
Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[ArtNJ]

Kittens introductions are mostly foolproof as just putting them together and getting on with your life will work just fine. The only truly bad thing one can do is be so scared that they turn it into a months long process when it doesn't need to be.

That said, it is desirable to keep the kitten in a safe room for a few days or until they seem adjusted to you and the house a bit, because sometimes kittens do start out fairly scared and it can be a problem if a kitten without a safe room to run too finds a way into your walls, or, less of a problem but still undesirable, hides behind/under the stove or other appliances. If you want to do some scent swapping during this period, thats harmless at worst, although I don't think its really necessary with kitten introductions.

With unequal ages, comes unequal size, and I'm sure that will only be more so with Maine Coons. This is definitely an issue to a degree, or at least something to be familiar with so you don't over-react. Play might look too rough and the smaller kitten might squeal some, and growl, hiss, run and/or hide. Some drama queens will even scream, even though not truly being hurt! Thing is, as long as the smaller kitten only does that right when being jumped on, bitten on the neck, etc, and comes right out in a few minutes and acts like nothing happened, playing back a bit, initiating sometimes, that tells you that there is no real problem. And this is the way it essentially always goes, after perhaps some adjustment period for the kitten. Even with kittens, it can take up to about a week or so to get comfortable.

Its fine to gently separate or distract playing cats (or kittens) when one seems particularly miserable. Just don't think of it as your job, because the smaller kitten won't be hurt and they will work things out to be more equal eventually.

 

[vince]

I had the same thing happen. My two were older than yours and the kitten younger. I was afraid the two boys would maul her, but they acted afraid of her and ran away when she escaped and confronted them. I did my best to keep her isolated for two weeks or so, but she kept escaping the safe room, so I started letting her come and go at will.

Big problem I had was making sure she could negotiate the stairs. It turned out that it wasn't much of a problem for her, even at five weeks or so (she was an abandoned feral from under my car).

I think one of the major factors in the successful introduction was that she was quite self-assured. the cats' personalities have a lot to do with the success of such an introduction.

 

[abivz]

Because they are kittens I think it will be much easier to introduce them, opposed to introducing a kitten to a pair of adult cats, I think maybe you can get a small pet pen to keep the birmain separated from the two cats and see how they react to eachother and avoid any problems. Good luck with your kitties!

 

[tarasgirl06]

Hi all, long time cat lover, first time poster

Long story short, several weeks ago we adopted a pair of lovely Maine coon kittens who are now about 5 months old. We had been on a couple of waitlists with breeders and weren’t expecting it to happen, but someone ahead of us backed out and we are so grateful as they’re wonderful kitties and are already a great addition to our lives.

Our dilemma is that in the midst of this, we had also been on a waitlist for a Birman kitten since we weren’t sure which (if any) waitlists would pan out. As it turns out both did, and we just learned that we now have the opportunity to adopt this kitten as well next month. So a couple of questions:

1) the Maine coons would be about 6 months old while the Birman would be 14 weeks...any issues introducing kittens at that age? Do they tend to adapt quickly compared to older cats, and is the introduction protocols the same? We wouldn’t want to do anything to disrupt or mess with our current babies, but if introductions tend to be smooth then we’d love to make it happen.
2) any insights about how these breeds tend to get along? We’ve had Maine coons in the past and loved them, but not birmans. However we’ve heard wonderful things about them from others.
Thanks in advance for any help!

Hello K Knicks2021 and family, and welcome to TCS! It sounds like you're in for an exciting future! Other posters have good suggestions and thoughts, to which I'll just add that in case you don't know, cat behaviorist Jackson Galaxy, "The Cat Daddy" of "MY CAT FROM HELL" on Animal Planet, writer/co-writer of several books, frequent video poster on YouTube, and presence on social media, has lots of great suggestions on this subject. You might want to look at some of his information. Basically, though, as other posters have said, introducing a new kitten of any configuration/ancestry to adult cats is about the easiest addition to a multi-cat family, in most cases. *We love pix here, by the way, and updates!*

 

[Knicks2021]

Thanks so much for your very helpful replies! Sounds like things can be/should be a lot smoother with kittens but we’ll definitely be mindful about starting off in a safe room, doing some scent exchange, and hopefully all happens really quickly but will definitely ease them into things.

One other question I had was whether it would make any difference whether the Birman was a male vs female, given that the current kitties are one boy and one girl. Would adding a second male versus adding a second female make much of a difference, or would it not matter so much at that age?

Here are the little terrors “helping” me at work

 

[tarasgirl06]

Thanks so much for your very helpful replies! Sounds like things can be/should be a lot smoother with kittens but we’ll definitely be mindful about starting off in a safe room, doing some scent exchange, and hopefully all happens really quickly but will definitely ease them into things.

One other question I had was whether it would make any difference whether the Birman was a male vs female, given that the current kitties are one boy and one girl. Would adding a second male versus adding a second female make much of a difference, or would it not matter so much at that age?

Here are the little terrors “helping” me at work

View attachment 381605

Well, like I said, each cat, like each human, is an individual with individual personality and preferences, so I don't think an answer to that question would honestly be possible. I know that you want a definitive answer, but I'd rather be honest than tell you what you want to hear and have it not be the right information. Your kittens are adorable!!! All the best to them and hoping your new kitten/cat will be a wonderful addition to the furmily

 

[Knicks2021]

Thanks tarasgirl06 , that is definitely helpful! I see a lot online of people having strong opinions on the 2 boys/1 girl versus the other way around and it’s easy to overthink things. It being just hard to predict and better to just go with the kitten we fall in love with is helpful, and sounds like it’s not something worth overthinking. Thanks again to everyone for all the help, suggestions, and resources!

 

[tarasgirl06]

Thanks tarasgirl06 , that is definitely helpful! I see a lot online of people having strong opinions on the 2 boys/1 girl versus the other way around and it’s easy to overthink things. It being just hard to predict and better to just go with the kitten we fall in love with is helpful, and sounds like it’s not something worth overthinking. Thanks again to everyone for all the help, suggestions, and resources!

Np! My cat family has been large for much of my life, and "rescued" is my favorite "breed" meaning that my cats find me, for the most part. And when a cat finds me, I want the adoption to be for life. So one way or another, we work it out. Baby Su was born feral and only bonded to me, and Elvis is very prey-driven and territorial, so she doesn't like him and runs from him, and he chases her sometimes. I have to intervene sometimes. But all in all, it's okay. One of my beloved cats took about a year to fully adjust to being in a big family after being the ruler of his home; but it worked out. So what I'm thinking is, if you commit to adopting someone and are willing to work with everyone, it will work out.