Introducing a kitten to an elder cat?

[StoneCats]

We have a 10 year young elder cat. We took her in when she was about a year old (vet estimate) and had already had two litters of kittens (six total). The 2nd litter she fed, but by 4 weeks old, had weaned them and avoided them like the plague. We've had her for 9 years, and she's always been a solitary cat, with only one introduction to an indoor/outdoor foster cat we cared for for a month that she hated. However, our foster was a sweetie and tried so hard to be her friend. We have recently decided to add another cat to the family, she'll be 7 weeks when we pick her up (mama has weaned her already and she's eating food). I do have concerns about my older cat being territorial over toys and such. She doesn't play with most of them. Or the water fountain, or eating the kitten food, etc. I grew up with four cats, but only one was older, and he loved kittens; the other three showed up within a month of each other, and we never
fed kitten food. I don't really remember my parents doing anything other than setting the kittens in front of our older cat.

Would it be best to move the feeding station to someplace new in the house to avoid being territorial? Should I put up all unused toys up for awhile before
bringing them back out?

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi and welcome to TCS. The kitten you are adopting is awfully young, so she may be coming to you without having learned too many cat manners from her mama. That could make things a bit harder overall. You may be the one to have to teach her things she wasn't able to get from her mama, especially since it sounds like you have no idea how your resident cat might react, and she may have no interest in teaching the kitten.

Nonetheless, we normally don't advocate just putting two cats together, particularly not a small kitten and an older adult. Introductions are more likely to reap better results. Here are some articles that might be of help to you.
9 Tips That Will Help Your Kitten Adapt To A New Apartment or House - TheCatSite
13 Practical Ways to Kitten-Proof Your Home - TheCatSite
How To Introduce A Kitten To An Older Cat [A Guide] - TheCatSite
How To Successfully Introduce Cats [The Ultimate Guide] - TheCatSite

 

[StoneCats]

Hi and welcome to TCS. The kitten you are adopting is awfully young, so she may be coming to you without having learned too many cat manners from her mama. That could make things a bit harder overall. You may be the one to have to teach her things she wasn't able to get from her mama, especially since it sounds like you have no idea how your resident cat might react, and she may have no interest in teaching the kitten.

Nonetheless, we normally don't advocate just putting two cats together, particularly not a small kitten and an older adult. Introductions are more likely to reap better results. Here are some articles that might be of help to you.
9 Tips That Will Help Your Kitten Adapt To A New Apartment or House - TheCatSite
13 Practical Ways to Kitten-Proof Your Home - TheCatSite
How To Introduce A Kitten To An Older Cat [A Guide] - TheCatSite
How To Successfully Introduce Cats [The Ultimate Guide] - TheCatSite

I'll check those out thank you. This kitten lives in a colony with mama and 3 siblings. Thankfully we have an adult in the house who will be there 24/7 with both cats and our adult cat will have access to a bedroom to escape the little one.

 

[Kris107]

I'd say you should have a kitten space. Ideally somewhere fairly small with not too many hidey places. Kittens that small can get into the tiniest crevices. If you have a spare bathroom, that could be ideal. But I know that isn't too common. A spare room with some places blocked? Anyways... A baby gate is really helpful. It will allow adult cat to assess the newbie. An adult cat can jump over the barrier easily but kitten might not. Although, they can climb and jump, so it isn't perfect. Maybe start out with just letting them interact under the closed door first. See how your adult cat reacts. Kittens usually like anything that moves, so it's more about assessing the adult cat. Also, keeping them separate is important if it is coming in "from the wild". Kittens that are born and live outdoors often have transmissible things. It's recommended to quarantine until you know there is no coughing, poops are consistently normal, etc.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Kittens that small can get into the tiniest crevices.

Boy, isn't that the truth! This is the thing, if a cat's skull can fit through, in almost all cases, their bodies will fit through, as well, and kittens have TINY skulls!

General rule, introducing young kittens to adult cats is easier than introducing two adults. FeebysOwner gave you an excellent link for that one (the others are all excellent, as well). Take is slow and easy, for the sake of your resident gal. She's entering the geriatric phase of her life, and may be less-than-thrilled to have some little upstart trying to take over (in her opinion). Now, observe them carefully. IF your resident cat swats the kitten WITHOUT CLAWS, do not overreact. This may simply mean that she is willing to teach New Girl some manners, and make her part of the household.

 

[ArtNJ]

Yep, good advice. Just remember, there may be a lot of tension and stress, but it won't be as bad as it seems. Adults almost never attack kittens with intent to injure. And, worst case, things usually eventually progress to toleration when the kitten isn't actively bugging the senior.

Not going to lie though. Sometimes it can take an uncomfortably long time to get there and be quite stressful until you do. I wouldn't be too keen to adopt a kitten with a senior cat myself -- didn't remotely enjoy the process the last two times, and the cats sure didn't either. But sometimes it goes a lot better, and we did get through it. Twice is enough for me though.

 

[StoneCats]

I'd say you should have a kitten space. Ideally somewhere fairly small with not too many hidey places. Kittens that small can get into the tiniest crevices. If you have a spare bathroom, that could be ideal. But I know that isn't too common. A spare room with some places blocked? Anyways... A baby gate is really helpful. It will allow adult cat to assess the newbie. An adult cat can jump over the barrier easily but kitten might not. Although, they can climb and jump, so it isn't perfect. Maybe start out with just letting them interact under the closed door first. See how your adult cat reacts. Kittens usually like anything that moves, so it's more about assessing the adult cat. Also, keeping them separate is important if it is coming in "from the wild". Kittens that are born and live outdoors often have transmissible things. It's recommended to quarantine until you know there is no coughing, poops are consistently normal, etc.

We have a vet appointment set up for the day after pick up. We are looking at using the bathroom as our quarantine space. Small space, but easily sanitizable.