Introducing Kitten To Young Cat

[jennifer26]

I have a question about introducing my new kitten to my one-year old cat, Mr. Johnny Cash. He is the man of the house but has seemed very lonely when I'm not around.

I followed the advice of others to give the new 3-month old, Joan Jett, a way to ease into the household. I put her in a separate room with her own food and litter. Unfortunately, it's the bathroom because my house has a very open space floor plan and all the bedrooms are already claimed by Mr. Johnny Cash for litter, food, sleeping etc.

Not surprisingly, Mr. Johnny Cash hisses at her door. When she gets out and wants to explore, he also hisses at her and follows her close behind. While he hasn't attacked, I'm afraid he might. I think I'm doing this right by keeping her separated to give him time to get to know her BUT .... Joan Jett cries at her door all the time. She is literally meowing and meowing in the most pitiful way. While I've only had her two days, she seems to be very outgoing and confident - she tries to bolt from the room and explore the house whenever I open the door and she doesn't really react at all to Mr. JC's hissing. I hate hearing her crying and am afraid I'm ruining the bonding experience with her? I do spend plenty of time in her room but still...

Any thoughts on how to handle this? I don't want to emotionally damage her in the process of getting Mr. JC used to her presence...

 

[flamesabers]

I think it's normal for it to take more then 2 days for the resident cat to accept a new cat in the house. When introducing my two cats to each other, I think the introduction process took about two weeks.

Have you tried introducing Joan's scent to Mr. JC? You could use some towels to gently rub Joan and then leave the towels in various places around your house for Mr. JC to investigate. This way Mr. JC can get to know Joan on his own terms. Once he gets accustomed to her scent, he may not be so bothered about sharing his territory with her.

Assuming you have more then one bedroom, you may want to move Joan into one of them. First, this may alleviate the problem of Joan crying at the door. Second, it'll be a good opportunity for her to get accustomed to Mr. JC's scent. Mr. JC probably won't be happy about temporarily losing access to one of his bedrooms, but I think it's typical for resident cats to seldom like having to make adjustments for the new cat.

On a final note, do you have a baby gate or something to act as a barrier between the two cats? I've found using a baby gate to be a real handy tool when introducing cats to each other.

 

[dahli6]

Every time I have introduced new cats to the household I have crated them in my bedroom. At night and during times when I could not supervise they were crated and when I was in the room or in the house the door was open and they could come and go as they please. I typically have 8 to 10 cats in my bedroom at any time and everyone is always curious about the newcomer.
I haven't ever seen a domestic male, even unaltered, hurt a 3 month old kitten(wild cats will, I have read). They may hiss and swat to teach the kid who the boss is. The kids are usually pretty oblivious. Don't let them interact unsupervised but definitely let the baby wander just stay close. Mr Cash might hiss and spit, he may even smack. If he smacks, pick up the kid and put it somewhere safe then give some attention to Johnny and let him know you still love him; rinse and repeat.
The kid will win him over soon or find it's own space in the house. You shouldn't hide them from each other though.
It also helps to encourage them to play together. Bring the baby out and use the laser pointer or string. It will provide opportunities for them to interact with each other but with something else as a primary focus.

 

[Topherius]

Supervised visits between the two are necessary, he needs to get used to the fact that there is another in his territory and that it isn't a threat. The smell of the kitten alone can make him hiss, its reactionary. I found eating together with their own separate food dishes close by will help them bond and feel at ease with each other and show them both that this is their territory together and there is no threat form either one. Distractions from eachother on to a toy like others have suggested is also a good idea.

 

[jennifer26]

Thanks, everyone. I bought a baby gate to see if that would work to allow Miss Joan Jett to be in a managed space so I can keep my eyes on her. I had to laugh because she hopped right over it like no big deal... so much for that plan.

I appreciate the advice about not keeping her cordoned off. The Humane Society folks has advised me to keep her in one room for 1 week, then scent swap, then intros. That is simply not working because she runs out of the room every time I open it. Unfortunately, most encounters between the two so far has ended in some kind of spat - some minor and occasionally ones where I can tell that Johnny Cash has gotten really riled up (big tail, ears back). I separate them and give them both some loves.

I ordered a crate which should arrive in 2 days - I think having her be visible and still a part of things will be good.

I'm crossing fingers - I had no idea how stressful it would be to introduce them. I know some of you have done this many, many times but it's my first go around and there's times when I feel just awful and hope I'm not screwing up!

 

[dahli6]

Try to find a container that can be used as a litter box so clean up will be easier. The crate is a great idea. It will allow them to get to know each other and allow the kitten to be safe and if you let the kitten out and Johnny Cash gets riled, you can put him into it for a little while and let the kitten have some freedom.
It isn't a punishment. Once a crate is introduced to the house, some cats will sleep in them voluntarily. Even the completely open ones provide a sense of enclosure that cats love. He will get annoyed at first and probably make a wreck of the inside but he will calm down.

 

[Pip&boba]

Don't panic! They will pick up on your mood. And don't worry. It takes time. My two (7 months and 4 months) took about 3 weeks of slow introductions, lots of fuss both separately and together. I found that cuddling one of the cats then the other helps the scent and associates a positive reaction to one another. At the beginning mine were fighting, growling, hissing everything. Now I'm confident to leave them together as well as they sleep together on my bed at night. Time is the main thing as we as the just implemented a lot of play together and seperately with the other watching always helps.

 

[jennifer26]

Hi everyone! Thought I'd give a quick update on Mr. Johnny Cash and Miss Joan Jett. We had a breakthrough on Day 8 where Mr. JC started sniffing and grooming Miss JJ. Every day following that came a bit more positive interactions and fewer times where he'd attack her and hold her neck down. Those days made me so happy to see the progress! After Day 10, I felt comfortable enough to have Miss JJ roam on her own.

Since then, they have been really good together - they spend a lot of time following one another around, they eat side-by-side with zero issues and groom one another. They run and chase and for the most part it seems very much as playtime but occasionally I've still felt the need to break it up by throwing a towel or blanket on them.

It's a really good feeling to know that they're getting along. I'm grateful the intro period didn't last very long - it was pretty rough that first week! Thanks for all the support and tips!

 

[dahli6]

Awesome!

 

[flamesabers]

Thank you for the update Jennifer. I'm glad to hear the introduction process was a success for you!