Introducing new cat to 2 resident cats

[calicosrspecial]

Thank u so much for taking the time to help me out with all this. I had no idea this site existed or I probably would have brought Suzi home earlier! It took me over 8 months to decide and now I can't imagine her being out there on the street alone. She's so sweet! I think she's only about a year old because she plays like a kitten. I bought her a Poppin Play, but she afraid of it at first, it's a little noisy, she's not used to this kind of life yet. Thanks again I'll keep you posted!

You are very welcome. THANK YOU for saving her!!

She does sound like a wonderful cat. I am guessing she will find the poppin play fun.

Play is the best way to build confidence so I love to her she loves to play.

Suzi is one lucky kitty. I get a sense she is really loving life. Great job!!!

Yes, please keep us posted and ask anything. We are here for you. Never hold back. We have a little work to do but things will be fine. Keep up the great work!!

 

[Scamille]

Resident cats can respond in different ways at first. But it is important to take it slow and build trust. The biggest mistake I see is when people rush the process. Maybe a or the resident cats are ok then it degrades from there. Cats are territorial so anytime there is a potential threat issues can develop.

Reassure both resident/existing cats. Play with them if possible and feed treats after play. Also, be reassuring. Stay calm and confident towards them, act like everything is ok. Keep them on a routine. Cats like constancy so the more "normal" things are the more it will help. If a cat gets "funny" distract with something positive. A treat, a toy, loving words. Get them to focus on something other than the new cat and turn it into a positive or a non-event. Really important to show the resident cats that the new cat is not a threat in any way.

"What about buying a baby gate and putting it in door way to separate them at first?" - A baby gate is a good idea to create a "buffer zone" now. We want to have the door closed at all times right now. No visual contact yet. We need to feed on each side of a closed door for now. Ideally given her attacking the paws we may want to create a buffer zone so she can't get to the new cat's paws. If you see her focused on the paws distract with a treat or a toy. Anything positive. Imagine is some person came off the street and was in one of your rooms. You would be worried. What might this person do? Same for cats. We need to show the resident cats that this new cat is not a threat, not negative.

"Also I have 2 cats. Shouldn't I Introduce her to one at a time?" - No, we can introduce them together following the process. So only feeding on opposite sides of a closed door for now. Feed the two resident cats at the same time a few feet from the bathroom door (or at whatever distance they will eat). This is to make a positive association with the new cat. Food is good, life sustaining. So resident cats eat food, all goes well, no new cat is eating it, everything is safe and fine = positive association.

"And is it ok to keep her in bathroom this long? I'm spending at least 3-4 hours a day with her." - Yes, she will be fine in there. It is more important to get the resident cats to trust and accept her. Usually the new cat is easier to acclimate as it is new territory. Spending 3-4 hours with her is amazing. Just reassure her, build confidence. BUT it is VERY important to build the resident cats confidence. Sometimes we focus too much on the new cat and that can cause some insecurity in the resident cats. We need to let the resident cats know all is ok, the same, no threat and build their confidence - playing with them, reassuring them, etc.

"And I put my cats in my bedroom and open bathroom door for about 1-1.5 hrs twice a day to let her explore." - I don't want to do this just yet. We'll do this at some point but it is too early in my opinion to do this now. We want to keep the resident cats lives as "normal" as possible. So keeping things as unchanged as possible. The new cat will be fine. I am not surprised she is doing well. She knows you love her and are taking care of her.

"My apartment is one bedroom one bathroom. I know! Hey I had to bring her home this horrible man was threatening her and I was riding 4 buses roundtrip every day to go feed her and make sure she was OK. I was terrified every day that he would harm her. So I just went and got her spayed a d rabies and brought her home with me! This is crazy but she's staying now" - You are a HERO!! A one bdrm, one bath is fine. That is why we need to do the intro properly. Really build the trust of the resident cats. I do this all the time, we can do it. She is one lucky cat!! THANK YOU for caring about her!!!

I really want to take each step in the intro process carefully. I would like to keep them visually blocked for now until we can build the resident cats confidence and build more trust. We'll get there. We are on "Cat Time" based on how they respond. Work on making positive associations now feeding on each side of a closed door, make every encounter as positive as possible using distraction (a treat, a toy, loving words) to avoid a negative encounter. And step up play with the resident cats and feed after. Keep the resident cats to a routine and have their lives as "normal" as possible (as much like pre new cat as possible).

We'll get there. We do this all the time. The key really is to take it slow and focus on the resident cats to build that trust and confidence.

Please ask any questions or for clarification.

Hi

 

[Scamille]

Hello all! My resident cat Sqeaky and new cat Suzi r doing SO Good together!! They've been playing with each other's paws under the door for awhile. Suzi jumps the baby gate and comes out in the living room when only Sqeaky is out here and they play with ea h other. But Libby's a different story unfortunately she's going to take a little longer to adjust. Thanks every who helped me out with this!!!!

 

[rubysmama]

Thanks for the update. Hopefully they will all be friends one day.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Hello all! My resident cat Sqeaky and new cat Suzi r doing SO Good together!! They've been playing with each other's paws under the door for awhile. Suzi jumps the baby gate and comes out in the living room when only Sqeaky is out here and they play with ea h other. But Libby's a different story unfortunately she's going to take a little longer to adjust. Thanks every who helped me out with this!!!!

Great.

Ok on LIbby. Keep up with what we suggested and ask anything anytime. We want Libby to be intro'd as well. If you have any questions please ask.

Really work on building LIbby's confidence and make sure that every encounter (whether by scent, sight, or physical) is as positive as possible. Avoiding negatives is a positive. Anytime they have interaction (whether scent only, or visual only, etc) make sure it is positive and use distraction to avoid negativity if possible. It is really all about building trust.

Just take it slow, reinforce positives, build confidence, make positive associations and ask anything. There are always ups and downs in intros but 99.9% of them work out with the right knowledge and the right effort. If needed I will be with you every step of the way.

 

[Scamille]

Well lookey here!!

 

[Scamille]

Sorry! Idk why but I have trouble posting sometimes, but this is my resident cat Libby on the top of the sofa table AND Suzi underneath. They r doing GREAT! I'm so happy AND RELIEVED. now Libby does hiss at her if she gets too close but other than that, she's slowly accepting her. I don't feel comfortable leaving them alone together tho. Or sleeping with all of them out here yet. But I'm so glad this is working out this well, I was really worried about this.

 

[calicosrspecial]

Sorry! Idk why but I have trouble posting sometimes, but this is my resident cat Libby on the top of the sofa table AND Suzi underneath. They r doing GREAT! I'm so happy AND RELIEVED. now Libby does hiss at her if she gets too close but other than that, she's slowly accepting her. I don't feel comfortable leaving them alone together tho. Or sleeping with all of them out here yet. But I'm so glad this is working out this well, I was really worried about this.

WOW, they are GORGEOUS!!!!

Great job. Just take it slow. Keep making those positive associations (using food) and making every encounter as positive as possible and minimizing or avoiding negativity. If you sense any potential negativity use anything positive to distract. So calm and confident and loving words. Food or treats. A toy they love. And anytime they look away from each other and/or they avoid negativity it is a positive.

So on the pic I tend to like to reassure them when they are like that. Calm, confident and loving words. Just to let them know all is ok. Anytime they are together and nothing negative happens (for any amount of time) it is a positive. And building on positive moments builds trust and confidence.

Hissing is communication and a warning so how the other cat responds (respects the communication or escalates) is really important. If it doesn't escalate to a fight it is really good. So if it helps avoid a negative it is a positive. Of course we want the hissing to end (and it will most likely) but as long as it doesn't escalate it is fine. (Thanks to Rubysmama for pointing that out as I totally missed that in the original post and I have edited this one to second what Rubysmama posted. Rubysmama is spot on with her post).

I am glad you don't feel comfortable leaving them alone together yet or having them out sleeping around each other. In intros there are always ups and downs, positive moments and negative moments. The key is to maximize those positive and minimize or avoid negatives. It is process that takes time. The fact you are doing what you are doing is VERY positive. Exactly the right thing to do.

I know you were worried. That is normal. Cats can take on our emotions so our worry can actually cause cats to be more on edge and cause issues. And when the human becomes more confident the cats tend to and a positive reinforcement happens. I deal with intros all the time so I know when to worry and when not to but for people newer to intros it can be a challenge. Don't worry, we'll get there.

I am highly, highly confident all will be well but we need to stay vigilant and do what we have talked about. So we still have to remain focused. But GREAT job so far, keep up the great work!!!

 

[rubysmama]

Look at them so close together.

And a little hissing isn't anything to stress too much over. It's fighting with fur flying or blood that is concerning. Hissing just a cat's way of communicating.