Need Advice On If A Bonded Pair Of Cats Would Be A Good Addition To Our Resident Cat.

[kristy13]

We recently lost our young cat after a upper respitory tract infection and our other cat is having a hard time she is running around the house looking for him.she is the sweetest cat but I don't know if we should get one cat or if a bonded pair would be better.i don't want her to be left out if they are already bonded to each other.we also just got 6 month old puppy

Any advice would be helpful

 

[ArtNJ]

How did she do getting used to the puppy? If she did awesome with the puppy, you can possibly discount some of what I say next.

Most older cats have a very hard time adjusting to new pets, including other cats. Indeed, its often sufficiently stressful and unpleasant enough for them that most of us recommend that you only get another cat if you really want one, and not do it for your resident cat. We say that understanding full well that sometimes a resident cat is bored or grieving and that the owner only wants to help. But all too often it does the opposite of help.

If you are going to do it, it is very important to match personalities, which will generally mean making sure that the newcomer is laid back, easy going and known to be friendly to other cats.

You should also consider that even if your older cat did awesome with laid back puppy, maybe one that is afraid to bug her, that she might still do quite poorly with an active young cat/kitten that is in her face wanting to play.

The odds of problems are higher if you add two new cats/kittens at once. I actually did this years ago, adopting sibling kittens when my older cat had just lost his sibling. He ended up getting along just fine with the more laid back of the two siblings. He developed dislike for the more active sibling, eventually growling/swatting to rebuff play attempts, and after 6 months or so the active sibling lost his mind and decided that the growls were fighting words and things devolved into hatred that I couldn't seem to deal with. What happened to mine, the delayed reaction, is unusual -- more commonly you'll have problems right away if your going to have them. Older cats can get seriously stressed by tiny kittens -- its weird, but it happens A LOT.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. How old is your cat anyway? For what it is worth - my two cents: if you want to have another cat at this time, adopt a cat at least as old as the one who passed away (RIP poor baby), or older. It might be an easier adjustment time. If you go that route, just see if you can find out the history of the older cat you are adopting, so you know what it's personality might be like (owner passed away vs. one who was given up for behavioral problems vs. potentially abused).

 

[kristy13]

Our resident cat is only 2 years old. And she never had a problem with the dog no hissing she will just let him follow her around.she is crying constantly. She really wants friend to sleep with as our cat started to reject her when he got sick it really messed with her alot.

Thank you for all the advice we are looking at two male kitten about 8 months old to add

 

[rubysmama]

I've never had 2 cats at the same time, let alone three, so I can't advise from personal experience. However, my concern is that a younger, bonded pair might either ignore her completely, or drive her crazy trying to get her to play with them, and neither situation give her a "friend to sleep with". Unfortunately, it's impossible to know in advance how cats will respond to each other, however, TCS does have this article Your Second Cat: How To Choose The Best Friend For Kitty which may be helpful.

 

[jen]

I don't think it would be too big of a deal if you introduce them all properly and be ready for some hissing and growling. The old one will probably take awhile to warm up to the youngsters. There may be some redirected aggression so just be aware and go slow.

 

[ArtNJ]

Since the resident is only 2 and did well with a puppy, yep, good chance it won't be a big deal! Get however many you want!