New Cat Continuously Fights Our Other Cats

[ColinFeral]

Not sure what to do here.

We have a stray cat who adopted us back in December and we got him neutered immediately. He is close to a year old now and lives inside at night and goes out during the day to give our inside cats (and us) a break from him. He asks to go out so it's not like we kick him out.

We have two inside cats and two ferals outside we care for and they are all sweet and nice to each other. The new cat refuses to integrate into our cat community. He wants to fight everyone and seems to have no chill around cats, but he loves us and cuddles, purrs, etc. Except sometimes he seems to get over stimulated and has scratched our faces.

We've tried the Jackson Galaxy method of integration, fattening him up, kitty prozac, CBD oil, etc. I feel like we've literally tried everything and I've been scouring the Internet looking for answers. I'm worried we may need to find him a home that is adult only, no cats, and small dogs are okay. Will he ever calm down?

It's been six very stressful months of keeping him separate from the good cats as we can't trust him alone with any of them. My guess is that his behavior is fear-based. He was found in our backyard as a kitten starving and probably had to fend for himself for a while. He instantly attached to us so I assume he was dumped by some crappy humans.

What else can I try?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi, welcome!

I'm thinking some, maybe all of the problem is related to him going outside.

Can you bring him in, keep him in, give him a room all to himself and then work on gradually integrating him to the rest?

How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide - TheCatSite

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I agree with the above. It seems one of the most common problems with introducing a new cat to resident cats is when they are allowed to be indoors/outdoors. There is just a lot less control over the process when that happens. You have half the battle over, so to speak, because he does find comfort in being inside, at least overnight. That doesn't mean there won't be a struggle to get him to accept being inside all the time.

For this cat, it likely would mean starting over - as in getting him a room of his own inside that he can acclimate to over time, and after that starting the whole introduction process over.
The Five Golden Rules To Bringing An Outdoor Cat Inside - TheCatSite

 

[Hellenww]

Think of it this way. He's not with either community full time so he's not becoming a member of either. You can always build a catio or harness train him once your indoor cat accept him.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

And, almost always, you get a "do-over" with failed cat introductions. Let's try this, YES, bring him in and keep him in while re-introducing him to the resident cats. Realize that this is going to be a fairly long-term process. Time and patience are your best friends here, and you can never go faster than the most reluctant cat. Trying to push a timetable only sets you back further.

How To Fix An Unsuccessful Cat Introduction - TheCatSite
How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide - TheCatSite
https://thechttps://thecatsite.com/c/how-to-safely-break-up-a-cat-fight/atsite.com/c/introducing-cats-to-cats/
And, last but not least:
How To Safely Break Up A Cat Fight - TheCatSite

 

[ColinFeral]

This is all such great information everyone. I'm reading it all and soaking it up and will follow up with questions. <3

 

[Mighty Orange]

Your outdoor cat picks up different smells each time they are out. This confuses the indoor cats.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Your outdoor cat picks up different smells each time they are out. This confuses the indoor cats.

This is SO true, and we all forgot to mention it. Every time he goes out and picks up strange smells, he's triggering non-recognition aggression in the other, indoor, cats, who do not know him well to begin with. It would be, to them, almost like a new cat coming in every time.

 

[ColinFeral]

Here's a question about integrating him; our only other indoor cat is old (almost 17) and absolutely terrified of him. How can we even try to integrate them when he immediately runs away and isn't food motivated enough to even eat with him with a door separating them?

 

[Furballsmom]

I honestly think I'd back up in this particular situation and stop trying for a while. The stress for your old boy isn't good. Let him have his own space with his things, physically away from the other cat and all the goings-on.

 

[ColinFeral]

I honestly think I'd back up in this particular situation and stop trying for a while. The stress for your old boy isn't good. Let him have his own space with his things, physically away from the other cat and all the goings-on.

That makes sense to do and that's what we're doing now. How long should this go on for though? It's a bit difficult to keep them separate forever.

 

[Furballsmom]

Your old boy's attitude is going to be the indicator Hopefully with a little time, the other cat not being allowed outside any longer and some extra love from you-all which will help his confidence, he won't take too long

 

[Mamanyt1953]

And cats DO learn by observing other cats. Give your old boy his space, and work with him once the new guy is settled and accepted by the other resident cat. Once Old Boy sees New Boy interacting well with Other Boy (OH BOY!) it may help him.

 

[ColinFeral]

Just wanted to share an update so far.

It's been a few days of him being strictly inside, both cats with their own space, and letting them use the common area at separate times and so far the problem cat has been much calmer. He's asked to go out a dozen times, but his anxiety seems to be dipping some. We do still have him on kitty Prozac (almost four weeks now) so maybe that's also starting to work. We'd prefer that he wasn't on it forever, of course.

Hopefully soon we can start to integrate him and our older boy.

Thank you so much everyone for all the help. You guys rock.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

That's what we're here for! As addictions go, "trying to help cats and cat people" is a fairly good one to have!

 

[ColinFeral]

Another update:

So we've tried integration starting with smells, seeing each other in a safe capacity, and last night we waited until the problem child was laying down on the couch, calm and happy, and then let our elderly cat out to roam with one of us standing guard for his safety.

The problem cat saw him and got real stiff and had that look on his face that he gets when he's ready to attack so we put our elderly cat back in his safe room.

Then we find out that while our problem cat is out, he's been spraying which has now caused our elderly cat to pee outside the litter box.

We're overwhelmed and have reached out to a rescue center to see about us fostering him until we can find a home that doesn't have other cats. It just isn't fair to our old man and our outdoor kitties to have to live in fear.

Ugh, I hate this. I've had cats my whole life and have never encountered this behavior on this scale before and feel like we've failed him.

 

[Furballsmom]

I feel your frustrations but it isn't you, I promise

 

[ColinFeral]

I feel your frustrations but it isn't you, I promise

*hug* Thank you for this... he would be 100% happy and we would too, if we were an one-cat household.

 

[Alldara]

Sometimes a better home IS the best option. You're not failing him. You're doing right by the whole family, even him. I've been "listening" for awhile without much else to add. You've worked hard. Happy to keep hearing updates if you want to share.

 

[ColinFeral]

Sometimes a better home IS the best option. You're not failing him. You're doing right by the whole family, even him. I've been "listening" for awhile without much else to add. You've worked hard. Happy to keep hearing updates if you want to share.

You all are an awesome community who totally gets it and are so helpful. So glad to find you all.