New Cat Stressing Out Older Cat

[idioticWixen]

Hello! I've got a bonded pair of cats, 15 and 16 years old or so, and I recently adopted a seven month old kitten. The bonded pair are Queen and Jack, and the new kitten is King.

King and Queen, though not entirely friendly, seem to tolerate each other and I'm confident that in time they could become closer. However, Jack will hiss everytime King comes near, and avoids her. Normally this would not be an issue, but I am living in a space with only one room and an attached bathroom. Jack will sometimes not pass King, even to eat or drink, if she is in the room.

I have been keeping King in the bathroom for most of the day (it's fairly large), and letting them all be out a couple hours a day, but this is not sustainable, nor does it seem to be any help to Jack, who is just as stressed as when I first brought King.

He's stressed enough that I think he's stress-vomiting, which is bad for everyone involved.

King is very sweet, and has tried to approach and play with both of them, Queen being more receptive. After Jack continued to reject her, I started moving her when she wanted to play with him, so he wouldn't be as stressed.

How do I get Jack to tolerate King enough that he isn't so badly stressed out? It's not healthy and it's not great to keep King away from learning to socialize with Queen.

 

[susanm9006]

How recent was the adoption? With cats the age of your pair, it may take a very very long time before they tolerate the antics of a rambunctious kitten. I would definitely start with a vet visit for Jack just to make sure his vomiting doesn’t have other causes. And if all he does is hiss at King , that is okay. Feeding them in separate rooms will hopefully keep Jack eating.

Then rather than letting King go free to meet your seniors I would try using a large dog kennel as a contained space for him where they can get up close to see and smell him without feeling threatened.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi - susanm9006 has some excellent thoughts for you. If necessary, you could also take a look at these articles.

How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide
How To Fix An Unsuccessful Cat Introduction

Good luck, let us know how things go!

 

[idioticWixen]

Thanks, y'all!

susanm9006
I actually have been using a large dog crate, because of the general lack of room I have. I've also been feeding them separately, and doing a territory swap every couple days. It's nice to know I've taken some good steps already!

It's been a couple weeks since the adoption, so that's probably a factor, that it hasn't been long enough, yet. I'll just have to keep at it and be patient.

 

[Desertmouse]

Hmm... would it be possible to install some cat friendly shelves? Maybe create an alternative pathway to the food/water and litter box? I can understand how valuable floor space is right now. Is King fixed?

 

[idioticWixen]

Desertmouse

I don't really have the means of installing anything at the moment, but I have created a couple different floor paths to the food and water bowls, now. Hopefully that helps! And all my cats are fixed.

 

[1 bruce 1]

Thanks, y'all!

susanm9006
I actually have been using a large dog crate, because of the general lack of room I have. I've also been feeding them separately, and doing a territory swap every couple days. It's nice to know I've taken some good steps already!

It's been a couple weeks since the adoption, so that's probably a factor, that it hasn't been long enough, yet. I'll just have to keep at it and be patient.

Make sure you have a way to spend "quality time" with Jack so he knows you're still his person, as I'm sure you are =)
Is King a kitten-kitten (10 weeks or so) or a "kitten" kitten (10 months or so)? Some cats are totally stressed out by babies or adolescents, but once that passes they're accepting. The last kitten we brought home was a female, and our eldest female spent about 3 months slapping at her every time she walked by, I don't envy a stress-vomiting situation, but I hope the rotation-style of integration works very soon.
BTW, Jack, Queen, King. I love it =)

 

[Furballsmom]

BTW, Jack, Queen, King. I love it =)

I was thinking the same thing LOL

 

[1 bruce 1]

I was thinking the same thing LOL

I "<3" their names.
Glad they're all "Spade".
OK I'll stop. Love me some card games =D

 

[idioticWixen]

Yeah, I'm making sure to spend time with all of them! King's a "kitten" about 7 months old.

And as for names: My mother's cats were called Spade and Diamond, then when I was very young we got a dog named Ace, and then Jack, and then Queen. Later another dog, Tricks, and for about a year we had a cat called Heart until my father's allergies got too bad and we adopted her out. Since they got Jack and Queen for me, they're my cats now that I've moved out. When I got a kitten I wanted to keep the theme. King is actually a girl; it's just that it was either Club or Joker if not King, and she's too fancy to be anything but royalty!

 

[Furballsmom]

That is so fun!!

 

[1 bruce 1]

Yeah, I'm making sure to spend time with all of them! King's a "kitten" about 7 months old.

And as for names: My mother's cats were called Spade and Diamond, then when I was very young we got a dog named Ace, and then Jack, and then Queen. Later another dog, Tricks, and for about a year we had a cat called Heart until my father's allergies got too bad and we adopted her out. Since they got Jack and Queen for me, they're my cats now that I've moved out. When I got a kitten I wanted to keep the theme. King is actually a girl; it's just that it was either Club or Joker if not King, and she's too fancy to be anything but royalty!

The naming is awesome, I totally love it!!!
And 7 months old is still a cat that acts and moves and behaves like a toddler. Hopeful that when King grows up a bit, Jack will relax. We've had otherwise gentle dogs that HATE puppies with a burning hot passion, but once the pup becomes an adult, they're friends.