My partner and I have recently moved in together, both already having cats of our own. We are trying to integrate them with little luck, going on 2+ months now.
My cat: Charlie, male, roughly 8-9 yrs old, indoor only cat. He has been with me for a little over 6 years and has always been the only cat. Very playful and curious, always wanting to be involved in whatever you are doing.
Resident cat: Kingston, male, 4-5 years old, indoor/outdoor cat. He has been through a few other housemate cats while living with my partner. Had a second cat in the house until they had to be put down recently. Kingston was the dominate one, but after he became the only cat again he had a huge attitude change. Happy, loving, wanting pets and attention again.
Now I have moved into my partner's home, bringing Charlie with me. We started the integration best as we could. Charlie has his own room with everything he needs, Kingston has the rest of the house. We have tried to slowly bring them together spending little bits of time but it's just not working. Kingston is still very scared, constantly hissing and moaning, jumpy, and refuses to walk past the door of Charlie's room or come out when he's around. When we bring them together Kingston will hide and cower for HOURS while Charlie is out and even after he goes away. When it was warm we would allow Kingston to be outside and let Charlie roam the house but now it's too cold for that and Charlie is dying to be out of his room at all times. Charlie very rarely hisses, but is antagonistic toward Kingston. He will try to chase him and beeline directly for Kingston any time he sees him. We even gave Kingston a floor-to-ceiling cat tree to give him space and Charlie still tries to get to him while he's up there, despite having the rest of the house to play in. There have been a few fights, but all were broken up quickly with no injuries, thankfully. It's my opinion that Charlie is trying to play but Kingston wants no part in it. Charlie seems unfazed by the interactions, while Kingston is left scared. Charlie just wants out of his room.
We are out of ideas and both of our cats are suffering, to some extent. Please help!
My cat: Charlie, male, roughly 8-9 yrs old, indoor only cat. He has been with me for a little over 6 years and has always been the only cat. Very playful and curious, always wanting to be involved in whatever you are doing.
Resident cat: Kingston, male, 4-5 years old, indoor/outdoor cat. He has been through a few other housemate cats while living with my partner. Had a second cat in the house until they had to be put down recently. Kingston was the dominate one, but after he became the only cat again he had a huge attitude change. Happy, loving, wanting pets and attention again.
Now I have moved into my partner's home, bringing Charlie with me. We started the integration best as we could. Charlie has his own room with everything he needs, Kingston has the rest of the house. We have tried to slowly bring them together spending little bits of time but it's just not working. Kingston is still very scared, constantly hissing and moaning, jumpy, and refuses to walk past the door of Charlie's room or come out when he's around. When we bring them together Kingston will hide and cower for HOURS while Charlie is out and even after he goes away. When it was warm we would allow Kingston to be outside and let Charlie roam the house but now it's too cold for that and Charlie is dying to be out of his room at all times. Charlie very rarely hisses, but is antagonistic toward Kingston. He will try to chase him and beeline directly for Kingston any time he sees him. We even gave Kingston a floor-to-ceiling cat tree to give him space and Charlie still tries to get to him while he's up there, despite having the rest of the house to play in. There have been a few fights, but all were broken up quickly with no injuries, thankfully. It's my opinion that Charlie is trying to play but Kingston wants no part in it. Charlie seems unfazed by the interactions, while Kingston is left scared. Charlie just wants out of his room.
We are out of ideas and both of our cats are suffering, to some extent. Please help!
