Resident cat refuses to eat after hearing the new cat

[mishventurer]

So I’ve just adopted a lovely black cat Luna as a companion for my tabico cat Reiko, they are both around 4 years old.

It’s day 3 since Luna came, and she is nicely holed up in her base camp. It took only 24 hours for Luna to turn into a sweet and cuddly cat from a shy and timid one.
Reiko on the other hand has caught a whiff of the new kitty and could also hear her meowing. They have not met, only through smell and sound. As a result, she has been acting scared and defensive and even growled and hissed at us humans (me and my hubs) whenever she hears Luna. Most of the time she’s still normal with us except when she hears Luna. She has now refused to eat or go into the area close to where Luna is based.
We have tried playing with Reiko based on the Play-Eat-Sleep method - she seems hungry and would meow whenever we are at the kitchen, but then would refuse to eat the food we placed down for her. Any advice?

 

[ArtNJ]

I'm not sure what the play-eat-sleep method is. However, many cats act like they need to be on guard duty when a newcomer arrives. On guard duty, a cat has no interest in play, petting or eating. You should move Reiko's food further away so that she doesn't need to feel like she is on guard duty at the food dish (and litter boxes too!). For the time being, you might be best able to comfort Reiko in a distant room with the door closed, so that she can get a break and relax. In the long run, this period of stress is all part of the introduction process and a sign that its working -- need to get past stress from sight and smell before you can move on to more challenging steps.

Here is our guide:

How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide – TheCatSite Articles

 

[Mamanyt1953]

You should move Reiko's food further away so that she doesn't need to feel like she is on guard duty at the food dish (and litter boxes too!).

Yes, this. Worth repeating! As is the rest of A ArtNJ 's advice.

 

[mishventurer]

I'm not sure what the play-eat-sleep method is. However, many cats act like they need to be on guard duty when a newcomer arrives. On guard duty, a cat has no interest in play, petting or eating. You should move Reiko's food further away so that she doesn't need to feel like she is on guard duty at the food dish (and litter boxes too!). For the time being, you might be best able to comfort Reiko in a distant room with the door closed, so that she can get a break and relax. In the long run, this period of stress is all part of the introduction process and a sign that its working -- need to get past stress from sight and smell before you can move on to more challenging steps.

Here is our guide:

How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide – TheCatSite Articles

Thank you for the advice. I’ve moved her bowl further away but she would only eat when I’m spoon feeding her.

I’ve read many articles like the one you shared,I’m trying very hard to ensure I’m implementing everything right. The new cat Luna has also been getting antsy and trying to rush out of the room each time. But I’ll monitor and report back again soon, thanks again!

 

[ArtNJ]

Well, she is clearly a little stressed, which is ok. She needs to eat. However, if it hasn't been very long, I personally would not be spoon feeding her, as that kind of thing can become a hard to break habit. One of our knowledgeable members posted a link about how cats bodies start to suffer after just (I think it was) 24 hours without food, but I'm very skeptical that link put the info in the proper context. More importantly and less controversially, I'd be shocked if your cat actually goes 24 hours without eating now that you've moved the food dish. I'd put some treats and catnip in the dish at the new location and give it some time.

Keep us posted. Some of our members like to say "it [the introduction] takes as long as it takes" and while I don't really agree with letting an intro drag out for more than a month except in the most extreme cases, in your case, it seems like the smell/sound steop is unavoidably going to take a while. Let it do its work without worrying about how long its "supposed to" take.