Screwed Up Cat Intro? Help! They Met after a day!

[rubysmama]

Today i left Zuko in the cage so that hopefully they can work something out while i'm gone. Get their sniffing out of the way.

Hopefully they'll bond a bit, while not being able to actually tussle. Has there been any actual fighting? Or just hissing / growling / swatting?

 

[jopua]

Hopefully they'll bond a bit, while not being able to actually tussle. Has there been any actual fighting? Or just hissing / growling / swatting?

Hissing and chasing and swatting. When Luci starts hissing and gets her claws out, i tend to try and get Zuko to come my way already because i'm scared one'll get hurt?

Or am i coddling too much? Haha pretty sure Luci just wants to be left alone while i'm not sure if Zuko wants to play/assert dominance haha

I get home in an hour and im hoping for the best.

 

[jopua]

Hopefully they'll bond a bit, while not being able to actually tussle. Has there been any actual fighting? Or just hissing / growling / swatting?

Oh and to your first question, an afternoon! Few hours. Made sure to feed em both and they're done with their litterbox business

Left at the time when they're both usually sleeping so at least the first few hours of their day alone was spent resting.

 

[rubysmama]

Hissing and chasing and swatting. When Luci starts hissing and gets her claws out, i tend to try and get Zuko to come my way already because i'm scared one'll get hurt?

Or am i coddling too much? Haha pretty sure Luci just wants to be left alone while i'm not sure if Zuko wants to play/assert dominance haha

The main things to watch for are 1) fur flying, 2) blood, and 3) one cat seeming scared or stressed.

If one, or both, cats keep going back for "more fun", and neither is hiding, they are probably ok. Cats, particularly kittens, "play fight". And hissing and growling is how they communicate.

Here's a TCS article Are My Cats Fighting Or Playing? | TheCatSite that you might find helpful. It has pictures and videos to help distinguish between playing and fighting.

I get home in an hour and im hoping for the best.

Let us know what you find when you get home.

 

[nycats]

I think they will one day appreciate having each other. It'll just take time. You're doing great! Don't be discouraged if they don't seem to be getting along just yet. After a while, they will get used to each other, and a relationship will develop, either bonding or tolerating. Just expect it to take a while. You can't rush introductions, and everything sounds completely normal.

 

[jopua]

The main things to watch for are 1) fur flying, 2) blood, and 3) one cat seeming scared or stressed.

If one, or both, cats keep going back for "more fun", and neither is hiding, they are probably ok. Cats, particularly kittens, "play fight". And hissing and growling is how they communicate.

Here's a TCS article Are My Cats Fighting Or Playing? | TheCatSite that you might find helpful. It has pictures and videos to help distinguish between playing and fighting.



Let us know what you find when you get home.

I think there was some progress? After feeding them both (although Zuko didn't have much of an appetite) i let Zuko out since Luci was on top of hee cat tree so she's in her safe zone

As i was playing with zuko, luci actually came down! Either curious or jealous of the fun

I distracted zuko as much as i could, but eventually he approached her and there was following, some pouncing and swatting.

Luci went down a level from her cat tree, so maybe that's something. Although, he tried getting into her hiding hole and she swatted him away complete with hissing

Lastly, as seen in the last pic, zuko started waiting for luci by the tree

Since he keeps coming back, does that means its play and not aggression? After being Swatted away though, I can easily distract him to play with toys

Really hoping today was a step in the right direction!

 

[rubysmama]

Since he keeps coming back, does that means its play and not aggression? After being Swatted away though, I can easily distract him to play with toys

It might not be totally play, as she may be trying to discipline him, i.e. teach him cat manners, but if he keeps going back for more, then you know he isn't scared. And if she's eating, using the litter box, and generally acting normally, you know she probably isn't stressed.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

OK...you're not doing badly here at all, for all of the above stated reasons. Here's my bottom line...If there is no blood on the floor or fur in the air, it is not a cat fight. When a new cat comes into a home, the dynamics are going to change. This may well involve a few "heated discussions," which is what you see going on here. And, honestly, sometimes a cat's gotta say what a cat's gotta say. Even with the claws out, the swat is probably nothing more than "THIS, and you'd better listen to me!"

 

[jopua]

OK...you're not doing badly here at all, for all of the above stated reasons. Here's my bottom line...If there is no blood on the floor or fur in the air, it is not a cat fight. When a new cat comes into a home, the dynamics are going to change. This may well involve a few "heated discussions," which is what you see going on here. And, honestly, sometimes a cat's gotta say what a cat's gotta say. Even with the claws out, the swat is probably nothing more than "THIS, and you'd better listen to me!"

Got this guys! Just kind of worried because Luci is stuck on top of her cat tree or the fridge the entire time Zuko is out

Sometimes she'd go to a lower level, but the moment she hits the floor or tries to go to her hiding spot behind the TV or anywhere at all, Zuko would chase her

It seems like he just wants to play, since he'll go after the wand i'm holding right after... But yeah. sorry, i'm sure i sound repetitive, i guess i'm just not used to all of this.

I try to tire zuko out but he always chases after his sister. No blood or fur, but sometimes she starts to aggressively lick herself. Stress?

I guess i'll just have to keep playing this out?

 

[rubysmama]

As long as they are eating, sleeping, using the litter box ok, and no actual fighting is going on, just let them work it out.

But do watch for any signs of stress.
Is Your Cat Stressed Out? | TheCatSite
You, Your Cat And Stress | TheCatSite

 

[Mamanyt1953]

The excessive licking may be stress. It's a commom symptom. But VERY early days yet. Let's give this another couple of weeks, WITH UPDATES, and we'll see where we are then. It may have resolved itself by then.

 

[jopua]

Got this guys! Still no happy contact, and there was an incident by the litterbox where Zuko interrupted Luci as she went by her business

I'll keep you guys updated and hopefully within a few weeks he stops chasing after her.

I'll let you guys know what happens?

 

[Mer.kitten]

Pls keep us updated! And i think youre doing pretty well, so try not to stress too much! Like others have said, a bit of hissy growly is normal bc they need to work out who's boss and whats what. If you could get them to play together that would help a lot, like have them go after a wand toy, ect. But youre doing fine so far

 

[jopua]

Pls keep us updated! And i think youre doing pretty well, so try not to stress too much! Like others have said, a bit of hissy growly is normal bc they need to work out who's boss and whats what. If you could get them to play together that would help a lot, like have them go after a wand toy, ect. But youre doing fine so far

Thanks! Worrying is part of my DNA. I'll keep you guys updated for sure! Its all the chasing and growling/hissing that's got me concerned

I have to cage one up just so the other can use the litterbox, because the moment the two cats are on the same floor, the chase is always on between the two of them. It always ends with luci going up her cat tree or.the fridge

With any luck, in two more weeks, i can get Zuko to start ignoring Luci. Haha I really don't want to part ways with any of my cats, to better their quality of life, so really hoping for the best asap. Haha

Again, thanks for the support and I'll keep you guys updated!

 

[jopua]

Update!

So it's been a month since my last post

I can now leave them be when I go to work. They still hate each other though. Zuko would always chase Luci, and Luci would hiss and growl and swat at her. And the fighting seems to have escalated a bit, with Luci's ear's going down and back in anger. Zuko keeps swatting at Luci and I don't know why. Whens she's drinking he'd run up to her and try to intimidate her (it doesn't always work) and he always swats at her tail (although I now he loved playing with the dog's tail at his foster)

Any advice on what I can do moving forward?

Any Luci still hasn't allowed me to touch her. It's been 4 months and I feel like we've regressed tbh. Maybe she's more suited to a single cat household? I don't want to give up on us yet, but I also don't want her quality of life to be shitty.

There's a 30% chance i might move to a one bedroom apartment early next year. If that's the case, can I separate them and try reintroducing them in the hopes that they'd be friends? Does that happen or work?

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[ArtNJ]

Well, I'm not entirely sure what is going on, since you aren't describing fighting in the traditional way. It could be either one wants to play, the other gets ticked about that, or traditional dislike/hatred based fighting. I can't tell.

Fights are a lot more than hissing/growling and some swatting. With fighting, there is screaming, howling, rolling around, patches of fur pulled off, constant hiding from one cat and injuries. Not all of those need to be present of course, but you didn't really mention any. So I don't really know how to advise you.

I only re-read the first and last post. Sorry if I missed relevant stuff in the middle. But I suggest either a video or a more detailed description of the typical sequence of events your seeing.

A reintroduction is often recommended, but I think it works better for some sorts of problems than others. Depending on exactly what is going on, it may or may not be worth your while.

 

[ArtNJ]

As far as the shy one not letting you touch her yet, that is a bit of a tricky issue. A cat that is stressed by another cat it has a bad relationship with living in a studio is going to be on high alert nearly constantly, making bonding a lot more difficult. So I don't want to recommend a series of steps, when in all honesty you might not be able to make much progress until you fix the cats relationship or move to the one bedroom. You haven't told us anything that makes me think the stressed kitty needs to be an only cat . . . but bringing a rescue out of her shell while there is high inter-cat stress in a studio is never going to be easy.

 

[jopua]

I'll try to take a video when it happens again!

But I guess maybe Zuko wants to play, while Luci interprets it as an attack. She's constantly hissing at him, and he's never once hissed at her back? Sometimes she'd run up to her cat tower, and he'd try to follow her, but she'd swat him away. He's always trying to follow her. Or if she passes by, he'd swat at her tail? Maybe he is playful, but Luci is getting stressed more and more I think.

There are quiet moments when one is just under the bed or on top of the fridge and the other is with me.

I guess my only hope is separating them? With any luck I'll be able to get that 1 bedroom so they can have their space and hopefully become friends after some time.

 

[ArtNJ]

Well if one wants to play and the other doesn't -- and yeah, that is what it sounds like -- that is usually something that does get slowly better with time. However, the improvement is definitely sometimes on the scale of months, not weeks, so the fact that its been one month and this is still going on isn't shocking. I don't know that a reintroduction necessarily helps that much with this sort of problem.

I don't know that the one bedroom is that big a deal either, if its an eager player vs a scared/reluctant kitty. Exposure is what tends to improve that situation. That said, it is definitely helpful if the scared kitty has some elevated spaces to retreat too. Do you have a big ole cat tree? Jackson Galaxy preaches the heck out of elevated space, and I've seen at least some evidence that its a relevant thing.

 

[jopua]

Well if one wants to play and the other doesn't -- and yeah, that is what it sounds like -- that is usually something that does get slowly better with time. However, the improvement is definitely sometimes on the scale of months, not weeks, so the fact that its been one month and this is still going on isn't shocking. I don't know that a reintroduction necessarily helps that much with this sort of problem.

I don't know that the one bedroom is that big a deal either, if its an eager player vs a scared/reluctant kitty. Exposure is what tends to improve that situation. That said, it is definitely helpful if the scared kitty has some elevated spaces to retreat too. Do you have a big ole cat tree? Jackson Galaxy preaches the heck out of elevated space, and I've seen at least some evidence that its a relevant thing.

Yep! She has a cat tree! I also bought an extra bookshelf for her to climb on, as well as the tables, a record player and even the fridge -- which she loves lying on. It might be a territory issue too, although maybe I'm imagining it. But at first the playful cat, Zuko, would just chill on the bed with me or on the floor. But recently he's been sleeping more and more in Luci's old haunts -- her cat tree, on top of the fridge, etc.

The only space that's still Luci's is behind the TV (She has a den behind a bookshelf) and under my bed.

But okay, if its a months at a time thing, I guess I'll just keep at it! I just don't wanna come home to any injured cat, but if you guys think this is normal, I'll allay my fears for now