Second cat

LunaB

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Hello everyone,

we adopted/rescued a young cat back at the start of the summer, she is now 1 and a half years old and since we adopted her, she has now come fully out of her shell. She is very friendly, loving and very very playful, to the point where she wants to play all the time.
We would now like to introduce a second cat, to keep her company and to play with her. However, what we are struggling on, is whether to adopt a kitten or a cat that is between 18months and 2yrs old
My thinking is that Luna (our resident cat) would not only be able to establish that she is alpha over a kitten, but that a kitten would probably better match her energy levels and that maybe a cat that is slightly older than her might try to mother her.

Or, because they are of a similar age Luna and the slightly older would be best friends!

Any advice would help 😊🐱 thank you in advance
 

catwoman707

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With females being bossy and not so big on companions, I would go for a male for starters.
A 4-6 month old male already neutered is probably your best bet.
Be aware that she will be showing him who's boss for about a month. He will show her submission to it by laying on his back when she swats at him. It usually will take about a month until she feels she has made her position clear and he is no threat to it.
Then the friendship will come. 4-6 months is a good age so he is energetic and not fragile.
If her bullying him gets bad you can separate for s few but be careful about babying him in front of her.
 

tabbytom

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LunaB, on behalf of The Catsite community, a warm
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to you.


So glad that you’ve joined this wonderful site and you are in the right place for all things cat and this site is loaded with tons of rich resources and you’ll find friendly and helpful cats around and many of our cats are very knowledgeable in cat related stuffs.

Do post photos of Luna for us to see! :camera: :camera: :camera:

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cataholic07

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I would recommend a highly socialized cat friendly kitty. So no less than 16 weeks old if you go for a kitten. I honestly think personality matters more than gender. I have two male brothers, one is super cat social and wants to be besties with all the new fosters right away, the other takes at least a month to stop hissing and growling lol. Ensuring you have space for enough resources (3 litter boxes placed around the home) and multiple cat trees to. A catio is a great way to get extra cat territory to as well as cat shelves and slow proper intros is a must. You must be willing for it to take a month before the new kitty is out and about freely.
 

flybear

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Yes I agree a kitten will be easier to accept for your cat ( who is still a kitten at heart ) ... My first cat was around 10 math old when we adopted two sisters for him and he loved them form the moment he saw them ... that is rather unusual but even later in life he has always been a cat friendly cat. Cats have individual personalities and matching them can be tricky... I recommend NOT not adopt a kitten who is on the crazy side... a laid back or even shy one who accepts your adult as his new mom replacement would be ideal. Kittens miss their siblings and moms terribly and are open to new friendships. When you look at kittens ...look for the kitten that is not in your face from the beginning ... but kind of a little hesitant ( but does;t hide or shows signs of being under-socialized) ... I never kept kittens separated for longer than a week - because I feel for the little guys I foster- they get lonely - especially single ones. I use a bathroom for introduction. Usually my adults start playing pat a paw with the kittens after a few days when the babies have lost their " stranger smell" - plenty of scent swapping .. most adults will insitinctively be careful with kittens and not seriously hurt them - they might hiss or even growl to start with ...that is normal ... but within a few days the newbie starts smelling less strange and they will want to interact - that can look rough in the beginning ... head bops, chasing , loud screaming wrestling with neck biting ... believe it or not ... it is not always what it looks like ... they will learn each other's cues and language ( one says " stop that" by a growl or hiss or a head bop or neck bite ...Kittens can be relentless and need to be taught manners lol )... Kitten integration is always easier than an adult. I recently added first one ... and then two month later two more kittens to my two adult 3 year old cats ... they had their moments and it took about 3 months or so but now they all sleep , groom and play together ... and having a blast causing mischief !
 

rubysmama

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Awww... what a precious cutie pie. Good luck with the introductions. :catlove:
 
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