The Adopted cat is bullying resident cat..

Elliecatt

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Hi I recently adopted a cat and he's great( The Orange Tabby ).. But I am having a really hard time having the cat I adopted and the cat at home get along.
They're fine together until My resident cat enters the adopted cat's safe room. He gets territorial in every room actually.
He won't let my resident cat enter or exit.
I have tried a lot of things in only a week of having him. I feel stressed all the time now and I feel like nothing will improve with him and my other cat..
I have bonded with him though but I obviously care more about my resident cat at the moment.
He is bullying her and I don't know what to do.. He follows her and she runs off looking really scared sometimes with her tail down and ears down.
When that happens I just take him into my room again and separate them. My resident cat doesn't swat at him when he does something she doesn't like.

The last thing I want to do is return him to the shelter. But I feel so hopeless and sad for my other cat, she's not happy..
Can anyone offer advice?
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ArtNJ

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A week isn't very long, there is plenty of hope here. Whats going on isn't bullying. Rather, the new cat isn't yet feeling secure enough vis-a-vis the resident cat. So the new cat perceives a hostile cat -- no matter how your resident acts -- and is making signals and actions to chase it off. That isn't so bad. Sounds like the new cat does not want a true fight and this is all intended as deterrence. And your resident cat seems to be doing well! So this is actually not bad in the scheme of these things. Your in a decent place to improve from.

With adult cats, its better to do a gradual and formal introduction process. Here is our guide: How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide – TheCatSite Articles

How old are these cats?
 
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Elliecatt

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How old are these cats?
The new cat is 10 months old and the Tortie is almost 5 years old..
She's never been the oldest, I lost my other 2 cats in the last 3 years and she's never been the only cat until now.
 

Robyn5678

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I would check out some posts on introducing cats. I have a 17 year old that I introduced to younger cats in December. She still doesn’t like them and will chase them. One of them she will fill blow attack. I have a gate set up halfway thru my house so they all have their own space. I feed them on each side of the gate, every few days moving it closer to closer to the gate. Hoping she gets used to them to coexist peacefully.
 
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Elliecatt

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Maybe I should mention that I live in a condo and I don't really have unlimited space so that's why I keep him in my room.

I just thought that if one of them was going to chase off the other it would be my resident cat..
I feel a bit of resentment when I see him chasing her around and making her uncomfortable. I know that's probably wrong.
He also escapes all the time.. I don't have a gate either I guess I'd have to buy one because he is so quick and he runs into her immediately. They don't hiss at each other anymore unless she comes into the room he is staying in even if he isn't in it.
But I don't ignore him, I play with him all the time, I buy him toys and he is happy as long as he is closed in the room.
But I am worried if he stays in here too long with out going out he will become even more territorial?
My resident cat loves to be with me in my room so I don't want to have to say no to her coming in for too long..it breaks my heart to be honest. I miss sleeping with her.
 

ArtNJ

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So the 5 year old is fine with the new cat? Thats very good. The younger a cat is, the more adaptable, in general. Cats under a year tend to do VERY well when introduced to other cats. It can take some time, there can be difficulties, but the chances are very good of getting past them. Take a look at the guide I linked -- backing up a bit might make sense, say to the visual access step, if you can manage that.

Its only been a week. Your prognosis is very good here.
 

Robyn5678

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Maybe I should mention that I live in a condo and I don't really have unlimited space so that's why I keep him in my room.

I just thought that if one of them was going to chase off the other it would be my resident cat..
I feel a bit of resentment when I see him chasing her around and making her uncomfortable. I know that's probably wrong.
He also escapes all the time.. I don't have a gate either I guess I'd have to buy one because he is so quick and he runs into her immediately. They don't hiss at each other anymore unless she comes into the room he is staying in even if he isn't in it.
But I don't ignore him, I play with him all the time, I buy him toys and he is happy as long as he is closed in the room.
But I am worried if he stays in here too long with out going out he will become even more territorial?
My resident cat loves to be with me in my room so I don't want to have to say no to her coming in for too long..it breaks my heart to be honest. I miss sleeping with her.
I highly recommend a gate but one tall enough they can’t get over too easily. They can walk up to each other and sniff etc. you can also alternate the cats in the spaces. Let your resident cat come in the bedroom and the new one explore the smells of the resident cat. This is the gate I have.

Frisco Steel Extra Tall Auto-Close Dog Gate, 41-in, Black:
https://app.chewy.com/NFh9QqfQ1pb
 
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Elliecatt

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So the 5 year old is fine with the new cat? Thats very good. The younger a cat is, the more adaptable, in general. Cats under a year tend to do VERY well when introduced to other cats. It can take some time, there can be difficulties, but the chances are very good of getting past them. Take a look at the guide I linked -- backing up a bit might make sense, say to the visual access step, if you can manage that.

Its only been a week. Your prognosis is very good here.
I will check it out, and i'll keep working at this.. how would you deal with the stress of it all?
I have never had to go through this at all.. I have had 3 cats all at once and they all loved each other.
My current resident cat was just 3 weeks old when she joined my family and my other cats welcomed her with no issues..
I have never adopted an older cat like this so it's all new to me I guess.
 

CleoVixyDuke

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Maybe I should mention that I live in a condo and I don't really have unlimited space so that's why I keep him in my room.

I just thought that if one of them was going to chase off the other it would be my resident cat..
I feel a bit of resentment when I see him chasing her around and making her uncomfortable. I know that's probably wrong.
He also escapes all the time.. I don't have a gate either I guess I'd have to buy one because he is so quick and he runs into her immediately. They don't hiss at each other anymore unless she comes into the room he is staying in even if he isn't in it.
But I don't ignore him, I play with him all the time, I buy him toys and he is happy as long as he is closed in the room.
But I am worried if he stays in here too long with out going out he will become even more territorial?
My resident cat loves to be with me in my room so I don't want to have to say no to her coming in for too long..it breaks my heart to be honest. I miss sleeping with her.
You and I are in identical situations. It is very stressful and I too feel bad for my original cat. Wish I knew the solution.
 

LTS3

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Here is another helpful article:

 
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