Trying A 3rd Cat

[lukey]

Hi,

I met a nice cat that was living at a battery store here. He wa given to the owner by his daughter 12 years ago and has lived there ever since. He weighs about 18 lbs. He's a really sweet guy cat and I felt sorry for him living quite a bored life at the store. Owner isn't really a cat person but has been real good to this canned his son stops by and plays with Sunny every day. I talked him into feeding him less, he was free feeding kibble and canned and was filling the bowl at night when he went home. At the store Sunny pooped in his little box as well as outside of it, often pooping on the floor and peeing. He's been neutered many years ago.

I have him in a spare bedroom. They have smelled each other through the vent of the doorr and they have not hissed at all as of yet. Does this mean I can introduce any faster? Sunny was very vocal when I took him in here in the carrier.

I'm not sure what that is under his nose. Owner says Sunny likes to rub his nose on things as if it itches.

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• lukey
• Mar 18, 2013

 

[feralvr]

What a wonderful thing you have done for Sunny by giving him a loving home. He is very good looking. :love: I would first suggest that you bring Sunny to the vet for vaccinations, FeLK/FIV testing and fecal before introducing him to your other cats. No need to rush the introductions. You want to make sure he is 100% healthy and dewormed. Unless the other "owner" took care of these things then I would ask for copies of his records. You could even use the same vet!! Congratulaions on your new family member. He is just too cute.

 

[lukey]

Good idea. thanks

His owner took him to the vet many times, I think. I'll hopefully find out this info tomorrow.

I have a feeling his pooping on the floor may have had to with a very high walled litter box he had, plus the fact that he has a fat belly. If he loses 5 pounds and has a lower walled box, he may very well poop in the box more often.

He is a really sweet guy. He purred almost all the time I was in the shop visiting him. I thought it was a shame to make this poor guy exist at this shop when there was a chance that he could adapt to living here and have a much more fulfilling life. His owner is a real nice man and took very good care of Sunny.

He's only been here a few hours, and would you believe he's already eating? He went for some kibble covered in coconut oil and brewers yeast, and some uncured turkey bacon and canned mackerel. If I keep him I plan to adapt him raw like my other 2 cats.
 

 

[lukey]

I think he has a type of cleft lip.

 

[lukey]

We determined Sunny is extremely unlikely to have FLV or FIV. When should I try to expose them to each other more? He hasn't been here 24 hours yet. He's eating and is pooping / peeing in his litter box. I don't want to go too fast with them. I hope they all continue to poop in any of the 3 litter boxes.

 

[GoldyCat]

I'll move this thread to Behavior. I think you'll get more help in that forum with introducing your cats.

 

[lukey]

That's OK. I did some reading on introducing a new cat. Thanks.

 

[mimi3908]

He is one good looking boy. It sounds like you got a good handle on things. Take introduction slowly - no need to rush it. You did good by keeping cat in separate room first and let the kitties smell each other through a barrier. Then swap blankets from the kitties so they get use to each other scent quickly and probably in a few weeks, you open the door and allow for supervised visits. Recognize whether any kitty is alpha and hope that the kitties accept the pecking order. Don't know how big your house is, but I think a bigger home is a good conducive environment for kitties to get along because they can find their own space when they want to. Then you probably need to give attention to kitties to make sure no jealousy over you or over food. While I think you are most likely correct that a 12 year old+ cat is unlikely to be FIV/FELV+ at his age (if they were, they wouldn't live that long), it is probably best you give the new kitty a full checkup just in case otherwise you might be taking a risks with your other kitties. And it is wonderful of you to give the kitty a new home. Good luck with everything.