When to let cats be together?

[cdee]

Hi everyone!

We have a 5mo. old spayed female kitten (Poe) that we've had in the house for 2 month. Yesterday we adopted a 1yr old spayed female kitten (Ginger) from one of the local rescues. They said she was a yr old but she looks much younger. Ginger has her own room and showed that she was extremely comfortable with us and the room within 2 hours. Lol, she calls for us when we're not in the room. The Poe was sticking her nose and paws under the door late last night, so we decided to put a gate up in the door to see how they react. We know that a open door and gate after 4 hours is fast, but everyone is seemingly fine. We also have 2 dogs that go to the gate to visit her. Ginger has only hissed at the dogs once... now just watches them. Poe seems totally fine with the new kitten and even tries to play through the gate, sometimes climb it to get in (she's hasn't made it in yet- we supervise when the gate is up. Poe sleeps outside the gate. She also slept outside the door all last night. The new kitten has  hissed twice at Poe last night, and hasn't hissed at her yet today. Lol, I think Poe is itching to play with the newcomer.

My question is how will I know when it's time to open the gate? What signs should I look for? It all seems to be moving super smooth and quickly, but I don't want to mess it up.

Thanks!

C

 

[howtoholdacat]

Sounds like you've got it under control!  I would keep taking my time but if everything looked and felt "right" to me after letting them play for a while through the gate, I'd take it down and see what happens.  I'd keep them separated while unsupervised until the sessions where they're together seem solid.  I would start with the cats only and then add the dogs later. 

 

[rad65]

If they are already on friendly terms, which it sounds like they are, you can introduce them right now. The main thing is, you don't want to leave them alone in the same room until you are pretty sure they have worked out all their issues. Hissing is pefectly normal and to be expected, especially from Poe as the resident cat, and so is a bit of roughhousing, but serious fights should be broken up and the cats should be seperated for a while after that. If they do start fighting, do not yell at either one, and do not pick up either one. The one you pick up will be seen as your favorite, and that might cause behavioral problems in the cat you didn't "rescue."

Stay calm when you do the introduction and both cats will feed off your confidence and should be fine. Also, make sure to go out of your way to show Poe at least as much attention as Ginger, or Poe may resent Ginger and start fighting with her. Cats are very territorial, and if you support Ginger over Poe, Poe will think you're picking favorites. Don't worry if they are cold toward each other at first, female cats tend to be more territorial than males. As long as the cats aren't fighting, you should be fine leaving them alone together.