Ok but how would you ACTUALLY onboard a kitten with your older cat

DtheJinnDtheJinn
in General

I took in a kitten from the outside once when it was storming. I already had a tuxedo cat that was a year older (the dr thinks) and apparently the outside cat was in heat. I left her in a spare room for a couple weeks, where I let her sleep in one of the older cats beds. After that I switched up there beds for a week so they could get use to each other's scents for like another month (they would paw at each other under the doorway). After that I opened the door and let them interact. They've been best buds for 10 years now.

What would you guys do?

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Comments

  • tranquilhearttranquilheart

    @DtheJinn I think you did it the absolutely correct way. I always swap blankets between their private spaces (once new kitten has been checked out by a vet). My rule is to wait at least two weeks, but I know people who’ve had success in shorter timeframes. The goal is to make sure the animals are curious and excited to meet, but very familiar with each other’s scents.

    It’s also really useful to handle one pet right before handling the other’s food or treats so they associate the smell with getting good things.

  • trysdettrysdet

    I just test waters through the cage first. Give them time get used to each other dear

  • DtheJinnDtheJinn

    Chevy Chase?!

  • tranquilhearttranquilheart

    😂 are we all in the same posts?

  • cuddlefaerycuddlefaery

    I've experienced introducing a new cat to an established one multiple times over the years with my rescues. It takes time & patience, and a little knowledge from experienced cat rescuers & foster parents helped a lot.

    The only difference I've done & would do to your method, @DtheJinn, is to extend the soft introduction period longer before even having supervised face-to-face interactions.

    My method tends to go:

    • mandatory 2 week quarantine during which they are checked out by a vet, vaccinated, etc. and have zero face-to-face or same room interaction time
    • during those two weeks, I allow the cat to adjust to the new space at their own speed and spend time bonding with them as an individual. Building trust is incredibly important.
    • I usually start the quarantine with the cat confined to a small secure room first, like a bathroom. It helps them feel safer, and I make sure they have places to hide, toys and things to explore for enrichment, etc.
    • when the cat starts showing curiosity and interest in exploring more of the house, I'll confine existing cat and start letting new cat explore in their own time. The time out in the rest of the house let's them smell the other cat(s), get a lay of the territory, and establish their own little safety and comfort spots.
    • by the time the 2 weeks are up, most cats have been ready to move into a larger room. I've tended to use my bedroom so they still get lots of social time with me. Plus, since my room would eventually be a neutral zone for all the furbabies, it allows them to get used to each other's smells and territory preferences.
    • I then move to supervised slightly ajar door interactions - only while I am home and able to intervene. Mostly they'll sniff through the door but otherwise ignore each other - that's a good thing!
    • next is supervised shared feeding time. They both get their food in their own bowls placed in the same room. It builds positive experience.
    • if that goes well a few days, shared play/training time is added. So now they share meals, share play time, but still have built in time away from each other enforced.
    • if all things go well, usually by a month of this I can start letting them interact at will with only mild supervision. Usually they won't necessarily be friends yet, but they tolerate each other and that's a great start.

    Some cats need longer - much longer. My former feral I adopted as an adult needed a full month of bathroom isolation, then a full month of having the bedroom be is safety zone before I could even do supervised door ajar time. It took him 5 years to trust me enough to climb into my lap of his own volition, another 2 to become best buds with one of my other cats. I had him for 10 years and he still had many feral qualities despite me having him in safety for far longer than he was in the wild. He never did bond with my 3rd cat and would occasionally get aggressive towards him, but mostly they just ignored each other.

    But it's important to remember that cats are like people - autonomous beings with boundaries and individual personalities and preferences. Some cats will bond with you and other animals immediately, and some will never bond at all. It's not something that can be forced, so when getting another cat to add to the family there's always the chance that they may never cohabitate peacefully. And that's ok!

  • tranquilhearttranquilheart

    @cuddlefaery I love this guide! I should clarify that when I referred to a minimum of two weeks, that’s two weeks before a supervised introduction, with plenty of time between that and allowing them to share space without direct supervision.

  • cuddlefaerycuddlefaery

    @tranquilheart no worries! I didn't even see your response until I refreshed the page, so was responding to the OP alone

  • mauvefoxmauvefox

    I've also done this several times and I think you had a great instinct here.

    the new cat gets isolated in a smaller space that is able to fully close off.

    quarantine until the vet clears them.

    Then start swapping out things like bedding. Sometimes I wear an older t shirt i don't care about tossing, then give it to the new kitten so they are used to my smell, get it all smelled up by them, then bring it to the established cats.

    the established cats should have their routine kept as peaceful as possible. they get the rule of the roost. new kitty has to find it's own way in the heirarchy.

    Spend time with the new kitty for periods of time, come out smelling like new kitty, let old kitties get used to new kitty on me.

    Then brief periods of very supervised play, a little bit throughout the day. and building from there.

    sometimes they have become the best of friends, sometimes we reach a casual civil truce.

  • BellaAineBellaAine

    @cuddlefaery I'm commenting just so I can come back to this post to read your response when the time comes. You are very appreciated in this community.🫂💖

    @DtheJinn your cats have polar opposite personalities. I adore them 🥰 It's interesting to read their back story.

  • BlueIrisBlueIris Mod

    Yep, you done good! I'd also check a Jackson Galaxy YouTube, just to make sure he doesn't have some insights that I might have forgotten about.

  • cuddlefaerycuddlefaery

    Haha thanks @BellaAine 😅

    I know I got long-winded as usual, but cat rescue is one of my particular passions. I've been active in local cat rescues in various states and am a firm believer in the Fear Free methodology. Whenever I get to a point where I can foster older cats again, I'm planning to do the certification because I believe it's so important and often overlooked with cats.

  • BlueIrisBlueIris Mod

    @cuddlefaery Thanks so much for your cat tax on the other thread. Here's my cat tax for you! She's my roomate/queen of the house.

  • pmvinespmvines

    Gonna need more litter boxes

  • cuddlefaerycuddlefaery

    @BlueIris she absolutely looks like a queen! What a gorgeous floofy girl

    The pic I shared is Jax, my only remaining cat currently. He's a special needs clingy mama's boy with idiopathic epilepsy, but he's been flourishing the past 6 months as an only child. He's 8, but you'd never guess it 😂

    His brother Jinx has been thriving with his new family as well! While littermates, they weren't super bonded and both are loving being the sole center of attention now

  • BlueIrisBlueIris Mod

    @cuddlefaery They're gorgeous!!! I once volunteered at a cat rescue. One of the volunteers used to adopt black cats because they're the ones hardest to find homes for. She had 4 in her house when I knew her.

  • cuddlefaerycuddlefaery

    One of the volunteers used to adopt black cats because they're the ones hardest to find homes for. She had 4 in her house when I knew her.

    Sounds like me 😅 I started out with a black cat we adopted from a shelter when I was a teen. I fell in love, he was my person. And then I found out how hard it is to find good homes for black cats. Some of my friends worked in shelters and vet offices, so I started volunteering and kept seeing so many lovely black kitties passed over - or worse, returned.

    I kid you not, these are some of the reasons I personally observed people returning or surrendering black cats:

    • after 6 months in new home: "We got a white couch and now his fur is ruining it. We want a white cat instead." (Have they never heard of couch covers or washable blankets? Also, why get a white couch if you already have a black pet?)
    • "my pastor said it's a demonic spirit and that I'm at risk" (yes, really 🤦🏻‍♀️)
    • "I'm worried that she'll bring bad luck"
    • "I'm tired of all the cat hair on my nice clothes" (lady, then why on earth are you getting a furry pet at all?!?)
    • "I actually wanted an orange one. I saw online that they have the best personalities"

    I hate people sometimes 🙄🤦🏻‍♀️🙄

    I have had 5 voids now over the years, up to 3 at one time. It's hard not to want to rescue all the beautiful babies. Just before the pandemic, I already had 3 cats but there was a one-eyed, one-eared, three-legged giant of a black house panther named Pirate up for adoption. I struggled so hard not to bring him home with me 😭

  • BlueIrisBlueIris Mod

    Yes, being a volunteer at a cat rescue, stuff happens. I started out with two cats, became a cat rescue volunteer, and ended up with four. Meow!!

  • natasya148natasya148

    Mine popped out of the mom and voila!! I didn’t do any introduction lol

    However the auntie just ignored them and did her business.

    Now we did have to introduce them to the dog. That was interesting…

  • DtheJinnDtheJinn

    @BellaAine the 2 im referre9ng to are older cats i no longer own.

    Cookie & Cream, that you've met, are brothers from the same litter

  • lovingspoonfulllovingspoonfull

    Ok… I’m ignorant largely because I’ve been allergic to cats since a boy and never had one. And never gotten educated but you piqued my curiosity. Why would black cats be more difficult to find homes for?

  • BlueIrisBlueIris Mod

    @lovingspoonfull If you scroll up a bit, @cuddlefaery explained it in detail.

  • lovingspoonfulllovingspoonfull
    edited June 4

    @BlueIris @cuddlefaery so she did. 🤦‍♂️😂

    I can only confess to missing it in my fumble fingered scroll. Thank you both.

    I did do a google search and found several rehoming agencies for black cats (first three I found were in LA?) , but no explanation so thus my post as that confirmed a real need.

    Thanks for elucidating!

    I’ve had dogs, including black and dark brown and never come across that concept.

    I can only say I wish everyone would treat these animals as more than disposable fashion accessories.

  • cuddlefaerycuddlefaery

    One of my dreams for "retirement" is to run a black cat rescue. They're few and far between, and the idea of being surrounded by a bunch of voids fills me with joy 😁🖤🐈‍⬛

  • BellaAineBellaAine

    @cuddlefaery I can relate to that. One of my dreams as a child was to rescue children from the streets and give them the love and protection they deserved. I used to tell myself that one day I'd be rich and come back to help them. I felt their pain so deeply that it would make me physically sick. You brought back those feelings (in a good way).

  • pmvinespmvines

    Kitties !!

  • BellaAineBellaAine

    @DtheJinn Don't let them know I confused them. 🫣🐈🐈

  • BellaAineBellaAine

    My furry friends 😍 🥰

  • pmvinespmvines

  • mauvefoxmauvefox

    My two current kitties. Didn’t have to get them used to each other cause they came as a pair from the same litter.

    We did have to introduce them to my dear departed orange tiger. Poor old man didn’t know what to do with these two. But before that he was a kitten terrorizing the kitties before him. And so and so forth until the dawn of time.

    Now introducing the 75 pound dog with a strong chase instinct to the cats. That was and has been the ongoing challenge.

  • BellaAineBellaAine

    @BlueIris cat looks like a runway model. She even has the attitude for it. 🥰💅

    @cuddlefaery cat looks like he can talk. Soo cute 🥰

    @mauvefox I'm in love with the cuddling pair. I keep coming back to look at their baby pic. It's so wholesome. 🥹😍

    Your orange tiger is me right now. 😆🥰🐈 May he R.I.P

    Your dog is not having it lol 😆🥰

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