Any suggestions on introducing a new cat into the household?

Question

I want to adopt a stray male cat who's been hanging around my house since the spring. I am planning to take him to the vet to get him vaccinated and neutered. My biggest worry is that I have a 17 yr old female who is set in her ways. I'm worried that he will eat her food and that if he uses her litter box, she won't. Any suggestions on making this work. He's so cute - I really want to give him a home.

Details - My cat is an indoor cat so she has always used a litter box. I had a second cat (they were littermates) until 2 years ago and my second cat died, so Tabby has been used to having another cat in the house. I will certainly make sure that this cat is disease free before exposing Tabby to him. I realize there will be an issue with bringing an outdoor cat inside but it's worth a try!:) thanks for all your reponses.

Answer 1

I would keep them separated and introduce them very slowly. It isn't fair to the 17 y/o to just plop him into her environment. Have all the Vet work and possibly keep them in separate rooms. Let them have access at seeing one another. Try this for about 1-2 weeks and see if the older cat doesn't snug up to him. I'm sure they will get along beautifully, if you go slow.

Answer 2

You may want to keep them separated for the first few days and make sure that the new kittie has been cleared by a vet to make sure it doesn't pass anything on to your resident cat.

When I introduced my two kitties to each other, I first took a damp wash cloth and wiped down my resident cat and then my new kittie. And then did the same with again - new kittie to resident cat. This way the kinda smell the same.

Be prepared for some hissing and swatting, but they should after a short time get along fine.

Two litter boxes is a must (at least to start) then there shouldn't be an issue. Also you can get Feliway in a spray and in a plug-in form and this sends out pheromones that calm the cats down.

Try two bowls and place one in front of each.

I wish you all the best! and good for you on taking in a stray.

Answer 3

thank you for being so kind hearted. I have 2 strays that are now members of the family, making the cat total 4. The best thing to do is to set him up his own "station" complete with litter box, food and water. When you bring a new cat into the house, there is bound to be hissing and spitting for a while - they have to get the pecking order straightened out. It would be best if you wait to bring him in after he's neutered and you make sure he does not have feline leukemia. Then just introduce them slowly, maybe keeping him in a bedroom for a few days when he first comes in. Also keep in mind, if he is used to roaming and being outside, he may not like the idea of being a inside cat, so that could become a problem. Good luck to you

Answer 4

17? That's very good, especially for a cat!

If you are worried about him eating her food- and I can see why, with him being young and healthy- close him up when you feed her. And if you think there might be a problem with the litter box, get a second one for him, and make sure he knows where it is. It is true that some kitties don't like sharing their boxes.

When you bring him into the house, have someone your kitty doesn't recognize as family carry him in: That way she won't feel you're betraying her. Make sure to give her lots of extra attention, for the same reason.

There might be a little spatting about who's the top cat. This will go on for a couple of weeks. Don't interfere unless you see a real danger. You probably won't, since you are neutering him. Oh yes, and make sure he's not carrying fleas too: Those can be hard to get rid of!

Good luck!

Answer 5

Be sure to have the vet check the cat for intestinal parasites, earmites and fleas. Most strays have them and they can be easily treated. You don't want the cat passing anything to your other cat. If your 17 year cat has never been around other cats, you might want to think deeply about disrupting her last years with a new cat. If you decide she can handle it, just go slowly in introducing them. I adopted a 1 year old cat last year and my 6 year old cat had never lived with another cat before. I followed the advice of the anti-cruelty society and I put the new cat in a separate room for 2 weeks with his own toys, food and litterbox. He needed to rest from his neutering anyway. During this time, I let them smell each other under the door. Then I would put my older cat in the room and let the new cat explore the house. I would switch them back and forth a few times a day so they would get used to each others scent. I gave my older cat extra attention so he wouldn't be upset. Then I starting cracking the door so they could peek at each other. My older cat hissed and howled when he peeked at his new "little brother". After a few days of peeking at him, he stopped hissing. When I finally let them meet, my older cat attacked the new one and he was terrified. It took them months to get used to each other and I still separate them at night because now my younger cat is trying to be the dominant cat. I keep their nails trimmed in case a fight breaks out. I think its great that you're considering giving the cat a home. It'll take time and patience. Good luck.

Answer 6

We always solved the problem of bringing a new cat (although often a kitten) into the house, by introducing a 3rd 1 at the same time to take the pressure off the original cat. Plus extra food bowls, bedding, etc. help.

You have to consider that the 17yo will be coming towards the end of her life now aswell, so it would be nice company for the stray if you introduced a 3rd.

I would have thought a 17yo cat would be trained too use the loo outside by now?

Answer 7

hi Anna, this is what you will have have been given to do: shop the kitten in its own room for about 2-3 weeks (a spare mattress room must be an astounding region). ascertain the cat has nutrients, water, a clutter field and loads of toys available. Introduce the cat to the domestic dog SLOWLY. After a pair days of having the cat in the apartment, take it out of the room and introduce it to the domestic dog. ascertain you're conserving the kitten. Dont be surprised if the kitten starts off hissing and swatting on the domestic dog (it is fully classic). supply them approximately 5 or 10 minutes of traveling time on a daily foundation. ascertain somebody is there to control the domestic dog as stable. purely preserve doing this, it takes staying power! yet ultimately they'll many times get alongside

Answer 8

before you take in the male cat call your local SPCA or animal shelter to make sure nobody has reported losing him - even he could have been lost from the other side of town...
dont bring him in untill he has been to the vet...

rule of thumb for multiple cats - 1 litter box per cat and ideally 1 extra
they can eat from same dish BUT she is older and probably on senior food - if he isnt old he should probably be on adult food so feeding them seperate will be a problem

ok introducing -> the new kitty should be kept in a room to himself for 1-2 weeks the cats will meet by sniffing their paws under the door - after 1 week you can let him out for supervised visits, but keep in the room at night or when you are away... when you are comfortable you can let them out together - good luck

Answer 9

Thats so sweet of ya! I have a stray whos adopted our yard as his own ( he even pees and poos in the neighbors yard not mine!! haha) but hes feral so i cant adopt him into the family, i have young kids. I have 4 male cats and had some fun introducing them to one another. My oldest cat was at my mother in laws for 4 years because i couldnt house him at the time- so when i finally could and brought him into my furry family of 2 2 year old cats , i was a little nervous! Since im home all day i was able to constantly monitor things, but I just put him in the litter box room, let him out and payed attention to him and so forth. Doing so caused my other 2 to take notice, so with me on the floor, we all kinda just got to know one another, but with me there to. Paying attention to all 3 at the same time. THen i walked away, and just let things take their natural flow. LOL Now maybe i have good cats i dont know, but to this day theres never been a cat fight, (i have 5 now) but it took those 3 about 4 days to adjust to one another and that was it. I mean there were moments of uncomfertable watching from everyone, but they got along great. I personally think letting them do their own thing, as long as the new kitty doesnt run and hide under the bed, he'll need more supervision in that case. On the litter box note, I think that they should learn to use the same box, or at least put his next ot hers so if she wants to she can check out his. Same with the food. Since hes been an outdoor cat, you'll have to really watch his behaviours with your indoor because you can never take the wild out of a cat. If he was ever feral at some point. The confinement of the house will be VERY new to him, which will make your 17 yr old see a world of nerves from the new one. I say just let them do their own thing but with your supervision. Pet her in front of him pet him in front of her, walk away, come back to them both, yadda yadda! Good luck with everything, and congrats to the lil outside stray for finding a great heart and home with you!!

Answer 10

Keep them separate for a few days..then slowly let one cat out of the room to get used to the other cat's scent...just introduce very slowly.