How to introduce a new cat?

Question

I have just got a new 8 week old kitten and was wondering what the best way to socialise her into my house it

I already have a2yr old persian girl cat. She was the runt of the litter so the new cat is goinvg to be a lot bigger and i dont want the Persian to get put down the bottom of the ladder.

I also have a dog but it is proving easier to introduce the kitten to the dog than to the other cat

Any ideas?

Answer 1

Very carefully! When I brought home an abandoned 3 week old kitten, my other two cats were not impressed. My youngest cat at the time was 8 months old (neutered male), my eldest was 14 months old (neutered female). I pretty much left them to their own, but I remained on stand-by in case I had to perform an emergency catectomy. My male cat soon took to the kitten and has since being playing the role of parent (grooming the kitten, playing with him, and snuggling up to him to sleep). My eldest cat would not be in the same room as him for over a week. Every time she so much as caught a glimpse of the kitten she's his and spit at him then storm off out of the room in disgust, and she wouldn't speak to me for days. After a couple of weeks she began to tolerate him a bit more, she didn't bother about being in the same room as him so long as he kept well away from her. Now, three months on, she occassionally finds time to play with him, but only if nobody is watching. If she is caught in the act she will put on a performance of hissing and spitting at him just to convince everyone that she still hates him. She does occassionally have a general good spit at him just because he has invaded her space, or worse- tried to encourage her to play when she's not in the mood. I find that most cats will come to tolerate others in the same house providing they know that there is plenty of space so they can get out of the way when they have had enough. It is important to not force them to like each other, and you must also accept that there will be some falling out now again. Make time for your eldest cat- you might find that he/she doesn't liked been stroked when the new comer is in the same room (this is what my oldest cat was like in the beginning), so make time, even if it means shoving the new cat out of the room while you spend time with the older one.

Answer 2

there are a lot of ways to introduce a new kitten. Unfortunately in our house we didn't have many options so we just threw the new one in with our old cat and it wasn't a pretty picture. The best idea is to seperate the new kitten from the rest of a house, perhaps in a laundry room or a bathroom with a door. make sure the other cat or animals can get to the door. Place the kitten's food close by the door so that it will need to be near the door when it eats (you'll want a litter box in there too). The older cat will be curious about the new scent and atfer about a week will be used to the new scent of the kitttne. Then it's time to let the kitten out. You may want to start letting it out gradually as the other cat may have gotten used to the smell but not the actual kitten itself. So if they don't seem to work well together than maybe let the kitten out for an hour or so just to test things out.
I think persian cats have a tempermentabout them any way (from what i've seen) they tend to not like other animals period. But I hope this helps a little bit. There are several good websites out there. here's one from Purina.
Good luck!!

http://www.purina.com/cats/kittens/Welcoming.aspx

Answer 3

When you first bring home your new cat, be prepared to be patient. It must be a gradual process, so don't expect instant harmony. Cats that like being with people are not necessarily sociable towards other cats. However, a confident, friendly cat is more likely to approach newcomers with curiosity rather than mistrust or jealousy. Whereas, a timid cat will probably be cautious, fearful and even aggressive towards another pet. It may take weeks of gentle persuasion before they are confident enough to be in the same room as the newcomer.

The Steps to Take

Set up a comfortable "safe room" for New Cat. Put her food, water, litter box (not near the food), scratching post, toys, and bed or other sleeping mat there.
Expect a great deal of "hissy-spitty" behavior through the closed door from both cats.
This is natural and normal; they are just starting to explore their "pecking order."
Scent is very important for cats. Let each of them smell the other indirectly, by rubbing a towel on one and letting the other smell it. They will soon accept the scent as a normal part of the house.
Once or twice, switch roles. Put New Cat in the normal living quarters, and let your resident cat sniff out the new cat's Safe Room.
After a day or so, let the two cats sniff each other through a baby-gate or through a barely-opened door. Gauge the rate at which they seem to be acclimating to each other.
When you think they're ready, let them mingle under your supervision. Ignore hissing and growling, but you may have to intervene if a physical battle breaks out. Again, take this step slowly, depending on how quickly they get along. If they do seem to tolerate each other, even begrudgingly, praise both of them profusely.
Make their first activities together enjoyable ones so they will learn to associate pleasure with the presence of the other cat. Feeding (with their own separate dishes), playing, and petting. Keep up with the praise.
If things start going badly, separate them again, and then start where you left off. If one cat seems to consistently be the aggressor, give her some "time out," then try again a little bit later.
The introduction can take from two hours to six months, so don't be discouraged if your cats don't seem to get along well at first. Often the case is that they will eventually be "best buddies."

Best of luck

Answer 4

That's a tough one. Our latest kitten was accepted by one of our cats, but not the other. However, the other has never accepted any other cats. For the most part, you just let them figure it out for themselves, while monitoring them. If they are especially hostile you can minimize this by giving both of them attention while in each other presence and feeding them close to each other so they get the idea that they are part of the same pack/family. Cats aren't really pack animals like dogs. Cats see their owner as a mother, not as a pack-leader like a dog would, so it's a matter of showing the cats that you are the "mother" to all of the cats. And even then, they may still never get along. Some cats just have an attitude problem.

Answer 5

pick the young kitten up, and carry her to the older cat, all the time patting it... when you are near enough to the older cat, pat the both of them while still holding the younger cat... this shows the older cat the new kitten is no threat to you....Gently show the older cat the kitten - she will hiss, but just keep patting them both... It will take maybe a week for the older cat to accept that the new kitten is no threat.. The older cat knows its place in the household, so don't worry to much about that... the cats will figure each other out and become best of buddies...

GL and have fun

Answer 6

In my opinion, you should just let them get on with it. They will find their own order within the next couple of weeks and then don't intervene. Whoever comes out on top must be allowed to keep that position, as the more that you interfere the more stress you will be introducing into the situation. I have been thro' this at least five times and have found that if I do not make a fuss of any of them they manage to settle down quicker.

Answer 7

Older, resident female cats take reluctantly to a new female kitten. So it will be a matter of time and patience until the two females work out their hierarchy in the household.

It will help to make sure the kitten is not intruding too much on the older cat -- in her litterbox, in her food bowl, or in her favorite places to nap in your house.

Answer 8

Make it gradual a few hours a day and build it up but you do have to accept some acts just don't like each other full stop normally as they get a bit older they tend to put up wioth each other.

You should ensure the older cat feels special and give them lots of fuss I have introduced two younbger cats to our moggies and they all get along now.
Good luck

Answer 9

i have a big cat and introduced it to a kitten by following the instructions i downloaded from petco

my dog didnt have a problem with any of the cats... i found that it only has problems with other dogs

Answer 10

When you bring the cat into the house put it down to the other cat and let her inspect it . DONT give ANY extra attention to the new cat . The 1st cat might get jealous and run away