i had 2 cats that were together since kitten. a while ago the boycat died suddenly, and the girl was left forlorn and completely lost. i had planned to get a kitten in any case before my boy died. so i thought i'd get her an adult friend from shelter so she's not alone with this terror of a kitten.
but now she hates both of them. and they hate her. and they hate my dogs. my dogs love cats, and are completely baffled.
i know i cant expect a perfect family at an instant, but what can i do to help the integration of the new family members along?
2007-02-23 08:00:59 · 5 answers · asked by african_woman 3 in Pets ➔ Cats
It looks to me you have taken on alot of problems, but with lots of love. Again there is one thing and only one thing that is going to put this all together, and that is 'TIME'. Time will heal all. but it can also cause you alot of pain in the minetime. With the use of a squirt bottle (water) and lots of equal love and attention, you should start getting into the happy family thing in the near future. I dont know any other solution other than time. We are going through it with a selter cat (adult) as we speak. After about five weeks she is just starting to mingle. Still growling some, but not as much. Please give it time, and tons of patience, and I do believe it will work out.
2007-02-23 08:48:13 · answer #1 · answered by megofish2day 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First impressions are absolutely crucial! Cats are very territorial and dislike change- they don't like to share their home (and humans) with foreign invaders. Most likely, your cat is completely overwhelmed.
Cat introductions are slow, painstaking processes. I recently bought a terror of a kitten to be a companion to my 2 year old cat. I was explicity told to keep them separated for a minimum of 1-2 weeks, only swapping bedding material occasionally to swap scents. Then I cracked the door so they could see each other and play "paws" for another week. There was lots of hissing and running. When it was finally time for the introduction, my 2 year old cat was absolutely terrified of the kitten and wouldn't come out from under my bed for days. I was heartbroken and burst into tears...All that work and such a bad response... Eventually my car came out, and was still wary of the kitten, who loved to "attack" her and play rough. Keep a squirt bottle handy and if one seems to be pushing the other's buttons, punish them. Luckily for me, my 2 year old grew to love the kitten and now they lick each other, sleep near eachother, but still do occasionally hiss and fight. The whole process took about THREE months- and boy was it stressful!
I would recommend separation for a while.. lots of treats, lots of patience, and lots of love. I've read dozens of books on the topic and recommend you do some web-searches or talk to a local animal shelter about it. You have to realize that it's just a fact that sometimes cats will just refuse to accept another cat... If things don't get better you must consider giving the new cats up.
2007-02-23 19:52:32 · answer #2 · answered by Melinda C 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
just let them be, eventually they will get used to each other. It's new for them to have strangers in the house, or be the strangers.
2007-02-23 16:16:55 · answer #3 · answered by iloveyou! 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Just give it time.
2007-02-23 16:16:05 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can't .........
2007-02-23 16:05:10 · answer #5 · answered by troble # one? 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋