Getting another cat

dark_waltz

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Hey all I want a playmate for midas (WHo is now 9 month old)
Is it better to get a male or a female ? I don't want loads of fighting to be honest!
Plus do you think it is ok for a new kitten at this age ?
So which is easiest ?

( I want a quiet life really)
 

larke

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Either a female who's likely (breedwise) to end up bigger than he is, or a younger male who'll know who's boss from day one. There will always be hissy fits, fights and yowling for a couple of weeks no matter what or who you get, but once that's overwith you're still always going to run into issues about territory, dominance, etc., and the only thing you can do is try to equalize the situation. Been there, done that, given up on ideals :-).
 

babyharley

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We got Harley a playmate when he was a little bit over 1 yr. (Its actually his 1/2 brother) but we ended up getting another male (Davidson, now 5 months) and we didnt have any behavior issues at all.

I was going thru the same thing, debating on getting a male or female, but a lot of people told me to try to get a kitten/cat with the same personality as your other cat. Davidson was very playful and lovey, just like Harley. We've never had any problems with them getting along - they've loved eachother from day one!

Good luck with your choice, but I personaly think that you should base it on personality - not gender
 
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dark_waltz

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Thankyou both, We are getting a little girl!
I will show you the pics asap!
Getting a bigger breed for him is hard hes not pedigree or at least hes not said to be but hes huge now bigger than the 13 y/o cat round the corner and hes only young!
will keep you updated shes not coming for a couple of weeks, the owner was happy to give her away at 6 weeks but I want to make sure she is fully weaned so its best to leave it for a couple of weeks so everything is fine!
 

larke

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Please don't shoot the messenger :-), but I hope you're prepared to spend a lot of time supervising their interactions not only during the introduction period, but possibly forever. Male cats will try to not only dominate females, but sometimes worse, and you could end up with two cats permanently separated behind doors when you're not home - or risk losing the new one.
 

schwarzekatz

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Originally Posted by Larke

Please don't shoot the messenger :-), but I hope you're prepared to spend a lot of time supervising their interactions not only during the introduction period, but possibly forever. Male cats will try to not only dominate females, but sometimes worse, and you could end up with two cats permanently separated behind doors when you're not home - or risk losing the new one.
LOL, try telling that to my petite Macy who is the only female in the bunch. She pushes all the boys around.
 

goldenkitty45

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I've never had any of my males (neutered or whole) try to dominate the others - my females were more boss cats.

I think neutered males are far easier to introduce to other cats then females are. We have a female cat and will be getting a male ocicat in the spring. I know I'd have a rough time trying to bring in another female as Ling has her grandmothers personality of not liking other females
 

namo

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We got a kitten for Draco so he wouldn't be lonely when we're not there, and, hopefully, not pick on Meeker so much. He took to her right away, just as he's done for every new animal we've introduced. He even 'taught' her his bad manners of chasing Meeker around!
 

proudkittiemom

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well we got two males and two females but see the males tend to fight each other well midnight tries to dominate all the other cats but every one knows will is boss and he dont let any one come near him he just leaves lol, and bella and stormie took right away and bella and midnight get along because well midnight went to put his paw up and she showed him who was boss lol but because it was for me we ended up with stormie another female but we have too many males in this house already lol...and i cant wait till you get your little girl post pics soon as you can !
 

zak&rocky

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When Zakk was 9 months we got Rocky who was basically a good playmate to him though they had some real wrestling fights. When they were like 1 and 2 we got two littermates, Cookie was skittish though playful and Suzie is extremely skittish of cats and humans. That actually worked out good because Rocky played with Cookie some and left Zakk alone a bit. Suzie enjoyed Rocky's companionship. Well now Cookie and Rocky are gone, and we got a lil female Tribbles, who is NOTHING like Suzie. Zakk is now three, and she is always trying to wrestle him. No one has gotten hurt but they have some really, really loud wrestling matches. I waited about three weeks before they were fully integrated. The only issue with Suzie was some hissing from her at first, but she has learned that Tribbles is now here and she will have to deal with her.
Anyway, I think at this age you can't really go wrong with a kitten of either sex.. it wouldn't hurt to pick out one that is just a little bit more passive then your cat but it is really hard to tell. Except for Rocky all of my adoptions were pretty much chance. I personally think it is great having more than one, it is fun to watch them interact.
 
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