Hi to all

Hi everyone a newbie here.

Thought I would introduce myself and my kitten. I have a 10 month old shelter kitty that i have had since he was 8 weeks old. Grey and White, his name is (if you hadn't guessed) Hayden. He is called my empty nest kitty. As mom of three adult girls and they do refer to him as a momma's boy. Spoiled beyond all things reasonable, we live in Colorado and he is neutered and declawed on the front paws. He is an indoor cat and I wasn't happy about the declawing part but my window screens were suffering and wanted to stop him getting in trouble for what was natural for him.

Looking forward to reading threads and sharing my love of all things kitty.

I do have a question about getting a second kitten as Hayden seems to be looking lonley and bored lately, hubby is alot of help telling to get another one if a want. Yep big help. Found several male kitty's around his age in my local shelter but just not sure how he will take to another kitty after being the one and only for 9 month's. I was wondering if their is a particular thread to give me advice or is it ok to ask here. Thanxs and I look forward to typing with you nice folks.

If you get another cat, keep him mostly in a room separate from the other cat for a couple days and shut the door so they can smell each other but not see each other. You can then start slowly introducing them to each other and seeing how they react.

If they don't seem to like each other or seem stressed, other people have had luck with Feliway. Feliway is like a plug-in air freshener only it dispenses synthetic cat pheromones that we can't smell. It will help to calm them down.

Here is a link to the plug-in on Amazon

Feliway Plug-In

Originally Posted by atinsley

If you get another cat, keep him mostly in a room separate from the other cat for a couple days and shut the door so they can smell each other but not see each other. You can then start slowly introducing them to each other and seeing how they react.

If they don't seem to like each other or seem stressed, other people have had luck with Feliway. Feliway is like a plug-in air freshener only it dispenses synthetic cat pheromones that we can't smell. It will help to calm them down.

Here is a link to the plug-in on Amazon

Feliway Plug-In

Click to expand...

Thank You Atinsley, I hadn't even thought of that.

My 2 main concerns were bringing in a kitty that had his front claws as i am sure their will be some posturing and territory disputes, and wanted a fair fight so to speak till the new kitty gets his front claws removed. My second concern is when Lord Hayden came home he of course had what I call the kitten flu and spent his first 10 day's on antibiotics and daily trip's to the bathroom for steam treatments. I am really afraid of Hayden getting the cold again I just couldn't stand to see him get sick like that again, I have heard it can be very bad for kitty's that are older.

Anyone know if getting a kitten that is older from shelter has a less chance of coming home with the Kitty flu then a baby kitten would??

I'm not sure about the flu thing, but at 10 months, Hayden is far from an older cat! Of course you don't want him to get sick again, but on the off-chance that he does, isn't being sick for a week and a half better than him being bored for a lot longer than that?

I have 2 kittens from the same litter and they keep each other busy and entertained.. They love each other! I'm sure Hayden would love a playmate.

Hola y bienvenido a TCS, ...Catulina

y Milky

te saludan!!!........

(Translate: Hi and Welcome to TCS, Catulina and Milky say hello to you!!!... )

Please feel as you home here, we can learn so much and deep about our kittys in this marvelous site, I just only please ask you read the rules and other stuffs that can help you to feel as you Real home!.. here you have the link my friend.
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=82565

Please ask whatever you need to know, there are plenty of good members and of course our tireness Mod´s to help us here!....

See you on the forums!, Glad that you join us!

Welcome to TCS!

It's hard when adopting a new shelter kitty, as things spread easily in shelter situations (such as upper respiratory infections or URI). Any cat is likely to get a URI, as it stressful to be in the shelter for them, however, sometimes adults who have healthy/fully developed immune systems just never seem to get it. As for worrying about Hayden getting a URI from a new kitty, it is possible, however since he isn't a senior kitty & he isn't a baby kitten - it is likely to not be as hard on him. I brought home a new foster a month ago, and she brought with her a URI - my healthy/adult cats did not get sick, but my other foster kitten did get a mild sneeze.

One thing you can do is keep the new kitty confined for several weeks to ensure s/he is healthy. You can find threads on how to introduce a new kitty to your resident kitty in the Behavior Forum.

On the note of declawing - before considering declawing a new kitty, please read this thread Bea begs you to never declaw. Also note Rule #3:

3. This website considers declawing a drastic way to curb cat behavior. A painful ordeal for your kitty we would suggest that declawing never be considered for any behavioral issue. Health issues are entirely different. It is up to you as a responsible pet owner to explore all the different options available instead of declawing. Your cat is dependant on you to make wise choices for her, and not put her into any more stress or discomfort. Please be a responsible pet owner and research this subject thoroughly. Understand that if you are pro-declaw in your posts, you will encounter opposition. Please learn more about alternatives for declawing here in our forums as well as on our website itself. Declaw - More than Just a Manicure. Hopefully those of you with claw-related problems will find solutions by spending time in our Behavior Forum.

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We can offer tons of alternatives to declawing if you wish! Only one cat in my household of 8 (plus 2 foster kitties) is declawed - she can hold her own quite well against the clawed kitties! So if you do decide to get a kitty with claws, there usually isn't much issue.

Another thing you can consider, is that at the shelter here we often have 1-2 year old active, playful, sweet declawed kitties looking for homes.

Hi there

we're so happy to get the chance to welcome you and your lovely furfamily to TCS. I'm sure you'll enjoy your stay with us - we're one great big family and you'll find loads of friends here. If I can help at all while you're finding your way around TCS just click on my username and send me a Personal Message - I'll do what I can to answer your questions

If you have a moment to read the thread that Nat posted about declawing I'm sure you will find it very informative. I have two indoor kitties complete with claws as well as two clawed indoor/outdoor kitties. Keeping their nails trimmed is no trouble and your furniture will love it for you. Thankfully, declawing isn't an issue in the UK - it's illegal.

I hope you find a lovely companion for Hayden soon

Hello, my name is John, welcome to the site