New kitten

Good afternoon!

I adopted a 3 mo. male kitten named Behr recently, and I'm worried that my 1 yr old cat Zoey has absolutely terrified him. She wasn't attacking him when I had them get familiar with each other, but there was some hissing and growling when he got a little too close. When she did reach out to swat at him (I was holding him at the time), I put him back in his safe room.

My worry is that while he was out getting to know Zoey, he had diarrhea twice in the space of 2 hours, and while I know this is most likely stress from a new environment, I'm just hoping that whatever fear Zoey may have inspired in him isn't permanent. It's difficult keeping him in his safe room because he cries and meows when I'm not in there with him, so my heart just breaks. I've read that slow and steady is the key with introductions, but I hope that this first impression of his new big sister isn't going to stick.

It's possible I'm rushing it and worrying too much, but I just wanted to know if there's anything I can do to help Behr with his fear and/or help Zoey stop intimidating the crap out of him (or at least ease it a bit). He's such a little guy and I don't want the diarrhea to last too long.

Thank you so much for any replies.

Hey! Good luck with the introductions.

Here is a thread on how to introduce new cats to old cats.
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67321

Sounds like Zoey is having a normal reaction to Behr and it will take time for them to get used to each other. It's probably too soon to tell right now whether they will be best friends or not. In the meantime, check out that thread. It has lots of good information.

Perhaps the diarrhea is not just a symptom of getting used to a new home.
Did you change Behr's food recently or something?

Best,
April

Thank you!! I haven't switched his food, it's the same Science Diet for kittens they fed him at the shelter. That's why I figured it was stress-related.

Hopefully what the article suggests will smooth things out. I think I just worry too much about things not going perfectly on the first try

By any chance did you change the food amount? *scratches head*

Aw, don't worry! Things will work out better if you stay calm and assertive and take it slow!

I put a 1/4 cup in his bowl as the bag suggested. His foster mom told me that since she has a mix of both adults and kittens at her house, she has both kinds of food out, so he's probably had a mix of both kinds and I don't really think she could tell me just how much he eats.

Thanks, I will do my best! It's my first time doing this and I'm doing it on my own, which I think adds to the panic at times But I feel quite a bit better now than I did when I first brought him home!

Yup, keep us posted!
Also share some pictures of your cats when they've settled down a bit.

I will!

Behr's diarrhea has gotten slightly worse. The latest was almost a little greenish in color, with a little blood at the end, and a gurgling sound accompanied it. I'll be calling the vet tomorrow, but I'm hoping keeping the two cats separate will help soon.

Behr ran out before I could catch him when I opened the door to see him this morning, and Zoey didn't immediately hiss. She did eventually, but I guess that's a good sign

Yeah keep us updated! I hope Behr will be feeling better soon.
Bloody stool sounds scary, poor thing.

Good luck!