New cat and old cat

Okay, so our friends recently found a two-year-old cat in their apartment building. Turns out, she belonged to recently-evicted neighbors and was abandoned (locked in the apartment with no food or water!). The landlord freed the cat, and our friends wanted desperately to take her, but they are both unemployed and can barely support themselves, let alone a cat. This cat is very friendly with humans, and previously lived with a Chihuahua. She explores and plays, and normally shows no signs of aggression. We took her in, because we already have cat supplies and a little bit more financial stability.

Here comes the issue: Every time we allow the new cat and the old cat in the house at the same time, the new cat attacks my old cat! Now, Tobey (the old cat) is a ten-year-old rescue who has lived with me for about a year, and before that lived with my grandmother. He was de-clawed and fixed some time before my grandmother adopted him. The new cat, Khoshekh, has all of her claws, but we're not sure if she's fixed.

Now, we would love to use the method where you keep the new cat in a sanctuary room, but we cannot. We do not have any doors on any of the rooms except for the bathroom. The bathroom is incredibly small, already houses a litter box, and is difficult to get around in as it is without adding food, water, and a constant cat.

As it is, we've been alternating the cats, so that Tobey is in the apartment and Khoshekh is in the stairway leading to the apartment, and vica versa. The issue is that Tobey will only cower when in the apartment, but will roam freely in the stairway. Khoshekh will roam freely in the apartment, but simply meows for attention at the door to the apartment when she is in the stairway. I feel terribly guilty depriving her of attention, because when she DOES see us, she meows and purrs and begs for affection, but at the same time, I can't have Tobey as a full-time stairway cat, because my landlords simply won't allow it. I also don't find it fair that whenever Tobey is inside, he only cowers in one corner of the bedroom, as the whole apartment WAS his space, and now he won't even go in it.

We have tried putting Khoshekh in the carrier and allowing Tobey to see her, but he simply growls until Dustin stops holding him, and then he dashes to my bedroom (which again, does not have a door) to hide near the bed. We have also tried putting Tobey in the carrier and allowing Khoshekh to see him without being allowed to get to him, but this simply stresses Tobey out and gets us nowhere. When I held Khoshekh so that Tobey could roam the apartment, he came into the room I was in, not knowing that Khoshekh was there, and Khoshekh viciously attacked ME, trying to get to Tobey. I now have deep bites on my left wrist, and scratches on my right hand.

I cannot stress enough - WE DO NOT HAVE DOORS ON OUR ROOMS. The only solution the internet seems to be able to offer is "keep them in separate rooms", even when speaking to someone with a small house. This is a one-bedroom apartment that does not have any sort of separation - it is a FULLY OPEN CONCEPT. Please do not reply to this thread with any methods that involve keeping Khoshekh in a separate room for a few weeks, because believe me, I would if I could.

I don't want to have to get rid of Khoshekh, because she is a sweet kitty most of the time, but all of this stress is not fair to Tobey. He's done nothing to deserve being attacked, and he's already a scaredy-cat as it is.  Please help me, I don't know what to do!

I really sympathize with you,( and Tobey!) but the only solution is to somehow separate them. Can you borrow or buy cheap at a second hand store, a large dog crate? Or buy some cheap chicken wire and 'fence' off the front of a big box somehow? I would definitely get some 'calming treats' from Amazon or a pet store to help, (and some for you too! ) Sometimes it takes a long time for two cats to get along, mine took almost two years before they finally became buddys, and I still have to step in once in a while. The only other thing I can think of is to harness and leash the new one but you wouldn't be able to leave her alone. Surely SOME kind of arrangement can be made, I hope some one comes up with SOMETHING! Good luck, I'll keep you in my thoughts.

My grandmother is providing us with another carrier so that we can have controlled meetings between the two of them. But that's only temporary. The only dog crate I have access to is the one my grandmother keeps HER dog in, so that's a no-go. I was hoping to have this handled without having to spend too much money on treats and such, because while we can provide food and shelter, we don't have TOO much money to spare on extras.

And while I recognize that this takes time, my grandmother is very insistent that Tobey not go through this for too long. I must respect her wishes, as I only house Tobey because he does not get along with her dog. This is different than with the dog, though. With the dog Tobey stands his ground. Also, I myself have severe anxiety issues, and my mental health simply cannot handle this for very long. I'd like to at least get them to a point where they both accept that the other cat is here, and is not going anywhere. They don't need to be best buddies, or anything like that. Khoshekh simply needs to STOP ATTACKING TOBEY so I can have my mental health back. And also maybe a solution to help Tobey not be so scared when he's alone in the apartment?

If we could get a hold of a baby gate, could that help, or would Khoshekh simply jump over it to attack Tobey again?

Two baby gates, one over the other would work, we got a really cheap screen door and propped it in the doorway to separate ours. The door is easier to get through! Bless you for going through all this!

So that "carrier" my grandmother gave me? Practically a palace! You could probably get a medium sized dog in there comfortably. Currently the kitties are across the room from each other, and Tobey's making unpleasent growl-y noises while Khoshekh meows pathetically from her carrier. We may be able to get a hold of a screen door, but we'll try the cat-cage first. At least then they can both sleep inside the apartment at night, and we can alternate them roaming the apartment through the day. I will keep the forum updated with kitty progress!