How much hissing is normal?

Please see my topic in the lounge re: I got another one!

Okay, I really only have one room with a closeable door. The new cat, "Kitty", is in that room. Socks is sitting outside the door to this room hissing and growling. She'll let me pet her, and she'll eat some food, but she won't quit hissing! She was hissing WHILE she was eating.

I've already put vanilla extract on the both of them, and I've given them each something that smells like the other. (To Socks, I gave the scarf that I brought Kitty home in, to Kitty I gave Socks' sweater that she enjoys sleeping on).

I don't want to rush the process, but it's kind of hard to keep Socks away from that door. Any suggestions?

Jenn

As long as the door is closed, let Socks near it. The hissing is very normal, as there is a new scent in the air, and Socks is telling you that this is not acceptable. In time, they will adjust to each other. Do the towel rubdown between the two of them and see if that helps a little bit. Pay extra attention to Socks when Socks is not hissing. It is early and this is normal cat interaction.

Originally posted by hissy
Jenn

As long as the door is closed, let Socks near it. The hissing is very normal, as there is a new scent in the air, and Socks is telling you that this is not acceptable. In time, they will adjust to each other. Do the towel rubdown between the two of them and see if that helps a little bit. Pay extra attention to Socks when Socks is not hissing. It is early and this is normal cat interaction.

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Okay, good. I was just kind of scared, she's only ever hissed before when she was at the vet, and now it's nonstop.

Thanks for reassuring me, Mary Anne.

When I first brought Blossom home 2 months ago...Daisey spotted her on sight....we had been hoping to slide Blossom in without Daisey seeing her for a few days...but she misses nothing. I ended up letting them see each other properly the next day and for the whole week following Daisey just continoulsy hissed and sometimes growled...even when eating also. The funniest part was though that when Daisey was hissing...Blossom just walked by her with her tail in the air as if to say 'yeah what ever tubby'!!.

I had actually began to think I had made the wrong decidsion getting Blossom...but I found that the quickest way I got them to bond was playing with them....like 15 mins at a time every hour for the first couple of days....and I really couldn't believe how quickly it worked. Daisey stopped hissing and they became inseparable.

This is a pic of them just a few days after we got Blossom (Daisey on the left)