Two established cats meeting...

**Slightly long, desperate need of help**

Hi guys, hoping someone can help me out here. I recently moved into my dads basement suite, with my cat Diego. We have full access to the house, but my Dad has a cat too, Pippin. I had all these plans to introduce them slowly through their senses and eventually meet face to face, but unfortunately that didn't go as planned.

The door that separates them has a significant gap underneath it where their paws can fit through.. Now Diego is 3 and has a very dominant personality, while Pippin is 1.5 and has a very submissive personality. The issue started with Pippin trying to get into the area that Diego is in, and he did not like that.. The past 2 weeks have consisted of doing whatever we can to keep Pippin away from the door, including baby gates and blankets.. But he is persistent and spends most of the day trying to get in. While Diego then spends too much time hissing and trying to get him to leave. The twist here though is whenever I walk over to the door, Diego walks away. His behaviour seems to be coming from fear instead of hatred. Usually when Diego sees another cat he doesn't like he will try and go towards them.. But we had a second incident yesterday where they were both outside on their harnesses, one in the back and one in the front and we underestimated how long one of the ropes were. They ended up seeing each other, and again resulted in Pippin wanting to play and Diego hissing and trying to run away.

I'm pretty stuck on what to do next, I would love to introduce them so Diego has full access to the house and doesn't have to spend all his time in the basement suite. Unfortunately Diego seems so stressed and scared about another cat, and Pippin is too clueless about possibly getting hurt.

Is there any steps I can take to make this work? Am I stuck in the situation? ANY insight is appreciated.

Thanks guys Xo

Successful introductions take time and patience. There's no reason why you shouldn't end up with Diego and Pippin peacefully sharing the house if you're prepared to take things slowly and let the cats dictate the pace.

You have to find a way to block off the bottom of the connecting door so that the two cats can't get to each other. The best solution may be to fix a strip of wood to the bottom of the door to close up the gap. You also have to be sure to take them out for walks at different times - the introduction process needs total physical separation in the early stages.

Don't worry - you haven't screwed anything up. Just go back to square one and take it slow. Feliway diffusers would be a good idea to help both cats stay chilled, and you might want to look into Spirit Essences and/or Composure too. Don't neglect interactive playtime for both cats - it's a great way to drain excess energy in a constructive way and increase territorial security and self confidence.

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@Columbine  I know this was a while ago, but I just wanted to thank you. Diego and Pippin are now the best of friends and love having a play mate. Thank you for reassuring me it could work! Xo 

So glad to hear this had a happy outcome. It's wonderful to hear that they're now best buds Well done