Advice on introducing new cat to residents cats please :)

[HarkinDelen&Sowenna]

Hi All,

I've just adopted a third cat, Sowenna (f). Long story short, I didn't intend on having a third one but Sowenna was adopted a few weeks ago by my cousin from someone that was no longer able to care for her due to moving into a flat where pets were not allowed. My cousin found it very difficult to care for her and rather than see her go into a rescue centre, I agreed to take her on. I had two cats already, Harkin (m) and Delen (f) and was a little concerned about taking another one on as they are the best of friends. I have never introduced an adult cat to other adult cats before (I've always had kittens in the past) so this is very new territory. I've tried to follow what I have always done when introducing kittens to adult cats and everything (so far) seems to be going ok. We're just over two weeks in and I have had all three cats eating in the same space. I took it really slowly in the beginning so that Harkin and Delen got used to her smell etc first before meeting her face to face. My only concern is that Delen seems to be finding it more difficult to accept Sowenna and will hiss if she gets close to her. I really want everyone to get along so I'm just wondering whether I need to take a step back until Delen feels more comfortable in her presence? Any advice would be very welcome! Thanks so much

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi and welcome to TCS. The general rule of thumb is you can only progress through introduction steps as fast as the slowest adapting cat - and that sounds like Delen. Are Harkin and Sowenna getting along? If so, you may have to mix it up a bit in how you proceed and allow H & S to spend time together without D. But, D needs to also be able to spend time with H.

See you can find any tips in this TCS article (see link below). And remember two weeks is a very short adaption period for some cats! The older they are the harder it sometimes can be.
How To Successfully Introduce Cats [The Ultimate Guide] - TheCatSite

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Excellent advice from FeebysOwner . Now, if the only issue is hissing, you're doing better than you think. Females tend to be a bit more territorial than males. Spaying does not remove instincts, and their instinct is to preserve territory for kittens to come. Makes them a bit more hesitant to accept a new cat, especially another female. The good news is that hissing does not necessarily mean, "I HATE you and want you dead." Generally, it means, "I don't know you that well, and you'd better watch your step," which is, from the cats' point of view, understandable. Keep an eye on them, let them "talk it out," but be ready to intervene if things get physical.

 

[ArtNJ]

If all you have is some hissing, they can work through that. Absent miracle luck, there is almost always going to be some hissing when you finally put adults cats together. The intro process is designed to prevent fighting, not remove all stress, which would be impossible since face to face is always going to be a higher level of stress than whatever other steps have been done. That they don't want to fight for real is the essential part, and bonus, you don't have any swatting, and additional bonus, sounds like neither is trying to play before the other is ready. So all good so far, and even better than average.

Think of it like When Harry Met Sally. Cutting words are fine! Cats are actually a little weird, since even some light swatting isnt a big deal, which would almost certainly have permanently derailed Harry and Sally. Just can't have full out fighting.

 

[HarkinDelen&Sowenna]

Thank you so much everyone for your replies! It's really appreciated and definitely made me feel a lot more at ease! I think the idea of letting Harkin & Sowenna have some time together without Delen sounds a good plan as I do feel Sowenna gets a little bit intimidated at times when she's faced with both of them. There has been one light swatting incident which was when Harkin tried to pinch Sowenna's food (he's a greedy b******). He very quickly backed off and they still seem to be ok with each other.

A ArtNJ - I love that analogy!! Thank you

 

[di and bob]

Swatting, hissing, growling are all normal and not bad. They are warning the other to back off. I think you are doing REALLY well, it took me a year to get mine together, and a full blown fight to settle things. Just supervise. One thing that erally ehlped me was to get a couple kickeroos on Amazon and throw them towards anyone who is too intent. it releaves the stress.