- Joined
- Jul 14, 2014
- Messages
- 8
- Purraise
- 1
My new cat is a 2-3 year old female. My resident cat is a 5 year old male. I had a cat that died a couple of months ago, so I adopted the female 5 weeks ago. I have three concerns. 1. She still hides at least half the day. 2. She comes around me to be pet a few times a day for brief periods, but she immediately jumps out of my arms when I pick her up. I was hoping for an affectionate cat. 3. Even though she had a companion cat in her previous home that her past owner said she was bonded with, she hasn't started bonding with my male. She is fairly aloof with him. I was looking for a cat that would cuddle with and groom my male, like my cat who passed away. My male has attempted grooming her, but she just swats at him. She's also aggressively chased him and briefly fought with him. He is a submissive cat, so he runs away. He often sits in the hall against the wall, now, with his tail and arms tucked under his body and his ears out toward the side.
When I adopted her from the shelter, she was hiding, scared of the other cats even though her companion had been there, too. I wanted to give her a chance in my home. I had her set up in one room of my home for a couple of weeks, then in another room for another week before she decided that she was comfortable enough to come out for short periods. My male cat has been very calm adjusting to her presence--no hissing, growling, etc. I've been trying to use the laser toy with both of them, but she dominates. I feed them treats close to each other, within a foot, but after the treats are gone, they go their separate ways. I've tried catnip--same result as treats. I switch out their cushions/blankets, but then she doesn't want to lie in those places anymore, with his scent on them. I pet them back and forth to get their scent on each other.
I'm not sure what else I can do to help her become more affectionate toward my cat and me. How much longer should I wait before deciding that this isn't working?
When I adopted her from the shelter, she was hiding, scared of the other cats even though her companion had been there, too. I wanted to give her a chance in my home. I had her set up in one room of my home for a couple of weeks, then in another room for another week before she decided that she was comfortable enough to come out for short periods. My male cat has been very calm adjusting to her presence--no hissing, growling, etc. I've been trying to use the laser toy with both of them, but she dominates. I feed them treats close to each other, within a foot, but after the treats are gone, they go their separate ways. I've tried catnip--same result as treats. I switch out their cushions/blankets, but then she doesn't want to lie in those places anymore, with his scent on them. I pet them back and forth to get their scent on each other.
I'm not sure what else I can do to help her become more affectionate toward my cat and me. How much longer should I wait before deciding that this isn't working?