I should have known better -help

[bunchie62]

My husband and I have a 19-yo DSH Iris (have had her her since she was weaned) and an 8-yo Maine Coon Lilly. We adopted her from a friend moving out of the country. Both took little time to adjust when Lilly came on board. Its been a couple of years. They aren't fast friends but accept one another. Iris is so old she sleeps most of the time. Lilly is very social, has always loved other cats so we thought we needed to get her a companion.

We adopted a 8 yo Maine Coon mix Nancy. Her bio and caregiver said she got along with other cats (and she came from a 3-year stint in a reputable home-based rescue with numerous cats) Not having adoption adjustment issues in the past, we brought Nancy in without a gradual introduction. After she got over the space transistion, it looked as though the two would do well together. They were spending time in the same room without conflict. Nancy was starting to explore downstairs. That didn't last long.

While Nancy loves her upstairs world (we have a large home) Lilly comes up to stalk her. Nancy screams and growls and runs for safety. Nancy sleeps at the head of our bed at night and "tolerates with a brief growl" Lilly sleeping sporadically during the night (as she always has) at the foot of our bed. When we're upstairs doing chores or whatever, Nancy seems to feel secure enough not to freak if Lilly comes into her space and keeps her distance. They were both in the bedroom with me last Sunday and I tried brushing their cheek glands back and forth--both rubbed on the brush after it came from the other. Ivy is a non issue. We've tried Feliway, tested out different Bach essences, had a cat reader assessment (early on...she said the two would adjust) Both were vetted.

I have numerous kittes over the years and feel foolish that I can't figure this out or that I made a bad assumption on acclimation needs.

Aftter nearly three months, would a re-intro even work? Any other suggestions would be most welcome.

 

[strange_wings]

Originally Posted by Bunchie62

Aftter nearly three months, would a re-intro even work?

It may and is certainly worth trying. Though, speaking from experience, you can't change a cat's personality and that makes it more difficult.

How many feliway diffusers do you have in the home? For a house, you'll likely need 2-3 or more since you have more than one floor. If you don't cover all the rooms they use it won't work as well.

But ultimately it will take time, just like it did with your other two.

Don't give up.

 

[bunchie62]

Thanks for your encouragement. I bought one for every 500-ft area - and one specifically for our bedroom. We made quite the investment---without a return :-(

 

[strange_wings]

Keep them going. It can take a while for improvement to show, and sometimes it's subtle but is a big difference when suddenly gone. (make sure you have plenty of smoke detectors, too, btw. Since the plug ins stay on - maybe I'm just nervous about that sort of thing.

)

 

[bunchie62]

LOL--smoke detectors...you are reading my mind. Always so safety conscious with the kitties around. Had ours checked when I first put the diffusers in use.