Integrating Stray With 3 Resident Furbabies

[thefiresidecat]

Daisy decided to visit Fluffy.
Hubby started giving treats after a few.

They were so close together. Fluffy seemed fine, and got to a point where he laid down. They we're within inches getting treats.. and to the point Daisy put her head through the rings or the gate.

Then they kind of sat there for a bit, quiet. Then he lunged and swatted at her through the gate. He didn't growl or hiss. He was doing so well. He tried doing it more than once, too.

Daisy just took a step back, then hissed and had a low growl after he was done.

this is totally normal and not a bad thing

 

[chicy724]

We are back from vacation and ready to give this a whirl again.
Hopefully we're not at square one or two..

Last night we spent a little time with them at the gates and it went about the same as it did before we left. Daisy loves eating treats and gets right up to the gate, and Fluffy at times jumps at them.. but Daisy stands her ground.

Any suggestions on where to start again?
-Room swapping?
-Keep up with the viewings until things progress? - Which I do not think they have progressed any further in a while on that front...

One other note: Fluffy has been acting a little weirder as time goes on.. He has been "attacking" our legs as we walk by or move, and when we hold him now he is all lovey-lovey then wraps his paws around our arm and nibbles down (gently, but still). So we aren't sure what to think or do about that.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Welcome back! Maybe some room swapping?
Do you have a half can of coins you can give a good noisy shake when he looks like he's going to go into ankle biting mode? --To disrupt and rewire his little brain...
Or even toss a ring of house keys on the floor, something abrupt and a bit loud.

For the nibbling, can you shift your arm out and substitute a kickaroo type toy? Also, yelling ow when he does these things, and a good hiss like a mama cat would do, see if these things help his behaviors.

 

[chicy724]

Hi all!
Thanks for the tips, Furballsmom . We now have two small jars of coins handy and we have many kickaroos already. He doesn't love them but he does play with them sometimes.
When he starts nibbling, we either say "No" (hubby says FLuffy REALLY responds to "No"), or I make a "psss, psss, psss..." type noise and he stops.

For the past 3 nights we've let him roam in the house with the others, free. It actually hasn't gone too terribly. The first night he snuck up on Milo (who was clueless) and started to sniff him. Milo realized he was there and freaked out and went under the bed.
So then Fluffy was under the bed with Lilly and Milo for a bit. At times he just lays there, other times he stares them down. And a time or two he has went at them and they've run off. The first night we did have a bit of a grumbly "argument" but got them separated. Nothing too dramatic, no fur flew. Just "verbal", it seemed .

Fluffy and Daisy seem to have figured it out for the most part. He walks right past her without attempt at doing anything. However, last night in the kitchen he started to run at her a little and she hissed.. he stopped and turned around as if to say, "Nope, not gonna' mess with you...." It was actually comical.

Last night they eventually all wound up in the dining room together. Lilly hides on one of the chairs and didn't move. Milo was on the floor and Daisy was also. Fluffy was standing, then laying on the floor towards the doorway at a little distance from the Resident Three. We proceeded to watch tv and let them figure it out because we don't always want to be on top of them unless it gets heated. All was good, until Fluffy started climbing along the bottom of the chairs to seek out Lilly.

We don't think he was trying to "get her".. he was likely more curious because Lilly is the one he hasn't seen much of since she just hides whenever he is out and never really visits him at the gate.

I think we need to focus a bit on Fluffy and Milo getting it figured out because Milo just growls a lot and at some points I joke that he sounds like the Exorcist movie. Our sweet, easy going lil boy is not so easy going when it comes to little kids or new cats I guess...

All in all, things seem to be going okay. *knock on wood*. There is lots of growling from our Resident Three, and none from Fluffy.

If they keep progressing this way we will let him out for longer periods of time when we cannot necessarily pay attention to them (as in, we're doing stuff around the house) and then maybe... just maybe... we can let them out together full time, at which time he's "earned" his collar and he will officially get his name tag collar. But only time will tell and I don't want to get too far ahead of myself!

 

[KarenKat]

Wow things sound like they are going great! I’m glad you don’t gave to be so watchful all the time. Good work!

 

[Furballsmom]

This is awesome!! Good for you!!

 

[chicy724]

Dinner this evening...
Lilly was out to the side a bit, out of the frame. She soon ran off.
Milo encoubencou Fluffy as he tried to go to our bedroom and went into exorcist mode and Fluffy just stared at him.. didn't growl or hiss.. The R. Three are in the dining room now. Fluffy is just out and about.

Let's see how tonight plays out!

 

[chicy724]

And just as I posted, Fluffy and Milo had a moment..
Fluffy started to go after Milo and it didn't seem playful so I just put him back hehind the gate as a "time out".

 

[KarenKat]

I just finished Jackson Galaxy's book "Cat Daddy" and he mentions finding each cat's "challenge line", meaning that point from which they say "no way" and won't go further. Sounds like maybe Lilly needs a little extra allowances since her challenge line is short? I say let her be a little away, as long as she is eating.

Things sound like they are going great! Of course there are setbacks (silly Fluffy) but the momentum is still forward. Great job!

 

[msaimee]

It sounds like you are making very good progress! I agree about not intervening unless things get out of hand. Cats have a way of working things out among themselves. Have you tried any interactive play between Fluffy and any of the R 3 with a laser toy or wand toy? Sometimes interactive play can be a way for cats to bond.

 

[chicy724]

Have you tried any interactive play between Fluffy and any of the R 3 with a laser toy or wand toy? Sometimes interactive play can be a way for cats to bond.

We have... the R3 are not interested in playing while he is around yet.. they are laser focused on him and won't divert. We play with Fluffy.. he loves this wand toy we have and will usually always go for it.

 

[chicy724]

Hi! We had a long weekend to work with the kitties.
We've let Fluffy out and about while we were home, and also now a little bit when we'd run an errand.
I am happy to report, everyone is still alive.

We have had a bit of back and forth with Daisy. She was the most interested and seemingly receptive (albeit, being in Queen Mode) but she has reverted to hiding in the closet most of the time. Except yesterday evening, she came out a bit and spent some time with me (with the door closed) and later on, she and Fluffy were on the bed at the same time but that ended somewhat quickly.
Her behavior is confusing me because she is now seeming a bit scared...? She is eating less than usual- eventually she eats most of her food when we bring it to her. But the tough part is she's already a grazer, AND she's not eating as much because she seems scared/nervous.

Fluffy and Milo had many verbal arguments. They are slowly working it out. Last night they were on the kitty tower together (albeit, reluctantly on Milo's part) and there were some grumbles but rather mild.
This morning Fluffy and Milo were right next to each other just fine, but then Milo decided to start growling.. still progress.

Now, Lilly... poor Lilly. She has spent just about the entire 3 days in the dining room on one of the chairs. She is simply avoiding the whole situation it seems. She is eating, but I am not sure she was drinking so I made sure she had some water last night, and hubby said she drank some this morning.

Fluffy is still being a bit "weird" with us. He purrs and wants attention, but when we pick him up he is good for maybe 30 seconds - 1 minute then he does his arm attack thing. We tried the kicky toys but he doesn't switch off to them.
Sometimes "attacks" our legs if we walk by.. usually if it's fast.
He also lays on our bed with us (and Milo!!) And he attacks the blanket even when nothing is moving. So that's a bit annoying...
He is super active and a bit "crazy"... he runs all through the house, back and forth and just has SO MUCH energy.
Sometimes he will come in a "bit hot" as I like to say (meaning he will be running around and run up to one of the R3 and freak them out when I think all he may want to do is play?).
We aren't sure if he is trying to play or assert dominance. I don't think it's dominance because if one of the R3 hisses or growls at him he walks away eventually and does not try to go after them. Him "going after them" is more him coming in "hot" (i.e. fast and abrupt). It's hard to tell what his intentions are.

Hubby wants us to try Jackson Galaxy's "Ultimate Peacemaker" trio. Has anyone tried that or know anything about these? There are also many other ones on his site so maybe there are others that will help?
What about the "Feral Flower Formula"? Maybe some of his craziness with the attacking of our arms, legs and blanket is some feral "fight or flight" reaponse? Or "Hyper Helper"? His rambunctious, high energy behavior is quite interesting and fun to watch, but could possibly hinder him getting integrated with the others?

 

[msaimee]

It sounds like you're making good progress. They are working things out

 

[chicy724]

Thanks! Slowly, but hopefully surely.
This morning, Daisy was at our bedroom door and when we opened it Fluffy was right there on the other side.
She wasn't expecting that... She hissed and swatted. Meanie face kitty.
We think Milo is starting to come around. He still growls a bit. Hubby said he heard fluffy trying to get a hairball out and saw Milo go up to Fluffy, in his face like he was concerned. wishful thinking? If not that's super sweet and cute!

I ordered Rescue Remedy. I opted against Jackson Galaxy products because they seem to have some ingredients that are toxic to cats.. and many on Amazon said they made their kitties sick. I don't want to risk that.

 

[chicy724]

Hi all!
Fluffmaster Flex has been roaming the house freely for a tad over 3 weeks now.
There is little growling and Milo and Lilly are returning to their normal selves, slowly.
Fluffmaster and Milo are slowly becoming buddies, I think.

On a different note, Daisy is behind the curve with him because we've had her separated in our bedroom and sleeping with us for about this whole time. She hasn't been eating and lost weight.. but she was also puking a lot. So we kept n eye on her and brought her to the vet last week. She goes back tomorrow because she is still puking (not as much but still is) and is not eating well or much. I am about to post in the Cat Health forum about this. I am scared for my baby kitty (she'll always be my baby kitty even if she's almost 13!). It's up and down, and we just don't know what is going on. The vet noted that her intestines felt inflamed, and she had blood work done. Her eosinophils are through the roof, as well as amylase Everything else, except sodium being slightly high, is normal. We're about to run into a bunch of trial and error with she and the vet, I think. They had us give her Panacur to treat for parasites but that didn't seem to do the trick.

 

[msaimee]

I'm so sorry that Daisy has not been feeling well. Is it possible she caught parasites from the new kitty? Or maybe it is a case of gastritis or irritable bowel syndrome? One of my cats had a similar condition after I took him in, it took a few months for the diarrhea to stop and to be fully recovered. Did they give Daisy subcutaneous fluids? I would be concerned about dehydration if she is throwing up and not eating much. There is probably something medically going on, I don't think the stress of having a new cat in the house would cause such severe symptoms, at least I haven't seen that in my experience. As long as she is feeling poorly , she is not going to be very social with any of the other cats. I hope the vet is able to diagnose and treat her properly.

Aside from Daisy's health issues, it sounds like your new kitty has integrated very well into your household. Congratulations

 

[chicy724]

I'm so sorry that Daisy has not been feeling well. Is it possible she caught parasites from the new kitty? Or maybe it is a case of gastritis or irritable bowel syndrome? One of my cats had a similar condition after I took him in, it took a few months for the diarrhea to stop and to be fully recovered. Did they give Daisy subcutaneous fluids? I would be concerned about dehydration if she is throwing up and not eating much. There is probably something medically going on, I don't think the stress of having a new cat in the house would cause such severe symptoms, at least I haven't seen that in my experience. As long as she is feeling poorly , she is not going to be very social with any of the other cats. I hope the vet is able to diagnose and treat her properly.

Aside from Daisy's health issues, it sounds like your new kitty has integrated very well into your household. Congratulations

It is minutely possible she could have caught parasites from Fluffmaster. He had hookworm when he first came to our house but he was separated the entire time he was being treated, and was cleared before we let him out in the house at all.
We've treated Daisy with Panacur and that didn't restore her (today will be her last dose. It's been 5 days but we have some left do we're giving it to her).

The gastritis or IBS/IBD is possible. I will chat with the vet tomorrow at her appt. and figure out the next steps. He wanted to do an ultrasound. She is peeing/pooping normally. There is no diarrhea and it doesn't have any blood that I can see to the naked eye.

She has been eating better for the past 5 days or so, and seems to be drinking lots of water. Her puking has reduced a lot but it is still happening. I have noted that I can see her skin through her fur when she moves, which I don't recall as normal before-- no idea what that means. I will note that to the vet tomorrow, too. No, they did not give her any fluids.

I wouldn't think the stress would do it, either. But i have heard of cases where stressful situations have caused IBD to flare up.. but we aren't sure that's what it is, or not. We thought it could be this Friskies Indoor wet food we were feeding because she promptly puked that up, chunks and all. Since we've been feeding her Natural Balance, Fancy Feast Purely Naturals wet food (I also have a Blue meaty morsels variety to try). She loves gravy loaded foods and she usually licks the gravy off first thing, then eats some meat here and there.
For dry food, I've tried Purina One Indoor Chicken (she gobbled that up really well the first few days, then started turning her nose up at it) and Purina One Beyond Grain Free Ocean Fish, which she also gobbled up but now is turning her nose at it (but maybe she's just not feeling well again because the mirtazapine wore off). I have to try different flavors and types because one day she loves something and the next she hates it. She's always been a little finicky but it usually takes months for her to hate something.

All this switching of foods probably helps but I don't know what else to do. If I give her something new, she'll start eating, even if just a little, most times.

It's a chaotic mess, and my heart hurts for my baby kitty.

 

[msaimee]

Yes I know it's very stressful when one of our cats are ill. I'm glad she is drinking water and eating at least something. Let us know how the vet visit goes tomorrow. I think that once she's feeling better, she will better adjust to your new kitty. It's wonderful that you're taking such good care of all of your cats. BTW, you might ask your vet if you should give Daisy a quarter of a pill of regular strength Pepcid each day, that can calm an upset tummy. I sometimes give that to my geriatric cat, he frequently has upset tummy.