To cut a long story short, I have an older male cat who tends to be very skittish and shy. I just got a new, very young female who is very outgoing. She's been very cool and calm, but he seems very unhappy and stressed.
He hissed at her, a bit of growling, to be expected. She seemed largely indifferent and didn't display any aggression in return. With guarded brief meetings, they seemed to be slowly acclimating.
Until this afternoon. I don't know exactly what happened - it was completely out of the blue, and it happened so fast. I went to pick up my older cat to bring him back upstairs, and he meowed in surprise. Then boom, suddenly she comes out of nowhere, pounces on him, theyre entangled around my arm, and there's horrific screaming. My arm was in between them, so I immediately pushed them apart and whisked her back to the guest room, and him to my bedroom where he usually sleeps.
I got clawed a bit, but I checked both of them for injuries and found none.
She seemed to calm down quickly, and is back to her usual cuddly self. He, on the other hand, was extremely grouchy, growly and upset, and it took him a long, long time to calm. I bought some cat pheremone spray to try to help him feel better, and it seems to help. But he's clearly distressed.
Yes, I know I'm a colossal moron. I know this is all my fault and I seriously, seriously screwed up. Now, I'm absolutely terrified to let them meet again. I'm back to square one. What can I do? I feel absolutely horrible... And I'm totally lost. Please, please, help me.
He hissed at her, a bit of growling, to be expected. She seemed largely indifferent and didn't display any aggression in return. With guarded brief meetings, they seemed to be slowly acclimating.
Until this afternoon. I don't know exactly what happened - it was completely out of the blue, and it happened so fast. I went to pick up my older cat to bring him back upstairs, and he meowed in surprise. Then boom, suddenly she comes out of nowhere, pounces on him, theyre entangled around my arm, and there's horrific screaming. My arm was in between them, so I immediately pushed them apart and whisked her back to the guest room, and him to my bedroom where he usually sleeps.
I got clawed a bit, but I checked both of them for injuries and found none.
She seemed to calm down quickly, and is back to her usual cuddly self. He, on the other hand, was extremely grouchy, growly and upset, and it took him a long, long time to calm. I bought some cat pheremone spray to try to help him feel better, and it seems to help. But he's clearly distressed.
Yes, I know I'm a colossal moron. I know this is all my fault and I seriously, seriously screwed up. Now, I'm absolutely terrified to let them meet again. I'm back to square one. What can I do? I feel absolutely horrible... And I'm totally lost. Please, please, help me.
