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- Jul 4, 2015
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I have Freya, a 7 year old tuxedo cat (spayed) I got about three years ago. I was informed by the previous owner that she didn't get along with their cat (they did the 'throw them together and let them work it out' solution... WRONG WRONG WRONG!) when I adopted her. Within the past three years I've had to put her in a cat kennel three times, each time I left her there I would call to see how she was doing, if she was being aggressive, etc. and they would tell me she was not aggressive to the other cats, just a little grumpy. I was content with having one cat for a while since she is super sweet and well behaved, takes care of herself, so when I was going through college she was the perfect pet!
I graduated a month ago and have found myself with more time than I can spare. Freya is a sweetheart but I found myself wanting to add another cat to the mix, one with proper introduction methods since I had been informed she isn't aggressive with others, just gets grumpy. Well two weeks ago someone plopped a 1 year old neutered male into my lap, whom I have named Jasper. He's still got the kitten energy in him but he's sweet and gets along well with other cats from what i was told. In fact, he really wants to see Freya and tries to meow at her/lay at the door when he knows she's there.
My problem? I've been feeding them from the opposite sides of the door for two weeks, swapping socks with their scent, towels, switching rooms frequently through the day, etc. All seemed to be going mostly well, with Jasper sometimes sticking a paw under the door to reach Freya and her hissing at him a bit but moving on her way. When the paw thing became an issue I taped cardboard to the bottom of my doors so he cannot reach under there anymore. I even caught her laying in front of the door, still kind of grumpily meowing/rumbling in response to Jasper's meows but the fact she was laying there at all felt like a huge step in the right direction.
But then bad luck struck. While trying to feed Jasper after setting out Freya's food he bolted out the door to see her and she freaked out. A fight didn't break out, but Freya was hissing and growling while Jasper stood there a short ways away before I snatched him up and threw him into his safe room. Since they finally saw each other face to face and it was a negative experience (coupled with the paw under the door thing bothering Freya in the past) I'm worried my chances of getting them to at least coexist is gone forever. I've already invested money in Jasper via taking him to the vet, buying him toys and necessities, etc. that I'm hesitant to get rid of him.
There has been no outright snarling or fight attempts, or spraying on Freya's part or Jasper's. I'm a homebody so besides my 3 day a week job I'm always here and alone so doubt it's happening when I'm at work. Jasper's still in his safe room.
Is all hope lost? How can I make this right again?
I graduated a month ago and have found myself with more time than I can spare. Freya is a sweetheart but I found myself wanting to add another cat to the mix, one with proper introduction methods since I had been informed she isn't aggressive with others, just gets grumpy. Well two weeks ago someone plopped a 1 year old neutered male into my lap, whom I have named Jasper. He's still got the kitten energy in him but he's sweet and gets along well with other cats from what i was told. In fact, he really wants to see Freya and tries to meow at her/lay at the door when he knows she's there.
My problem? I've been feeding them from the opposite sides of the door for two weeks, swapping socks with their scent, towels, switching rooms frequently through the day, etc. All seemed to be going mostly well, with Jasper sometimes sticking a paw under the door to reach Freya and her hissing at him a bit but moving on her way. When the paw thing became an issue I taped cardboard to the bottom of my doors so he cannot reach under there anymore. I even caught her laying in front of the door, still kind of grumpily meowing/rumbling in response to Jasper's meows but the fact she was laying there at all felt like a huge step in the right direction.
But then bad luck struck. While trying to feed Jasper after setting out Freya's food he bolted out the door to see her and she freaked out. A fight didn't break out, but Freya was hissing and growling while Jasper stood there a short ways away before I snatched him up and threw him into his safe room. Since they finally saw each other face to face and it was a negative experience (coupled with the paw under the door thing bothering Freya in the past) I'm worried my chances of getting them to at least coexist is gone forever. I've already invested money in Jasper via taking him to the vet, buying him toys and necessities, etc. that I'm hesitant to get rid of him.
There has been no outright snarling or fight attempts, or spraying on Freya's part or Jasper's. I'm a homebody so besides my 3 day a week job I'm always here and alone so doubt it's happening when I'm at work. Jasper's still in his safe room.
Is all hope lost? How can I make this right again?