Is it possible/feasible to do a re-introduction after 6-10 months with a senior cat?

[LEGENDofBEVERLY]

Quick background: I have six 18 month old Cats (4 boys, 2 girls) and one 11 year old cat (girl). Had the older cat (Lilly) for almost 4 years; got the two girl 10 (Rocky) & 6 (Evie) months ago, respectfully. The 4 boys came all together roughly 2 months before Rocky and I did a (mostly) successful introduction between Lilly and the Boys; Lilly has never been super friendly with other cats but has been tolerate being in close proximity to the boys and the older male cat had before them. She would/will occasionally be vocal and swat at them if they approach and block her way or sneak up and touch her but she has only gotten into 3 or 4 "fights" in the 4 years I've had her before Rocky.

Now when the girl's came I followed the same pattern for introductions (Isolation, eating closer and closer on both sides of the door, sight & scent swapping, installing a screen door, "Eat, Play, Love") but Lilly was mostly left out of those. Lilly was declawed on all four paws years before I got her and once the boys realized all she would do is slap, they would bum rush her food bowl at meal and force her off of it. So to insure Lilly gets food she has been eating in a separate closed room for about 20 minutes at meal time. This was how she was feed while the boys were getting used to Rocky & Evie during their time in isolation.

Now Rocky & Evie get along really well with the boys but will both charge Lilly and smack her around a bit. Lilly has taken to living mostly on the upstairs level, Generally in either the bathroom (sleeping in a hanging cupboard) or in the other bed room (not mine or the "boys" room [the one I used for isolation & introductions]) . Whenever one of the young girls come up the stairs, Lilly will start growling and Hissing at them from whatever room she's in while they are still in the hallway.

Rocky will usually get low and start hunting Lilly until Lilly turns and runs, usually leading to a quick swipe before I can redirect Rocky. Rocky is a very loving and affectionate cat so she is normally by my side or on my lap when I'm home so I've only ever caught her when we are moving from the downstairs to the upstairs.

Evie (I assume) will chase Lilly until she is trapped in the cupboard and hits her a few times, leading to some pretty loud screaming and (recently) a few new scars and scratchmarks on Lilly's face/head. I've never seen Evie start because she's usually the first one up the stairs (VERY food motivated, feedings are in the "boys" room) or will go up alone more then the others do and she stops and runs out of the room when I get close enough to see what is happening.

I know cats will fight some times (especially with this volume) but I'm not a fan of the frequency in which this is happening (about twice a week for each young cat...and thats when I'm mthere) and I'm even less happy with the damage it is doing to Lilly.

So I'm thinking of isolating Lilly in the "boys" room and giving her a proper, slow & safe introduction to everyone. Was wondering if anyone had every tried doing a reintroduction after such a long time being in gen pop, with soooo many cats and/or with such a large age gap between the cats. And if I should only do it with the 2 girls or Should I do one cat at a time?

Thank you for reading that wall of text & for anything tips/help you send my way
Bev

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Generally speaking, cats are pretty good about allowing "do-overs," however, there's a lot to unpack here. You have an older, declawed cat who is VERY aware that her primary defense is gone. And you have a pack of cats who are still VERY much kittens, and will be until they are about 2 years old, who are also very aware of Lilly's declawed state. I'm inclined to say, YES, reintroduce them, and YES, do it individually, allowing her to get to know each cat one-on-one again. It's much easier for you to supervise each step, and re-direct as necessary. And this will give poor Lilly a bit of a break from the mayhem.

Take a look at these articles, they may have some suggestions that you had not thought about:
How To Fix An Unsuccessful Cat Introduction - TheCatSite
How To Successfully Introduce Cats: The Ultimate Guide - TheCatSite
Introducing Cats To Cats: The Expert's Guide To A Smooth Transition - TheCatSite
Stress in Cats - The Ultimate Guide - TheCatSite

 

[LEGENDofBEVERLY]

Thank you for the help!

 

[ArtNJ]

I dont think its common, but some young cats that try and force play (which is normal) will respond to hissing with true aggression (this over-reaction is much more rare it seems, but I had this). If that is what is going on, tbh I'm not sure a reintroduction is going to fix it. But it does make sense to try. There is nothing else but permanent separation. I do agree the situation cannot continue as is, and you'll end up paying the vet a lot of money to deal with an infected bite wound (which I did twice before I gave up).

The basic problem you have, if this is the situation, is that its quite a lot to ask a senior cat to respond to an 18 month old that wont take no for an answer without hissing. So if hissing is a sufficient trigger for a young one to turn violent...I just dont know a reintroduction gets you past it. But perhaps this is not your situation, or you'll have a better result than I did.

 

[LEGENDofBEVERLY]

Thank you for the advise!

 

[LEGENDofBEVERLY]

Just to keep update:

I've got Lilly set up in her own room and I'm fine tuning the feeding stations on both sides of the door. Got a cat proof temporary screen door in the mail to help keep everyone where they should be when I move from room to room. So far Lilly has to be in a much better mood after only a single day isolation.

 

[Alldara]

Just to keep update:

I've got Lilly set up in her own room and I'm fine tuning the feeding stations on both sides of the door. Got a cat proof temporary screen door in the mail to help keep everyone where they should be when I move from room to room. So far Lilly has to be in a much better mood after only a single day isolation.

I'll recommend to just keep a dry cloth to pet Lilly with and continue to rub it around the house to keep her scent there.

Im very glad the separate space is doing her well already I often recommend to continue this for a couple hours a day until the kittens begin heading off for naptime on their own, wherever it suits their fancy. But the re-introducing will hopefully have the same effect of them learning the house without learning to bug Lilly.

What's working for me with food bullying is when Ghost walks towards Magnus's fish I just put my hand on his chest to stop him moving forward. I usually place my body between Magnus and the other cats and/or feed Magnus on top of something and the others on the floor. There's been a few times Ghost has walked away on his own now. Or he'll come get a pet and then leave.

 

[LEGENDofBEVERLY]

a little update: its been roughly 6 weeks since i moved Lilly into her own room. I had been moved her food closer and closer to the closed door with the others eating right outside over about 3 weeks and then we spent about a week eating at the door. After that i put up a screen and have been inching her closer over the last 2 weeks.

A little hard to see but Lilly is on the other side eating out if the white bowl. I've been primarily feeding my two young girls (Rocky & Evie) close to Lilly because they are they 3 having the biggest issues.

And it feels like it's a slow process but Lilly seems to be more relaxed and joyful then she has i. A long time. She still hisses at everyone when she makes eye contact (and Evie goes crazy when that happens) but it feels like everyone is having smaller and smaller reactions.

 

[Alldara]

a little update: its been roughly 6 weeks since i moved Lilly into her own room. I had been moved her food closer and closer to the closed door with the others eating right outside over about 3 weeks and then we spent about a week eating at the door. After that i put up a screen and have been inching her closer over the last 2 weeks.

View attachment 465680
A little hard to see but Lilly is on the other side eating out if the white bowl. I've been primarily feeding my two young girls (Rocky & Evie) close to Lilly because they are they 3 having the biggest issues.

And it feels like it's a slow process but Lilly seems to be more relaxed and joyful then she has i. A long time. She still hisses at everyone when she makes eye contact (and Evie goes crazy when that happens) but it feels like everyone is having smaller and smaller reactions.

Slow and steady wins the race! Sounds like it's going great and they are slowly, slowly building that up.

Are you playing some background music or background purring during this? I found it helpful.

 

[LEGENDofBEVERLY]

Are you playing some background music or background purring during this? I found it helpful.

I had not thought about that but i will look into it. We are doing really well until eye contact. then things get a little spicy but I feel like the reactions are getting smaller. maybe some background sound will help