Just moved my cat in to a new house with two resident cats. Help?!?

[maddies momma]

Hi, so I am a Veterinary Technician student and I bring my cat with me when I move out to school. Last year he took the move quite well. This year he seems to be having a harder time adjusting. However this year I moved in with two human roommates and one of those roommates has two cats in the house. She was there first (and her parents own the house) so her cats get run of the house, but this means my cat is living in my bedroom right now which is just not right. I would like for him to be able to coexist with the other cats so he can also have run of the house. But he doesn't seem to want anything to do with them (especially the more boisterous one). So basically my cat is in my room and when the house is quiet and my roommates are out i put her cats in her room so mine can explore the house a little. But a couple minutes once or twice a day is not enough for him, and its definitely not enough for him to become comfortable with the new house. As far as meeting the other cats I have done the scent exchange and i let them see each other through a cracked open door,but mine just hisses away like no tomorrow. So what can i do so he can become comfortable with the house and tolerant of the cats. My roommate (the owner of the other cats) is offering no help in dealing with the situation. I don't want my cat to live in a bedroom all year long. I have ordered feliway and that should arrive soon so i am hoping that will help but i really need some advice from some experienced cat owners. Please Help!!!!

(Just as a side note is it possible he wants nothing to do with these new cats because he is missing his real cat friend, which is my parents cat, who he was really close with?)

On the day writing this post it is the fifth day of being in the new house.

 

[cat nap]

[thread="326197"]Just Moved My Cat In To A New House With Two Resident Cats Help#post_4100034Hi @Maddies Momma.  5 days are a little too fast for doing cat-to-cat introductions.[/thread]
I know it's tough, though, and you want to speed things up, thinking that the cats will settle faster....But think of it more like taking a month.

(unless they were all kittens, then it would be different.)

This way you can concentrate on each phase of the process, per week, and only move forward when your cat and your roommate's cats feel comfortable.

You have already done some of the steps, and are familiar with them, so just go back, and begin again.

Take a look at this Article for ideas:

 [article="32680"]How To Successfully Introduce Cats The Ultimate Guide​[/article]  

There are other useful articles which are helpful to browse through, from the 'blue sticky section' at the top of 'Behaviour'

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/248993/tcs-cat-behavior-resources-articles-and-important-threads

or from the 'Articles' section:

http://www.thecatsite.com/atype/43/Cat_Behavior

• I would start by keeping them separated, and feeding them, or using treats, to just let them Hear each other.
• Then I would move on to the Scent exchange, and see how each cat reacts to the scent swapping.

         Swapping out rooms, like you are doing is fine, as long as no physical contact is made, and they don't see each other, yet.

 It's actually a great idea, that you are letting your cat explore, since this will boost your cat's confidence, and territory, too.

You're trying to get all the cats as comfortable and familiar with each other's scents, as possible.

Even swapping out cat beds, and toys, or blankets, help.

• After they are so bored of each other's scent, then move on to letting them See each other. Cracked door, works, and later a portable wooden screen door might help.

As long as your cat always feels safe in his space.

Use a lot of play, interaction, treats, to form positive associations.

If your roommate is willing...it might be helpful to do a little 'harness training' of her cats, so that when the initial face-to-face meeting happens, there would be more control over how far they go.

It's actually a good idea to harness train any cat, just in case you need to use it in the future.

It's good to spend quality time with her cats, and hopefully, she can with yours, so that they all get comfortable with the humans in the house, too.

(As to your side question...Yes, it is totally possible that he misses his real cat friend, who he was really close with.

Hopefully, though, he can get comfortable with these new cats...perhaps not as close...but at least co-existing.)

Good Luck.

 

[cat nap]

Oh, I just realized that I slightly misread your post.

My roommate (the owner of the other cats) is offering no help in dealing with the situation. 

I read it as your "roommate is offering to help in dealing with the situation" ...not the opposite...as she "is offering no help."

I just find it sad that another cat person would not help out a fellow cat person.

Maybe there would be a way you could talk to her, and just ask her kindly, about the situation, and how it would be better for everyone, if the cats were properly introduced.

Tell her you are willing to do all the cat-to-cat introductions, and show her some sort of plan on paper, on how you'd go about doing it.

Appeal to her good side, to her love of cats, too, and how they make our lives better.

She might just not want to do any work, but she might be willing to compromise, or set some fair boundaries to deal with.

This makes it a little harder, but still the same cat-to-cat intro steps would be followed.

I was also going to suggest to use the "less boisterous cat" as the go-between cat, and concentrate on getting him/her to help get used to your cat first, if you find their personalities are better suited.

If the personality is more mild, and laid back, then the cats may get on better.

 

[maddies momma]

SO it has now been two weeks and we have not made a lot of progress. This past weekend my roommate went home for the weekend and brought her two cats with her. So my cat had run of the house for the weekend. This did him a lot of good as he became a lot more comfortable with the house, and is a little more comfortable with my roommate that doesn't have any cats. When the other two cats came back the first through the door viewing went very well. there was only one hiss and i was feeding them both treats (my roommate free feeds her cats dry food so i cant do the meal thing). My cat seemed more or less indifferent to the other. So i thought we had made progress. I didnt push it though, i closed the door and left it at that. But now all of a sudden my roommates cat comes to the door (fully closed) and my cat is hissing and growling like crazy! There is no way i could let them meet at this point because my cat is acting like a tomcat that wants to rip the other ones throat out!

Also since my cat had run of the house for a while he is going crazy in my bedroom yowling to get out! I cant make him understand that as soon as he tolerates the other cats he can have a lot more time outside the room. Until then he has to stay in the room with occassional quick visits downstairs when the other cats are in her room. Also my roommate does not seem very pleased whenever i put her cats in her room, but she is barely ever home to help out, so i have to do it on edge when she is out and hope that she doesnt show up and get angry that her cats are locked away. The even sadder thing is i spend more time with her cats than she does because she is always out!

On another note, the more quiet female cat is the one i think my cat should be meeting first but she is shy and never around the door to meet him. It is the boisterous, in your face male cat, that is always at the door looking for attention.

I really want things to work out so my cat doesnt have to live in a bedroom, but i'm all alone here and almost at my wits end! 

 

[cat nap]

Actually, it sounds like there is progress after 2 weeks. The first initial viewing sounds like it went well.

You do have to go back a step, since your cat is not ready to meet the new cats, but this is a normal part of the process.

Your cat's reactions, and the other cat's reactions,...are the things that will tell you when to move forward,...and when to slow down, or do a step over again.

Your cat could actually have been trying to protect you and his territory, causing him to hiss and growl at the other cat, on the other side of the door.

There will be set-backs in cat-to-cat introductions, and they do take long to do, but it's a good sign that your cat is gaining more confidence in the house.

Are you able to 'harness train' your cat?

Does he like to play with wand toys, and chase wide strings, or scrunched up paper balls, or ping pong balls?

And how does your cat act in a cat carrier, when you take him to the vet's?

Is he all nervous in his carrier, or is he relaxed.

 

[maddies momma]

Thanks for your post! He is trained to go for walks on a harness. (thats part of why hes so antsy cuz we are in a busy area now and i dont want to take him out and take any chances right now.)

He does have a lot of toys and plays with a select few, but only when he is in the right mindset.

He hates going in the carrier, he gets very anxious about it.

I will keep updating as things progress (or dont progress) and appreciate your help!

 

[cat nap]

Yes, please continue to update.

The reason I asked all those questions was because I was thinking more that harness training will help in the future, with the introductions, and being able to control a cat's movements.

So it is excellent, that your cat is okay with it.

And the playing is used for distraction, and also decreasing of stress.

The slow introductions method is the best, because it lowers the cat's 'fight or flight' response.

By taking things gradual and slow, our cats get accustomed to things in a more easier way. They don't reach high levels of stress, and can adapt better.

Cats need to have escape routes, either high places, like tables, cat trees, chairs, or low places behind things to escape to. (this happens even after cat intro's are done.)

What you can try is putting your cat's blanket or toys, inside of the carrier, and see how the other cat's react to it.

The whole idea is to really notice your cat's and the other cat's reactions, and proceed on the steps from there.

To get your cat to accept the new cats, keep working on the scent swapping, with toys, blankets, socks, etc.

And giving them both food treats is good.

If your cat has the same reaction to the door, again, ....see if you can distract him with playing.

Just to know if distraction with play will work for your guy. You can also try it on the other cats, too.

Also, always praise your cat, a lot, for every good interaction.

I forgot to ask your cat's name, is it Maddie? And how old is he. How old are the other cats, too.

When you mentioned your parent's cat....do you remember how your cat and their cat were first introduced?

(you don't have to answer right away, only when you have time...take care...and good luck with the cat intros.)

 

[maddies momma]

Yes his name is Maddie. He was given to my parents by family friends when he was a kitten. We were told he was a female and chose the name Maddie. As he matured and developed we realized he was a boy but the name stuck. So he is a boy named Maddie. A lot of people ask that and then they usually say well just change it to Matty like matt. But i prefer the spelling Maddie, its just nicer to me, and i'm sure he doesn't care because he is a cat.

Anyway he is seven years old (and a bit of a grumpy old man) and the other cats are one and two. One is female one is male.

My parents cat is a two year old female. She is very playful and boisterous but he loves her. I was amazed that he responded to her so well. When they first met it was when i was visiting home with maddie. So i brought him into the spare room, while their cat was in the rest of the house. The cats were immediately aware of each other and were at the door chirping away like long lost best friends. We wanted to try the slow approach so we fed them some canned food on opposite sides of the door and they ate away peacefully. Afterwards they were still whining away to see each other. They were being very vocal but in a very happy way. We opened the door a crack and they sniffed noses and really wanted to see each other so we opened the door and they were all happy and lovey together. It was really quite incredible. They were acting like cats who had grown up together and had been missing each other for a long time. It's as if they were literally made for each other.  

I guess thats why i was so confused as to why he wasnt open to the new cats.

Also some new information:

It may seem silly or crazy but I actually had a an animal communicator speak with maddie, to talk to him about his new house and the other cats. She said that maddie is a very macho kitty, who likes to be in control and doesnt like to share space. Maddie said the other cats are very nosey and he finds them to be quite annoying. He says he likes having his own space with just me. He kept saying that he is the top cat and they need to know that. He literally said tell the other cats that i am number one. He also said that when he needs to he will talk to them, but right now he doesnt need to. And i think you were right about him protecting me because he said you are my person, i let them know that. I truly believe everything she said because it was all very spot on to his personality. We talked about other things too, that were very accurate.

So at least i know he is not hissing and growling because he is scared of them. He just doesnt want them in his space and he is trying to enforce himself as the top cat. So I am not going to push him meeting them any time soon. I hope he will get used to them and tolerate them, but i think as long as he has me around he is not lonely for friends.

So any advice on how to proceed with that information would be great!

 

[cat nap]

I don't really have any new advice to give...I would just continue the slow cat-to-cat introduction process.

That new information is very interesting. So she is saying that Maddie has an alpha type personality and wants to exert top cat status, and does not want to share his space.

That would make it more difficult for a smooth integration, so I would agree with what you said about not trying to push Maddie to meet them before he is ready to.

The problem is if he wants to be alpha, and is too aggressive, then it is more dangerous for your roommate's cats, in getting attacked, bitten, or fought with.

It's very difficult when two cats want to be top cat.

It's surprising too, because of how you described Maddie and your parents' cat's meeting, and getting along well. It could very well be that Maddie felt more comfortable in your parent's home, because he remembered their scents, and both cats had personalities that meshed well together, too.

He might just need more time to get adjusted to his new place.

And you are right...as long as he has you, then he cannot be lonely for cat friends.

Because Maddie is 7 yrs old, and the other cats are 1 and 2 yrs, ...I could see Maddie being a little annoyed at their behaviour, especially if one is rowdy.

But it does sound logical about wanting the top cat status, so it comes down to cat personalities being compatible.

I don't know if you have already taken Maddie, in for his yearly Vet check, but when you do, then just make sure that his teeth, gums, mouth are checked out, and if your vet suggests a baseline bloodwork, then I would do that, too. It's only because you mentioned that he acts like a 'grumpy old man', and although 7yrs is still young, sometimes health issues show up earlier, and when addressed earlier, our cats are not as grumpy. Cats seem to hide health issues really well.

I like the name Maddie, for a boy or a girl cat. It reminds me of names like alex, sam, max, etc. It just sounds sweet but tough.