New cat is curious: good sign?

[wanderlust]

I'm going through the process of introductions right now.

I've put my resident cat in a secure room upstairs and the new cat has the run of the place downstairs (I live in a split level loft, so those were my only options.)

I have a gate separating the two levels. I've fed each cat on the other side of the gate with a foam board partition and that went fine.

They could hear each other crunching their kibble and smell that there was an animal on the other side.

Now I'm finding the new cat is soooo curious about what's on the other side of the partition.

She comes up the stairs and has tried every Macguyver trick in the book to get through to the other side.

I'm wondering is this a good sign? Or does this mean she just wants to get over into the room to tear up my resident cat?

My resident cat is a scaredy cat, 7 years old and pretty mellow. She's the type that hides when the doorbell rings and guests come over.

This new little cat is quite the spitfire. She's an adult cat but very energetic and playful.

When she did catch site of my cat early on, she got the puffed tail, froze, eyes dilated, and she yowled like she was ready to lunge.

I was just wondering if anyone had any insight on what this curiosity might mean.

Thanks in advance.

 

[catspaw66]

She is smelling that your resident is a beta cat, and wants to play and exert her dominance. How old is the new cat? Did you get her from a shelter? Do you know if she is from a multi-cat environment?

 

[wanderlust]

The new cat was a pregnant stray who appeared on my back patio. I know nothing about her

I live in a condo complex with a lot of people moving in and out and I feel like she was possibly abandoned because she was a) very friendly b) had no battle wounds and was pretty clean and c) immediately knew how to use the litter box when brought inside.

I asked the vet to guesstimate her age and he said she was maybe 3-5 years old.

But she plays like a youngster...chases her tail, runs up and down the stairs going under and over the steps, drags her bedding from one end of the living room space to the other.

My resident cat aside from being older was a rescue. I found her laying in the middle of the street as a kitten. She'd probably been hit by a car as her tail was broken and had to be amputated. She can use the restroom fine, but has no motor function of the tail; I call it her "mud flap". As a result her play has always been much more sedate. She's not a jumper and she can be a little wobbly on railings or the back of the couch.

I've often taken resident cat to my parents to cat sit, I travel, and they have 3 cats. She can defend herself, but she's definitely not an agressor.

 

[catspaw66]

It sounds like she was a pet and somebody dumped her. I think she will get along pretty well with your resident cat. Just make sure you introduce them completely before the new one has her kittens. Then your cat will be a buddy and not a threat to them.