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- Apr 10, 2024
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Hi fellow cat people!
My man and I have a male cat who's about 5 years old, and has been with us for 4. He's a big cat and he's relatively calm save for the regular zoomies.
Now, we didn't really plan on getting a second cat but the cat distribution system delivered, and we fell in love with another male kitty, just about 1 year old. Both are neutered, the little one's procedure was about 2 weeks prior to us brining him home.
So, we read up a bit about intros, and separated them initially - old guy in living room, new guy in bedroom. New guy was very calm when we brought him in, didn't even try to hide or anything. However, he hissed at the door separating him and the older cat. About 3 days later, we let them see each other through a tiny opening of the door, and still, the new cat hissed. The resident was obviously afraid and backed off.
After a few more days, we slowly let them see more of each other, for short times. The hissing stopped and they tried sniffing each other, etc. We played with both of them together, gave treats and pets. We also ensured they have something of the other cat's to sniff so they could get used to each others scents.
Now we're at 2 weeks since we got the new cat and there's been fighting. It started out as playfull attempts from the young kitty to play - jumping, sniffing, running after the resident. Looked innocent enough, no explicit aggression. However, in the last 3-4 days they started to fight, with the new one getting vocal. Newbie bites oldie's neck, they have claws out, and they make themselves bigger. New kitty also chases resident when he tries to go away. Resident doesn't retaliate, but just runs away. When that happens we separate them, but then they start to meow through a door and I guess to look for each other. Doesn't it usually go the other way around? Resident cat chasing the newcomer and establishing dominance? We seem to have the reverse on our hands...
There's been some positive interactions as well, like them sleeping close to each other, eating together and sniffing without getting nervous, but the fighting discourages us and I'm worried we'll have to return the new kitten, which will honestly break my heart.
Is it too late to go back a few steps and start the introduction from the beginning? And how to calm down the new kitty so he gives the resident a chance to get to know him without fights? We've put feliway pheromone diffusers, one is the "friends" kind, and the other the "classic", but I'll order a second refill for the friends kind so both of them have it in theis rooms.
Thank you all in advance for whatever advice you might have. Anything will be appreciated!
My man and I have a male cat who's about 5 years old, and has been with us for 4. He's a big cat and he's relatively calm save for the regular zoomies.
Now, we didn't really plan on getting a second cat but the cat distribution system delivered, and we fell in love with another male kitty, just about 1 year old. Both are neutered, the little one's procedure was about 2 weeks prior to us brining him home.
So, we read up a bit about intros, and separated them initially - old guy in living room, new guy in bedroom. New guy was very calm when we brought him in, didn't even try to hide or anything. However, he hissed at the door separating him and the older cat. About 3 days later, we let them see each other through a tiny opening of the door, and still, the new cat hissed. The resident was obviously afraid and backed off.
After a few more days, we slowly let them see more of each other, for short times. The hissing stopped and they tried sniffing each other, etc. We played with both of them together, gave treats and pets. We also ensured they have something of the other cat's to sniff so they could get used to each others scents.
Now we're at 2 weeks since we got the new cat and there's been fighting. It started out as playfull attempts from the young kitty to play - jumping, sniffing, running after the resident. Looked innocent enough, no explicit aggression. However, in the last 3-4 days they started to fight, with the new one getting vocal. Newbie bites oldie's neck, they have claws out, and they make themselves bigger. New kitty also chases resident when he tries to go away. Resident doesn't retaliate, but just runs away. When that happens we separate them, but then they start to meow through a door and I guess to look for each other. Doesn't it usually go the other way around? Resident cat chasing the newcomer and establishing dominance? We seem to have the reverse on our hands...
There's been some positive interactions as well, like them sleeping close to each other, eating together and sniffing without getting nervous, but the fighting discourages us and I'm worried we'll have to return the new kitten, which will honestly break my heart.
Is it too late to go back a few steps and start the introduction from the beginning? And how to calm down the new kitty so he gives the resident a chance to get to know him without fights? We've put feliway pheromone diffusers, one is the "friends" kind, and the other the "classic", but I'll order a second refill for the friends kind so both of them have it in theis rooms.
Thank you all in advance for whatever advice you might have. Anything will be appreciated!