Thinking of introducing new kitten - advice please

[stevie_rae]

Hi guys,

I adopted a beautiful black rescue cat almost 3 years ago. He had a rough start with a lot of illness and vet visits but is now fine (besides carrying the cat-flu and shedding it but this hasn't happened for almost 2 years).

He loves my partner and I, but does not like visitors at all. We have taken to locking him away when people come over. He isn't aggressive - but tends to want to sus people out, then gets too close (e.g. jumping on their lap or sniffing them up close) and scares himself and hisses at them. He hasn't ever swiped or bitten anyone (to my knowledge) because when he hisses they back away and he gets put in a different room. He has been like this all his life but is starting to get better with regular visitors - my mum visits about once a month and she stayed overnight and he only hissed at her a few times. Interestingly when we have visitors over and he gets put in another room he WANTS to come out and see what's going on.

My partner started work full time last year and he was quite stressed because of it. He would cry when my partner left and mope around. He is slowly getting better but I am starting work full time in 2 months so I don't know how he will handle us both being away for about 9 hours a day.

My partner and I have thought about introducing a kitten over the christmas period (my partner has 2 weeks off work) to keep him company since he struggles so much with separation. I know it will be difficult at first and will work slowly introducing them over the 2 weeks. My mother is willing to take the new shelter kitten if it doesn't work out.

Do you guys think this is a good idea or have any experiences you could share with me?

Any tips?

He seems to be better with people when he is familiar with them so I am hoping this will be the same for the new edition.

Thanks in advance

 

[faery]

A playmate or someone to bond with can help with separation anxiety, as well as some behaviour problems (especially if the kitten is well socialized).

As your cat takes a while to warm up to new things be sure to keep them in separate rooms. It would help if they could sniff each other under a door (and perhaps give them both a blanket for a few hours then give the blanket to the other cat....that can help them get used to each others scent).

As for the people issues try short visits with one person at a time. Have the person not pay attention to your cat (no eye contact, no talking to the cat, no petting) and let the cat work his way up to it. You can also try calming aids (feliway is a good one and minics the pheromones a mother cat gives off to her kittens) in the rooms where people who visit tend to stay. Have you tried pet condos and having hiding places for him as well?

 

[stevie_rae]

Thank you so much for your reply.

That was my thinking too - getting a settled kitten to help calm him and reassure him when we are away. Do you think I should put the kitten in a separate bedroom and let my boy (nox) roam the house as usual besides that room? or vice versa? I think Nox may get anxious if he is locked away and we are out with the kitten. Thank you for the advice about the blanket too! I never thought of that

He seems to be okay with people visiting if they stand up - but as soon as they sit down it is like he gets too close to them and freaks himself out. He has plenty of places to run away to - bedrooms, hidey holes, cat condos etc. But he chooses to be in their presence which really confuses me. I know he is scared rather than being aggressive but I can't work out why he won't remove himself from the situation. Even if they ignore him, he goes up to them and gets too close and it freaks him out. It's weird.

I use feliway in times of stress, but will definitely put all the defuses and spray back in action leading up to the new addition.

Again, thanks so much for taking the time to reply. I really appreciate it!

 

[faery]

If your older cat is used to having the run of the house it would be better to not change up too much, but it should be okay to give the kitten an hour or so a day around the house so her/his scent ends up around the house and your cat can get used to it before having to deal with the "whole kit and kaboodle".

 

[shadowsrescue]

Another tip that will work for either helping to introduce cats or helping with separation anxiety is to try Composure.  It comes in a treat formula called Composure feline or in a liquid formula called Composure liquid or Composure liquid Max.  I used the treats when I brought a stray inside the house in May.  He would cry and cry at night for hours on end.  I then started giving him 3 composure treats at night before I went to bed.  He would settle in about 30-45 minutes.  Then when I started introductions between the stray and my resident kitty, things did not go so well.  I have been using the liquid form for a few months now and it has really helped the two to adjust and focus on other activities instead of going after each other all day.  It does not make them sleepy or groggy at all.  It just takes the edge off. 

There are also flower essences available that help too.  You can try Rescue Remedy for stressful situations as well as essences from Spirit Essences. 

The feliway spry and plugins are also great.  Just be sure if you are using the plugins that you have enough to cover the amount of space in your home.  I have a very open concept home and found I needed 3 for my first floor. 

 

[stevie_rae]

Thanks for both of your replies. Unfortunately composure is not available in Australia We have feliway running full time and have had since he was a kitten. We don't really know if it works but we don't want to take it away to test that situation - he could be even more out of control!

After a lot of discussion we have decided to put him on Endep (Amitriptyline).  I have started a new thread regarding this because I am at a loss how this is going and whether his reaction is a good or bad one.

If you guys have time and wouldn't mind reading a bit more info this is the new thread I have started:

http://www.thecatsite.com/t/269276/...orking-but-could-just-be-sedation-please-help

We are still planning on getting a new edition so fingers crossed it all goes smoothly. We are going to look at some furbabies this weekend