Getting new cat

[andrew021]

I have a female cat, just over 2 years of age.

Am very tempted to get a female kitten from a shelter but am worried if they will get on.

I have read about gradually introducing the new cat so they get used to each others smells.

[Naomi]

In the past 2 months i have had to introduce my Moli (12 months old) to 6 new cats. The first 2 she was introduced to she would hiss and spit at but over the course of a week or so she started to tolerate them.

A week or two after having the 2 new ones, I had a litter of 4 semi ferrals join the household for a few weeks to get them ready for rehoming. These she tolerated almost instantly. However I did notice that on both occassions she accepted the males better than the females.

Like the saying 'You don't know unless you try'

[dinahsmum]

There are some tricks I have heard of which I'll put at the end of this thread. However, I've never experienced anything particularly dramatic when introducing kittens to the household. I don't think most grown cats would actually hurt a kitten, although they do 'discipline' them/box their ears etc. You might also find the old cat 'mothering' the new one, to a degree, and washing it.

Tips I've heard.

Rub both cats on their 'eyebrows' with clean hankies. Let the kitten smell the smell of the old cat. Put the kitten smell on the walls and door jambs of your house - at cat-nose level. Do it particularly at places where you may have noticed puss 'head-butting'.
Run the kitten cloth over the old cat and the old cat cloth over the kitten.
Give the old cat something particularly tasty every time you feed the kitten.

Good luck.

[yvonne]

Hi Andrew,
Well I have been forced to introduce more than one new cat to my household over the last few weeks,We inherited a stray kitten that my Mum found stuck in the bushes in her garden and we took him home to find 'owner or new home' no owner showed up and by the time I had him for a week I couldn't bear to part with him!
Older cats hissed at him a few times and now just don't notice that he is here (we have 2 females and a neutered male all a little older than your cat)
Good luck, I would consider getting a male cat though, in my experience they seem a tad more tolerant.
Yvonne

[yvonne]

P.S. Andrew,

Shame you are so far away as if you have read my post about handrearing kittens, we should have some real pretty ones ready in about 4 weeks

[dandysmom]

In my limited experience, an existing female will accept a male kitten much more readily than another female. Expect some hissing and spitting for a few days to a week, but original cat usually will accept the kitten with no "damage", and kittens are very resiliant....don't seem to be particularly disturbed by the hissing, etc. Oh, and hard as it is, try to pay more attention, much more, to the original cat!!!

[Kim]

Over the years I have introduced many cats, male & female to our multi-cat household. Never had any real or lasting problems. Only thing I would say is make sure you give the exisitng cat plenty of attention and maybe feed him first. Good luck!!

[andrew021]

Thanks for the advice, am still undecided whether to get another cat.

The one I have is maybe enough, for the time being.

[Elaine]

Many people manage to introduce new cats to their existing cat without too much fuss. Just needs a little carefull planning and patients. I would imagine its easier to introduce a kitten to an older cat than a cat around the same age or older.
I dont want to put you off getting another cat, I think its an excellent idea but, and here's the crunch lol
It took me just over 6 months to introduce Bernie to Eva. They are around the same age though and Eva is the Diva afterall. But it has all worked out well in the end and i wouldnt swap either of them and I wouldnt go through all that palava again in a hurry either lol.
Good luck whatever you decide.