
Signature
Regards,
Steve
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Steve Remington
Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia
newsgroup@steveremington.notmy.name
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Steve Remington IS my name so remove
the ".notmy" from email address to reply
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Great spirits have always encountered
violent opposition from mediocre minds.
Albert Einstein
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Steve,
No, I am sure you have not done any long-term damage. However, you
have learned the lesson that many others have faced -- that is, we let
our emotions overcome what our brains tell us about the importance of
slow introductions. People sometimes have success by just putting two
cats together almost immediately, but that can also be a recipe for
disaster. It is much better practice to keep the cats separate for
awhile (as you originally intended) and very *slowly* and *gradually*
accomplish an introduction. When I first adopted Duffy, I had to be
very careful because Holly had always rejected any other cats. This
was a different situation, of course, because these were two adult cats
and Holly had an established history of attacking any other cat that
was close to me. However, even that problem was overcome -- but it
took a lot of patience and the necessity to overcome the desire for
quick results. One of the most important tools I used was to
temporarily replace a door to one room (the room where Duffy stayed)
with a door that we modified with a metal mesh panel at the bottom of
the door. We used the hardware from the original door (door knob and
hinges) and eventually reversed the process and replaced the original
door after Duffy and Holly were acclimated. The purpose of this door
was to permit the two cats to see each other and become comfortable
while in "almost" contact but not permit them to get into a
confrontation. This worked extremely well! In particular, I could see
Holly move from a posture of anger to acceptance to actual interest in
Duffy. Incidentally, an inexpensive screen door would work just as
well. You might also find it beneficial to buy a couple of Feliway
diffusers and use them in the rooms that the cats most-often use.
I recently had another lesson, myself, about how important the slow
introduction can be -- together with a small lesson on misplaced
aggression. It has now been more than 2 years since I adopted Duffy,
and my two have blended beautifully -- or so I thought. However, I
added a sunroom to my house this spring. All went well until the last
week of construction. Neither cat "seemed" to be bothered by the noise
of construction. However, during that final week, Holly suddenly
started to attack Duffy. Poor little Duffy was not injured, but he was
truly frightened and would immediately scramble under furniture to try
to escape. This was definitely not "playing"; the noise and constant
disruption of our routine had apparently finally caused enough anxiety
that Holly reverted to attacking other cat (in this case, it was Duffy
who was under attack even though he nothing to do with the change in
routine). Since Duffy is blind, he was suddenly at a great
disadvantage in the confrontation. At first, I made the same mistake
you did. I separated them for a day and then permitted them together
again. Big mistake! Holly attacked again, and I could see that she
was really angry. Duffy, of course, was completely intimidated. So, I
started the introduction process all over again. It did not take
nearly as long as my original introduction for the two cats, but I did
go through all the original steps -- separate rooms for the two cats,
bring out the temporary door with the mesh panel, feed the cats in
separate rooms but on plates placed very close to the door so they were
eating in close proximity, and bring out the Feliway. I am happy to
report that everything is "normal" again, and the two cats are once
again close companions -- but this shows how important it is to proceed
slowly and monitor the situation.
By the way, I always laughed because it was Duffy (my little blind cat)
who would literally stalk and pounce on Holly (who is actually larger
and stronger than Duffy). Duffy, of course, just wanted to play.
Holly would either enter into the game or haughtily leap up to some
surface where Duffy couldn't find her. During the period following
sunroom construction when Holly began to attack Duffy, he suddenly
learned just how powerful she really is and he was quite frightened.
Now that things are back to normal, Duffy is once again prancing around
with his tail in the air and is back to his old game of stalking and
pouncing on Holly!
MaryL
mlbriggs - 05 Jun 2005 18:40 GMT
> Steve,
>
[quoted text clipped - 62 lines]
>
> MaryL
Very interesting to read. Purrs being sent that all goes well in the
future. MLB
Steve Remington - 05 Jun 2005 23:46 GMT
Mary,
Thanks for taking the time write a full and detailed reply.
I very much like the idea of the door with the screen. I think that I can
do this without too much trouble.
I also have a little update. Last night (24 hour after the kitten was
brought home) we caught Fidel and the kitten playing "pawsy" under the door
dividing the two of them. We watched quietly and carefully from Fidel's
side to see how he approached it. The was no hissing or growling from him.
He just seemed to be playing the game with interest and curiosity. We
rewarded him with one of his favourite food treats after he finished
playing. Hopefully reinforcing in him that playing nice that with the
kitten is a good thing.
But rest assured that we have not been lulled into a false sense of security
by this and we will continue the slow process.

Signature
Regards,
Steve
-----------------------------------------
Steve Remington
Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia
newsgroup@steveremington.notmy.name
-----------------------------------------
Steve Remington IS my name so remove
the ".notmy" from email address to reply
-----------------------------------------
Great spirits have always encountered
violent opposition from mediocre minds.
Albert Einstein
-----------------------------------------
> Steve,
>
[quoted text clipped - 65 lines]
>
> MaryL
MaryL - 06 Jun 2005 01:21 GMT
Steve,
Excellent! Your description of "pawsy" under the door is exactly what
you want. In fact, one thing I forgot to mention is that the screen
door should be cut short enough so the cats can reach each other under
the door. You could also place a treat (such as tuna) on each side of
a platter and slide that under the door so that each cat is eating from
the same dish -- but safely separated by the screen.
MaryL
cajunprincess - 06 Jun 2005 05:33 GMT
> Mary,
>
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
> by this and we will continue the slow process.
> --
I have only done this once, but I'll add in my two cents on the chance
that it may help. My situation was a little different in that I
adopted two adult cats from the vet/shelter at once, so both were
adapting to their new home as well as to having the other as the only
other cat around. On the advice of the "behavioural specialist" at the
vet (hey, her name tag says so) I shut them up in seperate rooms and
managed to get them to sleep on some towels I brought in. After a few
days, I alternated letting one have the run of the house while the
other was in their room and swapped the towels so that they could
become accustomed to the smell of the other. In your case, I would
think shutting up the cat who has lived with you in a room for a long
period of time wouldn't be advisable. I started letting them out in the
house together in about a week. Things worked out pretty smoothly
compared to the rocky road some people go through, although for about
the first three weeks of being together in the house there were some
spats. Then I tried Feliway and it helped that problem right away
(YMMV). They aren't best buddies-more like roommates, but I can't
complain about that result. I think anything better between cats who
aren't littermates is kind of a bonus.
> My main question is: "Do you think that introducing them too quickly as we
> did could have caused any long term effect on the likelihood of the two of
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> Regards,
> Steve
Very interestied in yoru post - as we had 2 brothers (just domestic
shorthair moggies), one of whom ran away (rather than died), and we were
thinking of getting a kitten (a Burmese, coincidentally) to offer some
companionship to Khamun - although he doesn't seem to have missed his
brother too much., but they didn't seem to interract much when they were
together so maybe that's the explanation. Khamun is a very calm cat so I'm
hopeful that the introduction will go OK - he doesn't seem to get too upset
when a neighbouring cat comes in through the catflap and eats his food.
Although he does the same to him so he can't complain much... Are Burmese
quite a nice active breed? I find Khamun rather docile sometimes.
Steve Remington - 06 Jun 2005 23:24 GMT
Alex,
While I can't yet comment on the outcome of the introduction of our new
kitten I can comment on our experience with the Burmese breed.
Above all they are a very intelligent cat. I have read in many places that
the Burmese is often called the "Dog Cat" because you can train them to do
many things that a dog will do. My experience has been that they are very
intelligent but with the independence of a cat. For example we can get
Fidel to fetch a ball or other toy like a dog but the difference is the
Fidel will play for a little while and then stop with the attitude of "OK!
OK! I have humoured you now but I don't want to play any more".
We have also trained our cats to walk confidently on a lead. Fidel loves it
and nothing phases him while on his walk not even the noise of cars, trucks
and trams at a busy intersection. He also loves the attention he gets when
people see the unusual sight of a cat being walked on a lead. He always
gets a pat or a cuddle.
They are also very loyal. Fidel has bonded to me and is never too far away
when I am working at home.
Also one thing about Burmese cats is that they should never be allowed
outside to roam. They do not have very good road sense and their confidence
with other people means that they are likely to be stolen.
I would recommend a Burmese to any person wanting an intelligence active and
affectionate cat.
But remember however calm and welcoming of other cats you current cat is he
may react differently when you introduce a permanent cat to the house so
make sure you take the introduction slowly.

Signature
Regards,
Steve
-----------------------------------------
Steve Remington
Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia
newsgroup@steveremington.notmy.name
-----------------------------------------
Steve Remington IS my name so remove
the ".notmy" from email address to reply
-----------------------------------------
Great spirits have always encountered
violent opposition from mediocre minds.
Albert Einstein
-----------------------------------------
>
> > My main question is: "Do you think that introducing them too quickly as we
[quoted text clipped - 21 lines]
> Although he does the same to him so he can't complain much... Are Burmese
> quite a nice active breed? I find Khamun rather docile sometimes.