 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue CatKB.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / June 2005Can't everyone just get along - cat introductions
About 6 weeks ago I brought three 11 month old, herpes infected cats into my house. They're all siblings that I found when they were two months old. I followed all the instructions and guides about introducing new cats to the resident cats (I've also done it twice before). However, because there are three new cats and with the hot weather even inside the house, I've had to change things a bit. I'm now at a step with them where things aren't going well. I've let the three cats out of their room to explore the house with the resident cat. I've been doing this for about two weeks. The smallest, sickliest, female cat, Gizmo, seems to get along best with the resident cat although he still hisses at her when she gets too close. The healthiest, female cat and dominant one of the three, gets along ok with the resident cat but I've seen two problems. The resident cat still hisses at her but on two occasions she hissed back at him. It also appears that she might be trying to be the dominant cat of the house. The third cat, Sonic, a male, absolutely loves the resident cat and is always trying to play with him and rubs up against him as if they were best buddies. The resident cat hates this and will usually hiss. Today, however, the resident cat started attacking Sonic when he got too close/friendly. The resident cat seems to be afraid of the three new cats. He acts as though he's unsure of them and eventually looks like he's ticked off at them. I've never had this happen with an introduction before. I also get the impression that he feels as though he's losing territory and is outnumbered, which he is. He got along well with two other cats that I used to have in the house but they were both several years older than him. Unfortunately, one died two years ago and the other three months ago. What can I do to help everyone get along better? Do I need to start over? I can't keep these three cats confined to their room all the time, especially since the air conditioner is broke and it's hot as heck in their room. There are no other rooms that I can keep them in either. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do? I just want everyone to get along even if they don't like each other. > Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do? I just want everyone > to get along even if they don't like each other. It sounds like your doing fine. If the worst that is happening is hissing, that occurs with long time friends. Even after someone has been married for 30 years they still hiss at each other occasionally. You know, they will never level out, until they can go through the motions. If they can exist in the same space without fighting, then I would say the rest is down hill. As far as the resident cat, you could always show a little favortism for now, just to re-assure her of your affection. Maybe this would make her less apprehensive. Good Luck and if one gets to fighting, then remove just that one for a spell. Then try it again later. Each time the fighting happens, put that one back in the room, and maybe this would be enough to motivate them to get along. I don't think there is no magic formula for training, sure, yure dealing with some basic cat instincts, but these cats are also wanting to please you, so your actions certainly play a role in this. I think so anyway. >> Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do? I just want everyone >> to get along even if they don't like each other. > > It sounds like your doing fine. If the worst that is happening is > hissing, that occurs with long time friends. Even after someone has > been married for 30 years they still hiss at each other occasionally. snip >Good luck snip OH so true! Ask me! It's helpful to develop shorthand steps to get to the point of ongoing points of disagreement. > I don't think there is no magic formula for training, sure, yure > dealing with some basic cat instincts, but these cats are also wanting > to please you, so your actions certainly play a role in this. I changed my mind, there is a magic formula I got the magic stick baby... My cat loves me...my cat is curazy about me. > About 6 weeks ago I brought three 11 month old, herpes infected cats > into my house. They're all siblings that I found when they were two [quoted text clipped - 38 lines] > Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do? I just want everyone > to get along even if they don't like each other.>>> I think your resident cat must find it overwhelming having to cope with three cats all at once and he is being defensive and hissing to tell the cats to keep their distance. Is it possible to let him meet one cat at a time so he doesn't feel so defensive and then put him in another room while all three spend some time out? Use treats and fishing rod type toys to make the encounters pleasant. Try to distract Sonic if he gets to close and tries to rub against him , I know he's being friendly but your resident cat isn't ready for that yet. I don't think the larger female is trying to dominate him but is reacting to him hissing at her. I think the resident cat could be a lot worse. It can take weeks for cats to accept each other. I wouldn't seperate them again but carry on letting them meet for short periods seperately. Can you get Felifriend in the US. You spray it onto a tissue and then put it on the cats faces so they all smell familiar to each other. Alison |
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.