amyco Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Saturday we adopted a ten year old shelter cat. Let's call him Duke, because that's his name. :) He is super sweet, friendly, and calm. He previously lived with another cat. We brought him home and put him and all his stuff in our bedroom so we could introduce him to the first cat (Hazel the Horrible) slowly. She is 5.5 and has had run of the house by herself since she was a kitten. He adjusted quickly to being here, eating, using the box and scratcher. So Sunday we switched them--all of Hazel's stuff in our room, Duke exploring the rest of the house. Needless to say she was not thrilled. Then we put a baby gate up so they can see each other...she hissed, we closed the door. Later we tried again, this time she got closer but still hissed. Finally we let her out too. So last night they are both out in the house. Duke did great--he had no problem with her at all, he is very calm and not fearful. Hazel hisses and often growls when she sees him. So he spent the night in the room with us and has been in the room all day. We came down this morning to Hazel having had an accident on the carpet. She is clearly stressed (although today she is so happy that he is not around). I know it will take time...but he really wants to come out! He's big and can make the door (and my nerves!) rattle! I know our room is better than the 6 weeks he spent at the shelter. We moved Hazel's food upstairs as we read that we should move it closer and closer to the door where he is. So, after all this, what should we do? How long have you had to wait until a first cat could tolerate a new cat? We love hiim already and want to make it work. When he is out in the house, it's like he's lived here forever and he is not bothered by her. Help? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Give it a week or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 It sounds as if things are going fine. Just be patient. I'd put Hazel's food back where it belongs. I don't believe moving it to where he is will accomplish anything. You can put some loops of packing tape on the door to keep him from rattling it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 You did it too soon. They needed to be behind closed doors for about a week. You needed to feed them treats on each side of the door where they could hear each other eating. About 2 times during the week you should have switched them out. But only for an hour at the most. After a week, then you do the baby gates. This needed to last until Hazel stopped hissing. That could take who knows how long? Just until the hissing stopped. Possibly days. You would stay with the cats while the gates are up. Once the cats wandered from the gates, the door was closed again until the next time you'd try the gates. THEN...after about 1.5 to 2 weeks of closed door and baby gates THEN you should have let them have full body contact. And if Hazel was hissy, it needed to end pretty soon with Duke back in the bedroom. Try again the next day and so forth until she was more settled. Also, note that some cats take 6 months to a year to accept a new cat. Having a good first impression is vital. I really hope that that first impression wasn't flubbed because you rushed it. I'm hopeful that it'll be ok as long as they didn't get into a physical altercation--just the hissing. If you want this to work, go back to step 1 with Duke behind a closed door for a week. I'd say less than a week except for the fact that she poo/peed on the rug. That's bad. If she was just hissy, I wouldn't say for him to stay stuck in the room so long, but she's giving you clear messages that she needs more time. It's a BIG pain, but you'll have to split your time between Hazel and Duke. You'll have to make a point of hanging out in your room with Duke for a few hours a day while he's sequestered in there. Hopefully Hazel will stop with the peeing/pooing on the floor if things go back to normal for her for a few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Has Hazel ever lived with another cat or another animal? If not, this could take a really long time. I've got one cat who cannot live with any other animals. When I adopted her I had to sign a pledge not to adopt any other animals, which was fine with me. She gets terrified if she even hears dog outside, she has dog anxiety. She was from a home that had a lot of other animals and she just can't deal with it. With us she is a fantastic kitty, but she needs to be Queen. I was told she got very aggressive with other cats, and I believe them, but I can't imagine it. Well, maybe I can, lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alicia64 Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 You're doing such a wonderful thing for Duke. I truly applaud you. I wanted to get an older cat from the shelter, but my kids wanted a kitten. It was hard to walk away from the olders (who were once kittens). You're a hero. Alley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amyco Posted January 26, 2015 Author Share Posted January 26, 2015 You did it too soon. They needed to be behind closed doors for about a week. You needed to feed them treats on each side of the door where they could hear each other eating. About 2 times during the week you should have switched them out. But only for an hour at the most. After a week, then you do the baby gates. This needed to last until Hazel stopped hissing. That could take who knows how long? Just until the hissing stopped. Possibly days. You would stay with the cats while the gates are up. Once the cats wandered from the gates, the door was closed again until the next time you'd try the gates. Thank you for the detailed instructions! You are right, we rushed it. We've started over with square one today and Hazel is using her box normally. We're putting a small table in the room so I can use the laptop there...in it for the long haul! I do believe she will come around. Thankfully there was no violence, just hissing and growling. Thanks again...should have asked here first! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted January 26, 2015 Share Posted January 26, 2015 Hissing and growling are perfectly normal and to be expected. That doesn't mean you can't introduce two cats w/o the vocalizations happening. But it's not a particularly big deal if they do happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaKim Posted January 27, 2015 Share Posted January 27, 2015 Hissing and growling are perfectly normal and to be expected. That doesn't mean you can't introduce two cats w/o the vocalizations happening. But it's not a particularly big deal if they do happen. :iagree: I have 8, and they have been together forever and we still often hear hissing and growling and things getting knocked over. But they never actually fight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cindy in FL. Posted January 27, 2015 Share Posted January 27, 2015 I agree! We recently went to the shelter to adopt a cat as well. The kids wanted a kitten, but I preferred an adult cat. When we met Minnie, we knew she was the one for us. She's 2 1/2, small, and blind in one eye. There was no way I could leave without her! You're doing such a wonderful thing for Duke. I truly applaud you. I wanted to get an older cat from the shelter, but my kids wanted a kitten. It was hard to walk away from the olders (who were once kittens). You're a hero. Alley Do you ever watch the show My Cat From Hell? Jackson has helped lots of families with cats problems like this. Maybe he has a site with tips. Best wishes to you as you work this out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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