You hadn’t really planned on getting another cat, but then
the neighbors found a litter of kittens under their deck. Your whole family has been petting and
playing with them, and you’ve grown particularly fond of the little brown tabby. You’re convinced that your own cat gets
lonely and that a new kitten will be the perfect antidote.
Many people brag to me that they “just tossed” a new cat
into the mix of their existing pets, and everything turned out fine. A more common scenario is that chaos ensues, creating
two or more unhappy cats that may never coexist in peace. Introducing a new cat into your household
with finesse and patience will have the lasting benefits of, as Ringo Starr put
it, “Peace and love! Peace and love!”
Cats are social, but at the same time independent and
territorial. They have the reputation of
being loners, and to some extent, that’s accurate: They don’t readily accept
newcomers into their territory as a dog might.
Yet cats do often enjoy the company of other cats, as long as they feel
they have their own safe places to eat, sleep, and eliminate. Whether you are adding a second cat to your
household or a tenth, you’ll need to make sure those basic requirements are met
for every feline in your house.
Before you bring home a new cat, certain preparations must
be made. I liken this process to
premarital counseling: A thorough job
now will prevent a “divorce” later (i.e., euthanasia or finding a new home for
one of your kitties). First, be
realistic about your domain: A small house or apartment might not have enough
territory to allow a new addition. Be
especially aware of whether you have room for more litter boxes; ideally, each
cat should have its own box. If your
current cat has any major behavioral issues, such as elimination problems or
aggression, those must be solved before the new cat arrives. And realize that there will be added costs of
supplies and veterinary care. It’s great
to selflessly rescue a cat, but you’re really not doing him any favors if you
can’t afford to treat him when he’s sick.
I think all new cats should have their own “safe room,”
where they can enjoy sanctuary from the resident cat for a while. It allows the newcomer to adjust to new
people and scents in a calm and safe environment. Pick any room you aren’t using, and set it
up from a cat’s point of view. If all
you have available is a small bathroom, just do the best you can by modifying
the following suggestions.
A place to hide is important, and cardboard boxes provide
inexpensive caves. Simply cut
appropriately sized cat holes in the sides and line the box with a soft
blanket. You can be creative and link
boxes with tunnels. Even better, invest
in a cat tunnel, which is something cats can enjoy their entire life. Cat owners know how hard it can be to extract
a frightened feline from under a bed, and the provided caves or tunnels help make
that unnecessary.
Position the litter box as far away as possible from the
food and water bowls. If you know the
type of litter your newcomer is accustomed to, use that; you can always change
it later. Otherwise, provide an
uncovered litter box. (Consider my favorite litter, the Breeze
System.) Don’t forget to cat proof
the room.
You’ll need to provide a good scratching post; a new one
without the scent of your existing cats on it is best. Add a few appropriate cat toys, including an
interactive toy so you can play with your newbie. A new cat tree would be a nice luxury,
although a cat bed secured well off the floor is suitable.
The use of cat pheromones, such as a Feliway Plug-in Diffuser, will help calm
your new kitty. Plug some in for the
cats on the other side of the door, too.
When your preparations are complete and the big day has
arrived, bring the new cat home in a carrier.
Go directly to the safe room, close the door and open the carrier. At this point, you can spend a little time
with a new kitten, but an adult cat might appreciate just being left alone to
check everything out.
It might seem a little extreme, but it’s best to keep the
newcomer’s scents off you during the initial introductory phase. Keep an extra T-shirt in the safe room that
can be removed when you leave, and wash your hands before handling your
resident cats. Expect your existing cat to hang around the safe room door. If he does, don’t make a big deal out of it,
but do try to distract him with lots of play so he doesn’t become obsessed with
camping outside the door. Use playtime
as a way to bond with the new cat, too, with multiple sessions throughout the
day as time allows.
During this initial phase, the cats will get used to each
other’s scents and sounds. Initially,
the new smells might send any of the cats into a hissing and growling tizzy; that
is to be expected! You’ll know things
are going well when the cats can smell each other through the door and act
calmly. Other signs of success are that
your resident cats go about their daily routines again, are willing to play
without redirecting aggression to each other, and have normal appetites. The newcomer should seem calm and secure; if
he is still hiding under the bed or won’t eat, you can’t progress to the next
step. Some cats thrive in their new home
and acclimate quickly, while others take far longer — and the same is true for
the resident kitties. So let the cats
tell you when the time is right to move along.
Never force cat-to-cat interaction!
The next step in the process is to exchange scents. My research led me to a book (Cat
vs. Cat by Pam Johnson-Bennett) describing a clever way to accomplish that: the sock exchange. Put a clean sock over your hand, as you would
a mitten, and rub it gently on your calmest resident cat’s face to collect the
pheromones. Place it in the safe room
for the newbie to explore. Repeat using
a clean sock on the new cat and placing that sock with the resident cat. Have more than one resident cat? Just do this one at a time over a day or so;
all at once would be overwhelming. Perform
the sock exchange a few times a day to make sure all of the cats get used to one
another’s scents. If there’s a strong
negative reaction to the sock by any cat, don’t be discouraged, as that doesn’t
predict that they won’t get along. It
does signal that the introduction might take a long time, though.
Next, it’s time for the room exchange. Confine the resident cat, open the safe room
door, and allow the new cat to explore the entire house at his own pace. Use toys or food as motivation if he acts
nervous. Then, safely confine the new
cat and allow the resident cat to explore the safe room — don’t dump her in
there, just leave the door open. Keep
these room exchanges sessions short, and do them two or three times a day if
you can.
When both cats seem comfortable with the new scents, it’s
time to let them meet each other. These
sessions should last only 30 seconds to a few minutes at the most. Open the safe room door while offering the
cats treats or a snack of something really delicious, like pieces of
chicken. Keep them on opposite sides of
the room. Use interactive toys to distract
either cat if you notice any sign of fear or aggression. Do as many of these sessions a day as your
schedule allows. It’s better to do six
short ones, in which they get along, than one long one, when they end up
hissing. Increase the interaction time gradually
until they coexist for at least an hour.
You’ll want to keep the new kitty in the safe room at night for a while,
but eventually they’ll intermingle full time.
If all goes well, the introduction process will take a few
days. However, sometimes it takes
months. That can try any cat owner’s
patience, but don’t be discouraged. Go
back a step if you get hissing or growling, and proceed more slowly. I’ve actually had clients buy screen doors
and install them as the safe room door until things settle down. Eventually, all your time and perseverance should
pay off, and both you and your kitties will enjoy a new companion.
