How does one go about introducing a cat to a baby cat.

[SubzeroDiabolos]

In my life there were times when I had cat families, but never did I have to worry about them fighting each other because it never happened. This time, i'm thinking about getting a 2nd cat so my cat is not bored alone.

The thing is, I don't know how she would take it. Is she going to fight the kitten off thinking it's invading her territory, or would she play with it and get along? My cat is only like 6-7 months old, not an adult but on it's way at a fast pace (kittens grows so fast lol)

So basically i'm just asking for some feedback is this a bad idea or can cats usually get along even if not blood related and of same sex? Can my cat get jealous and try to mark her territory? Would I need 2 litter boxes?

[Soa]

Only thing you can do is let them fight it out and hope they don't kill each other in the process. My cats hated each other and fought constantly for like 2 years but they are very close now.

Also I need two litter boxes because the one cat always chases the other out of the one box, which caused her to pee on the rug and stink up my house.

[Blarg]

Go to starbucks and let them talk over some coffee.

[Kiro]

Let 'em fight it out, even if they don't get along afterward they'll be "civil" most of the time. That's how it worked when I had a cat + roommates. They were ballistic for a few months then they just settled into livable hatred.

[SubzeroDiabolos]

Go to starbucks and let them talk over some coffee.

No, I don't want them to have small tits.

[Pepsodent]

I've had cats all my life, at one point I had 18 (the majority of them outside). Cats tend to have hugely varying personalities in my experience. I've had a cat for 13 years and she's the oldest one in the house. She has always been bitter, never interacted in a friendly way with any other cats, and hissed -every- time they've come within 3-4 feet of her. However, she's probably our worst case scenario. Our other cats have, for the most part, been pretty friendly to each other when they've been introduced. We never had any bad fighting when new cats came along. The one I mentioned above isn't territorial, she's just a cunt all the time to everyone.

You should probably just ease into it. Put them a few feet apart and let them smell each other.

I'm not a cat psychologist, though. @@;

edit: I wish I was.

[SubzeroDiabolos]

Let 'em fight it out, even if they don't get along afterward they'll be "civil" most of the time. That's how it worked when I had a cat + roommates. They were ballistic for a few months then they just settled into livable hatred.

That's the thing, I don't want another cat for me, I want it so she can play with a 'friend'. If a typical cat reaction would be for them to be fighting all the time i'll just not get another one lol.

[Thoronas]

When my gf and I moved into together we had to bring together 3 cats, 2 of hers with one of mine. We used a baby gate to seperate the bed room from the rest of the house and put her cats in the bed room and let my cat have the outside for a few hours, this was in my place so my cat was used to running shit. They yowled at each other for an hour or two but when we moved the gate out they started to sniff each other and within a few days there were fine.

[Thoronas]

That's the thing, I don't want another cat for me, I want it so she can play with a 'friend'. If a typical cat reaction would be for them to be fighting all the time i'll just not get another one lol.

Here's the thing, cats fighting is not always bad. My gf's cats still scrap years after getting to know each other. If they aren't screaming at each other and the hair isnt standing on ends then let them fight. Cat fights are awesome to watch.

[Tagus]

There is actually a correct way to do this, according to some old cat book from 1981 that my parents have.

When you get the kitten, keep it in a pet carrier for the first day or two and let your current cat smell it, get used to it's presence, etc... then let the kitten out when it seems like your cat is cool with it. Maybe keep the kitten in a room with the door shut for another day or two, and gradually let them get used to each other and interact.

Like that other dude said, cats have very distinct and developed personalities and senses of self, so you kind of have to gradually introduce them I guess.

Edit: Also, for litter boxes, the supposed rule in this book is to take the number of cats you have (2), and add +1 to that number (which would equal 3 in your case), and that's the number of litter boxes you should have.

[Max™]

Grab the older one by the nape of it's neck, rub the baby on it so it has to deal with it's smell, and vice versa.

Then remember that almost all cats and dogs have a baby reflex, where the presence of a puppy or kitten, or even a human infant will trigger a certain measure of restraint.

[Tagus]

Grab the older one by the nape of it's neck, rub the baby on it so it has to deal with it's smell, and vice versa.

Then remember that almost all cats and dogs have a baby reflex, where the presence of a puppy or kitten, or even a human infant will trigger a certain measure of restraint.

lol

Or that. Grab them by the neck and rub their heads into each other, and they will love each other forever.

[Yuri-G]

never done this, but my parents have when I was a kid, and I've read up on it since I'm thinking of getting a dog someday (which is a similar process, although not quite the same).

the main thing is to let them get used to each other's presence before you actually introduce them to each other, and smell is a very important part of this. for example, if your cat has a bed that it always uses, take a blanket off of that and put it in a room, then put your new cat in there. on the flipside, get a new carrier to bring the new cat home, then stick it by your old cat's bed to let it sniff it, or better yet, shove your old cat in there for a bit. there are no real specific guidelines, you just generally have to get them used to the other cat's presence before you actually introduce them to minimize problems. they'll still probably fight, but it should hopefully be minor if you do it that way. if you just stick 'em in the same room right away and hope they'll get used to each other, they probably will, but not before a possible vet bill for infected scratches and other such fun shit. not the best idea imo.

are they both declawed? that's another big thing: they should be either be declawed, or both have claws. if one has claws and the other doesn't, they should not be living together. unless you're incredibly lucky and the cat with claws is just that good-natured, the declawed cat will be living a life of misery and harassment.

[SubzeroDiabolos]

They both would have claws. I think after reading all the comments it seems like it would be a good deal of trouble for nothing since everyone that posted in this thread, not one mentioned they had 2 cats playing and having fun, y'all just telling me you've been able to minimizes cat fight (lol).

I guess no 2nd cat for me then.

[Max™]

Yeah, Reggie has claws and Alfie was declawed when we rescued him, but Alfie was neutered as a kitten, so he still invokes the baby reaction from other animals.

Like, Bandit (our dog) will bully Reggie somewhat when he comes back inside, making him submit to an inspection, or he'll snarl to make Reggie move back. He tolerates Alfie though and doesn't do anything but kinda shoulder him away from his food bowl.


I've had lots of cats, literally hundreds of them, and we just force them to accept the other and quickly discourage fighting.

Use a squirt bottle if you're scared of scratches (I'm not, but some people might be) on your hands or whatnot.

[Bwelch]

Like others have said, smell is very important. I'd probably use a shirt I just worn, let the kitten lay on it for a good while (so that he knows you are connected to the kitten), and then introduce him to your cat.

[Quixon]

IME if the cats aren't around the same age they don't bond to well.


Me and the g/f have 4 Cats. None of them fight, but at the same time, none could give 2 shits wtf the other cats were doing.

The kitten will bug the piss out of the big cat, big cat will give kitten a swat, kitten will run away.

Rinse and repeat until the kitten grows up, and then they will just ignore each other completely lol.

[Yuri-G]

They both would have claws. I think after reading all the comments it seems like it would be a good deal of trouble for nothing since everyone that posted in this thread, not one mentioned they had 2 cats playing and having fun, y'all just telling me you've been able to minimizes cat fight (lol).

I guess no 2nd cat for me then.

honestly, cats are fine alone. I felt the same way about mine but I've realized he'd probably just be pissed off if he had to share the apartment with another cat. I'm pretty sure he loves being king. or at least thinking he is... sometimes I'm really not sure whether he owns the place or I do, lol.

[Maguspk]

What I'm getting from this thread is that cats are cunts. Jesus, they're pretentious little shits by the sound of it.

[Rementoire]

Pics or gtfo.