Cats And Kitten Videos

Question: Im getting a new kitten and i already have two cats....?

(Posted by: BabyDoll Lena on 2010-03-09 20:26:14)

So im getting a 3 month year old kitten, and at home i have 2 other cats; one is about 5 years old and the other is about 9. we got the older one first and when we introduced the younger one to it, they hated each other and still basically do lol. so i want to know how to not make the same mistake with this one. any help? im getting the damn cat! and the older one is female, the younger one is male, and the kitten im getting is female.

Posted by: Kitsune on 2010-03-09, 20:35:20

Keep the new kitten in it's own room for a while, and introduce them slowly. Let them get used to each other's scent before you let them meet face to face. Remember not to shower the new kitten with attention and ignore you older cats, you need to pay attention to them too. You may want to gradually lessen the amount of attention you give to your two cats in the weeks prior to bringing home the kitten so they don't associate it with the loss of attention. Cat's all have different personalities, so there's no guarantee that they'll get along well, but they should learn to at least tolerate each other. Keep in mind that some cats really prefer to be "only cats " and really won't appreciate any cat you bring in. Also, spayed/ neutered pets tend to get along better than intact cats, so if your cats aren't fixed you may want to do that.

Posted by: jwi-er on 2010-03-09, 20:28:39

Yeah. Don't get a third cat.

Posted by: Shadow on 2010-03-09, 20:28:47

Role the little one in cat nip!!

Posted by: Obs on 2010-03-09, 20:29:49

Normally if you have two cats with one being female and the other being male, there is a better chance that they will get along. One reason why your two cats may hate each other is the older cat may act like the place you live is "his or her house " and try to be the dominant cat.

Posted by: Becky on 2010-03-09, 20:29:58

In my experience, unless ur cats have shown aggressive tendencies, the best thing to do is to just go right ahead and introduce them as soon as u get ur kitten. i have three cats and none of them really like each other, but they put up with each other. good luck with ur new kitty!

Posted by: moo on 2010-03-09, 20:32:42

This is a tricky situation. It's usually harder to get older cats to get along with kittens, or other cats in general. They tend to stake out territory and when another cat enters they get frustrated and angry. I would try to slowly introduce them so they can get used to each other. Maybe keep the kitten separated from the other two for a while and occasionally let it out so that the others know that it's there. Also, pay some extra attention to your older cats so they don't feel neglected around the kitten.

Posted by: Landyachtz For Life on 2010-03-09, 20:34:27

It mostly depends on gender. one way that you could keep your cats from hating each other is hold the young cat when your introducing them. the older cat should be aloud to freely move and do what ever it wants. so remember hold the younger cat when introducing them!

Posted by: Mercedes on 2010-03-09, 20:35:22

All I do is lock it in the bathroom or whereever its litterbox is to get the kitten comfy, and the other cats will take a few months to get used to it. Depending if there both male or not.

Posted by: Ryan on 2010-03-09, 20:38:14

Well i think that u shuld just keep it away from the other ones. allow it to sniff them once in a while but the chances r that theyre gonna fight alot. hope this helped!

Posted by: JEN F on 2010-03-09, 21:42:57

Listen to Kitsune, she is 100% right. I have 3 cats and none of them like each other. The oldest, Luigi (17), is what I would call "stuck-up ". She doesn't care about other pets as long as they don't bother her. She only lets certain people pet her, so we call her a snob. The middle one, Indy (14), is afraid of everything. We had gotten two female kittens from the same litter - Indy and her sister Zelda. They got along great at first, then after we moved (I think it started then) they fought. Unfortunately, Zelda got diabetes and suddenly died less then a week before her 9th birthday. A few months later I got Loki, aka "the little monster " (he will be 5 in April). He has tons, and tons, and tons of energy and drives everyone insane. He was born in a feral cat colony but was bottle fed, so he has extremely good hunting instincts and is very friendly with people. Because of not being raised by the mother cat he didn't learn proper cat social behavior (the mother had been mistakenly spayed one week after the kittens were born - worked out well for everyone though). He will often pounce on the other two cats and try to get them to play with him. Of course, they want nothing to do with him. So yes, it really depends on the personality of the cat, and also their social behavior and energy level. It's best for kittens to stay with the mother until 8 weeks to learn proper social behavior. In my experience, males get along better then females. I've also read this somewhere, but I know there are some female cats who are very cat friendly. The best way to introduce them is by placing the kitten in a room, let him/ her get adjusted, then move the kitten to another room and let your cats sniff the room you had the kitten in. Keep switching them until they seem very curious and comfortable with the new scent. Also, be sure to first have the kitten checked for Feline Leukemia before letting him/ her around your cats. Just remember, if they don't get along in the first several months, that doesn't mean they never will. Cats are "socially awkward " for the first two years of their life, just like kids and teens. Then, when they become adults, they settle down a little. And once you have the kitten spayed/ neutered, they tend to be a bit more calm (this doesn't always happen - such as "the little monster " of mine... little brat that he is). If all else fails, don't give up, they don't have to get along, just tolerate each other. Remember, it's your house. And if you need more advice, I recommend reading the book "Cat Vs. Cat: Keeping Peace When You Have More Than One Cat " by Pam Johnson-Bennett.

Posted by: Miss Terry Woman on 2010-03-09, 22:30:51

Whatever you do - DON'T get another cat. Cats are very territorial. You have already experienced what it's like when you introduce a new cat to the household. Your older cats will react the same way. Cats simply do not like other cats invading their territory. There is no way that you can get an older cat to like a new cat, unless it's in their nature. Cats will tolerate a new puppy, but rarely a new kitten. Maggie B