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#1
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Not the introduction i expected....
I should probably start out with some background -
2 months ago I adopted a 3 year old male cat I named Otik from the shelter. He was dropped off by owners, is fixed, and does have claws. He is very shy and timid, but once he gets going he loves affection. It just takes him awhile and if he thinks you are mad at him or if someone new comes in, he runs. No one even knows I have him He is perfect, but here is the problem. About 2 weeks ago a woman who owns a farm near where I work was telling me about all the strays that get dropped off on her property. She mentioned one, a declawed, young (2-4 years old), spayed female, that caught my attention. I met her, went home, thought about it, and decided to pick her up a few days ago. She seemed very loving and a nonstop purrer, a good companion for Otik. Well we got home, they looked at eachother, and it seemed ok. Otik ran away, she explored. The problem came about 2 hours later. When Otik tries to come get attention from me, she hisses and growls at him, which makes him panic and run away. She does the same thing when he wants to eat! She inhales her full days worth of food in 2 minutes, then runs to his and eats it all!! He is an all day grazer, so this pretty much means he doesnt eat unless i lock him away from her. Is this going to get better, or did her many months on the farm fighting for food and a place, added to her being declawed, make it impossible for her to be in a 2-cat household?? Will she eventually get a normal appetite, because she could eat an entire bag of cat food in a days time, and still sit and stare at the bowl.....I just dont know if I should keep trying and subject Otik to more aggression if its worth it in the long run, or if its better for both if she goes back to the farm or gets a new home. Sorry for the length of the message, there was a lot on my mind!! |
#2
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Not the introduction i expected....
"Leah" wrote in message ups.com... I should probably start out with some background - 2 months ago I adopted a 3 year old male cat I named Otik from the shelter. He was dropped off by owners, is fixed, and does have claws. He is very shy and timid, but once he gets going he loves affection. It just takes him awhile and if he thinks you are mad at him or if someone new comes in, he runs. No one even knows I have him He is perfect, but here is the problem. About 2 weeks ago a woman who owns a farm near where I work was telling me about all the strays that get dropped off on her property. She mentioned one, a declawed, young (2-4 years old), spayed female, that caught my attention. I met her, went home, thought about it, and decided to pick her up a few days ago. She seemed very loving and a nonstop purrer, a good companion for Otik. Well we got home, they looked at eachother, and it seemed ok. Otik ran away, she explored. The problem came about 2 hours later. When Otik tries to come get attention from me, she hisses and growls at him, which makes him panic and run away. She does the same thing when he wants to eat! She inhales her full days worth of food in 2 minutes, then runs to his and eats it all!! He is an all day grazer, so this pretty much means he doesnt eat unless i lock him away from her. Is this going to get better, or did her many months on the farm fighting for food and a place, added to her being declawed, make it impossible for her to be in a 2-cat household?? Will she eventually get a normal appetite, because she could eat an entire bag of cat food in a days time, and still sit and stare at the bowl.....I just dont know if I should keep trying and subject Otik to more aggression if its worth it in the long run, or if its better for both if she goes back to the farm or gets a new home. Sorry for the length of the message, there was a lot on my mind!! If you have the room to separate the cats for some time then you can see if they will eventually be able to comfortably live together. Very few cats will get along if they are just thrown together to begin with so your experience is probably the norm rather than the exception. http://www.fourpaws.org/pages/adopti...cing_cats.html W |
#3
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Not the introduction i expected....
The other poster is right, let them get to know each other in smaller
doses. But I don't think the new one's behavior will change. I had two like that and it was a constant battle for food and turf. Leah wrote: I should probably start out with some background - 2 months ago I adopted a 3 year old male cat I named Otik from the shelter. He was dropped off by owners, is fixed, and does have claws. He is very shy and timid, but once he gets going he loves affection. It just takes him awhile and if he thinks you are mad at him or if someone new comes in, he runs. No one even knows I have him He is perfect, but here is the problem. About 2 weeks ago a woman who owns a farm near where I work was telling me about all the strays that get dropped off on her property. She mentioned one, a declawed, young (2-4 years old), spayed female, that caught my attention. I met her, went home, thought about it, and decided to pick her up a few days ago. She seemed very loving and a nonstop purrer, a good companion for Otik. Well we got home, they looked at eachother, and it seemed ok. Otik ran away, she explored. The problem came about 2 hours later. When Otik tries to come get attention from me, she hisses and growls at him, which makes him panic and run away. She does the same thing when he wants to eat! She inhales her full days worth of food in 2 minutes, then runs to his and eats it all!! He is an all day grazer, so this pretty much means he doesnt eat unless i lock him away from her. Is this going to get better, or did her many months on the farm fighting for food and a place, added to her being declawed, make it impossible for her to be in a 2-cat household?? Will she eventually get a normal appetite, because she could eat an entire bag of cat food in a days time, and still sit and stare at the bowl.....I just dont know if I should keep trying and subject Otik to more aggression if its worth it in the long run, or if its better for both if she goes back to the farm or gets a new home. Sorry for the length of the message, there was a lot on my mind!! |
#4
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Not the introduction i expected....
Think of as it as a date you have to get to know one another before you get
the prize. Introducing a new member into household is a slow job you can't throw them into he frying pan as you described you will get territorial aggression The eating sounds like a normal barn cat reaction. Won't say if it will change. cats are cats they do what they want. I have a fat cat that goes to all the dishes and eats the remains licks the dishes clean. My Rumble is a all day eater so I have to feed him in little bits so he will eat bad thing he is a diabetic kitty so close eye at all times on him. Patience is the key "Leah" wrote in message ups.com... I should probably start out with some background - 2 months ago I adopted a 3 year old male cat I named Otik from the shelter. He was dropped off by owners, is fixed, and does have claws. He is very shy and timid, but once he gets going he loves affection. It just takes him awhile and if he thinks you are mad at him or if someone new comes in, he runs. No one even knows I have him He is perfect, but here is the problem. About 2 weeks ago a woman who owns a farm near where I work was telling me about all the strays that get dropped off on her property. She mentioned one, a declawed, young (2-4 years old), spayed female, that caught my attention. I met her, went home, thought about it, and decided to pick her up a few days ago. She seemed very loving and a nonstop purrer, a good companion for Otik. Well we got home, they looked at eachother, and it seemed ok. Otik ran away, she explored. The problem came about 2 hours later. When Otik tries to come get attention from me, she hisses and growls at him, which makes him panic and run away. She does the same thing when he wants to eat! She inhales her full days worth of food in 2 minutes, then runs to his and eats it all!! He is an all day grazer, so this pretty much means he doesnt eat unless i lock him away from her. Is this going to get better, or did her many months on the farm fighting for food and a place, added to her being declawed, make it impossible for her to be in a 2-cat household?? Will she eventually get a normal appetite, because she could eat an entire bag of cat food in a days time, and still sit and stare at the bowl.....I just dont know if I should keep trying and subject Otik to more aggression if its worth it in the long run, or if its better for both if she goes back to the farm or gets a new home. Sorry for the length of the message, there was a lot on my mind!! |
#5
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Not the introduction i expected....
Perhaps i should clairify -
they are kept separately when i am not home, when i get home, the bedroom door gets opened and they are free to explore eachother at their leisure. Since the new gal doesnt really go under the bed, Otik is safe if he wants to be, its just if he goes near her foodbowls or tries to give her a sniff she goes kind of crazy. I was told to try a squirt bottle to get her to keep to own food and leave his alone, just a light squirt, no noise, to startle her just enough to make his food unappealing. It seems to have worked, his bowl is sitting here full and she is leaving it alone for the most part, and it only took maybe 5 squirts. I cant look at her without her running to her bowl thou. It seems like they take 2 steps forward and then 1 step back, but its looking a little better, i hope Im not jynxing myself by saying that. Is there any medical reason she insists that she is starving every second of every day even thou i am feeding her the recommended amount? She seems to be a healthy weight, you can feel her shoulders but no ribs, and she has a little gut. I think a lot of the issue would go away if she would just calm down around food.... Thank you all for your help! |
#6
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Not the introduction i expected....
"Leah" wrote in message ups.com... Perhaps i should clairify - they are kept separately when i am not home, when i get home, the bedroom door gets opened and they are free to explore eachother at their leisure. Since the new gal doesnt really go under the bed, Otik is safe if he wants to be, its just if he goes near her foodbowls or tries to give her a sniff she goes kind of crazy. I was told to try a squirt bottle to get her to keep to own food and leave his alone, just a light squirt, no noise, to startle her just enough to make his food unappealing. It seems to have worked, his bowl is sitting here full and she is leaving it alone for the most part, and it only took maybe 5 squirts. I cant look at her without her running to her bowl thou. It seems like they take 2 steps forward and then 1 step back, but its looking a little better, i hope Im not jynxing myself by saying that. Is there any medical reason she insists that she is starving every second of every day even thou i am feeding her the recommended amount? She seems to be a healthy weight, you can feel her shoulders but no ribs, and she has a little gut. I think a lot of the issue would go away if she would just calm down around food.... Thank you all for your help! She may be making up for lost time with her food! A couple of the cats that I've rescued as semi-ferals still eat voraciously every chance they get. They are definitely better than they were at the beginning but they're more desperate about food than my others. As the other posters have said, patience is the key. Also spend some time alone with just your original cat--petting him, talking to him, giving him attention without the pest bothering him! It's a big adjustment for both cats. Have fun! Bonnie |
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