Help! Need to know about integrating new cats

in article , Jean B. at wrote on
9/1/03 9:39 AM:

Hi Folks,

Once again, I am pondering getting a friend for Mingy, our very
timid Persian. Actually, these are two shy Himmies. And therein
lies my main question. What happens when you integrate two cats,
who have grown up together, into a one-cat household? Do the new
cats just stick together and ignore, or even gang up on, the
resident cat (meaning after they are sequestered and then slowly
get to know each other, of course)? Would they eventually stand a
decent chance of all getting along with each other well? Per
usual, this is a tossup between getting Mingy a companion, which
we hope would increase his level of happiness, and the fear that
it will make his now-comfortable situation intolerable.

Other than these fears, these cats look like a good match. They
seem to have the same type of shy temperament. They have all
spent their whole lives indoors, they all have claws, etc. BTW,
Mingy is almost 5.5 years old, and these cats are 6 years old.
Maybe that is relevant, since I usually read that one should get
an older or younger cat, and all these cats are virtually the same
age.

Since they are all shy, if you do a slow introduction, I bet they will all
get along eventually.

Karen

in article , Jean B. at wrote on
9/1/03 9:39 AM:

Hi Folks,

Once again, I am pondering getting a friend for Mingy, our very
timid Persian. Actually, these are two shy Himmies. And therein
lies my main question. What happens when you integrate two cats,
who have grown up together, into a one-cat household? Do the new
cats just stick together and ignore, or even gang up on, the
resident cat (meaning after they are sequestered and then slowly
get to know each other, of course)? Would they eventually stand a
decent chance of all getting along with each other well? Per
usual, this is a tossup between getting Mingy a companion, which
we hope would increase his level of happiness, and the fear that
it will make his now-comfortable situation intolerable.

Other than these fears, these cats look like a good match. They
seem to have the same type of shy temperament. They have all
spent their whole lives indoors, they all have claws, etc. BTW,
Mingy is almost 5.5 years old, and these cats are 6 years old.
Maybe that is relevant, since I usually read that one should get
an older or younger cat, and all these cats are virtually the same
age.

Since they are all shy, if you do a slow introduction, I bet they will all
get along eventually.

Karen

On Mon, 01 Sep 2003 10:39:20 -0400, "Jean B." wrote:

Hi Folks,

Once again, I am pondering getting a friend for Mingy, our very
timid Persian. Actually, these are two shy Himmies. And therein
lies my main question. What happens when you integrate two cats,
who have grown up together, into a one-cat household? Do the new
cats just stick together and ignore, or even gang up on, the
resident cat (meaning after they are sequestered and then slowly
get to know each other, of course)? Would they eventually stand a
decent chance of all getting along with each other well? Per
usual, this is a tossup between getting Mingy a companion, which
we hope would increase his level of happiness, and the fear that
it will make his now-comfortable situation intolerable.
[snip]

Hi,

I've had no trouble introducing new cats/kittens in my house (7 now,
down from 10) by either keeping the new cat in a separate room for
awhile (maybe a week or even less) or by keeping the new cat in a
small collapsible cage in the living room with me and the others
(including two large dogs). When I leave the house, I move the cage to
a separate room -- just to be in the safe side. After about two or
three days (more if it's a kitten), I open the cage and let them all
sniff and smell and even hiss. I'll put the new one back in the cage
after awhile and lengthen its out of cage time for the next few days
and then ditch the cage altogether.

I haven't ever had trouble with this method and they all get along
great. The ones who're more aloof just go about their business and
steer clear of the others. And the dogs and cats are buddies. I did
have a dog (now gone to the Bridge in June, alas) who acted as the
cats' nannies and would step in and separate them when they got into a
skirmish :-) For the most part, the cats use the dogs as beds.

They don't even bother my bird and its cage is open most of the time.
I really believe that if you're pretty calm and not overly anxious and
nervous, the animals will follow suit and settle in in a short time.

On Mon, 01 Sep 2003 10:39:20 -0400, "Jean B." wrote:

Hi Folks,

Once again, I am pondering getting a friend for Mingy, our very
timid Persian. Actually, these are two shy Himmies. And therein
lies my main question. What happens when you integrate two cats,
who have grown up together, into a one-cat household? Do the new
cats just stick together and ignore, or even gang up on, the
resident cat (meaning after they are sequestered and then slowly
get to know each other, of course)? Would they eventually stand a
decent chance of all getting along with each other well? Per
usual, this is a tossup between getting Mingy a companion, which
we hope would increase his level of happiness, and the fear that
it will make his now-comfortable situation intolerable.
[snip]

Hi,

I've had no trouble introducing new cats/kittens in my house (7 now,
down from 10) by either keeping the new cat in a separate room for
awhile (maybe a week or even less) or by keeping the new cat in a
small collapsible cage in the living room with me and the others
(including two large dogs). When I leave the house, I move the cage to
a separate room -- just to be in the safe side. After about two or
three days (more if it's a kitten), I open the cage and let them all
sniff and smell and even hiss. I'll put the new one back in the cage
after awhile and lengthen its out of cage time for the next few days
and then ditch the cage altogether.

I haven't ever had trouble with this method and they all get along
great. The ones who're more aloof just go about their business and
steer clear of the others. And the dogs and cats are buddies. I did
have a dog (now gone to the Bridge in June, alas) who acted as the
cats' nannies and would step in and separate them when they got into a
skirmish :-) For the most part, the cats use the dogs as beds.

They don't even bother my bird and its cage is open most of the time.
I really believe that if you're pretty calm and not overly anxious and
nervous, the animals will follow suit and settle in in a short time.

Thanks, Karen and Kathryn. I wonder if the dynamics will be
different with two new cats who have grown up together being
introduced. I suspect they will be. I have been on this list for
some years (mostly quietly in the background), so I do know
there's a right way to go about this, and I plan to do A LOT of
refresher reading on it.

The cats' current owner and I have decided I will at least foster
the cats til December. (She can get spots in a no-kill shelter
then, but I really don't like the idea of shy cats in a
shelter--or being uprooted again.) I REALLY hope it works out
well for Mingy (the shy, beloved, resident cat), the new cats
(currently named Frankie and Johnnie), and my daughter (who is
oddly enough extremely unhappy about the prospect, although we
have talked for years about getting a friend for Mingy). I assume
I will be happy enough if all else falls into place in a
reasonable fashion.

In a way, this is, in part, atonement for the fact that Mingy
undoubtedly emanated from a kitten mill. When we got him, we did
not know about such.... The situation of the cats' current owner
also really strikes a chord for me. She REALLY loves those cats,
but she is in a situation where she just cannot keep them.
Speaking of that, I said I didn't know whether it would make it
better or easier for her to visit the cats, but she was welcome to
do so. She said she would look into what was best for the cats.
Any ideas on that?

--
Jean B., 12 miles west of Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Thanks, Karen and Kathryn. I wonder if the dynamics will be
different with two new cats who have grown up together being
introduced. I suspect they will be. I have been on this list for
some years (mostly quietly in the background), so I do know
there's a right way to go about this, and I plan to do A LOT of
refresher reading on it.

The cats' current owner and I have decided I will at least foster
the cats til December. (She can get spots in a no-kill shelter
then, but I really don't like the idea of shy cats in a
shelter--or being uprooted again.) I REALLY hope it works out
well for Mingy (the shy, beloved, resident cat), the new cats
(currently named Frankie and Johnnie), and my daughter (who is
oddly enough extremely unhappy about the prospect, although we
have talked for years about getting a friend for Mingy). I assume
I will be happy enough if all else falls into place in a
reasonable fashion.

In a way, this is, in part, atonement for the fact that Mingy
undoubtedly emanated from a kitten mill. When we got him, we did
not know about such.... The situation of the cats' current owner
also really strikes a chord for me. She REALLY loves those cats,
but she is in a situation where she just cannot keep them.
Speaking of that, I said I didn't know whether it would make it
better or easier for her to visit the cats, but she was welcome to
do so. She said she would look into what was best for the cats.
Any ideas on that?

--
Jean B., 12 miles west of Boston, Massachusetts, USA