November 4, 2008
The Great Cat Standoff of 2008
I’m hoping my fellow pet-lovers can offer some advice for a friend who is having problems getting her 2 new cats adjusted to living with each other.
My friend has had cats for most of her life. After she recently lost her old cat, she spent some time carefully picking out a new kitty to bring home and love. She purposely selected a cat that had been at the animal shelter a long time and wasn’t a prime candidate for adoption to just any home. She felt her quiet lifestyle would be the kind of home this scared and shy cat would respond well to.
After the first 2-3 months, the cat seemed to have adapted to its new home. It had become attached to its new owner, was exploring the house and appeared to be settling in nicely. It will never be a brave and outgoing cat but it was coming out of its shell.
My friend hoped a second cat would be a welcome addition to keep the first one company while she was at work. She searched the local animal shelter cats for quite a while until she found one that she felt would be the right match for the scared and shy kitty she already had at home. The second cat she adopted is around a year old, small and gentle, but also more outgoing than the first cat. She hoped it would not become too much of a threat to the cat already in the house.
A couple months have gone by but the two cats are not adapting to each other despite my friend’s attempts to slowly acclimate the two cats to each other. The first cat retreats to one room every time the newer cat is in the area. The newer cat has begun to hiss back at the first cat when confrontations arise. She has resorted to keeping them separated almost all of the time.
How have you dealt with the introduction of a new cat into a home that already has a cat? How do you handle the problem of the cats not adapting to each other? Will these two cats ever adjust to each other or will they always have to be separated? We’d like to hear from you.
All Creatures 
Pam said,
November 22, 2008 at 6:14 pm
I had to laugh when you described your cat dilemma. We have one sweet, loving, shy and “rescued from the wild” kitty. A few years later, I decided she shouldn’t be alone when we were gone, so I got her a little sister. My husband said I should have asked her first, because she would have insisted she didn’t want one! They were bitter enemies for almost 2 years. I had an “upstairs cat” and a “downstairs cat” and, at one point, my husband had to erect a temporary door at the top of the stairs so there would be no fighting. (We live in the middle of the woods in northern Wisconsin, so there was no chance of letting one or both outside to ease the stressful days.) Finally, in desperation, we adopted a third kitten, hoping it would force #1 kitty to “give up”. Now the temporary doors are down and all three cats roam freely through the house, although #1 kitty still won’t have a thing to do with the other two. She did sort of give up, though, but only after #3 kitty grew up and won a few scraps with her.
It’s been awhile since we’ve had any real fights among the felines, but that could be partly because our two little yorkies patrol the house and don’t allow any disagreements. The older one (a male) actually runs and stands between them; they don’t even try it now. Well, at least the cats aren’t lonely when we’re gone!
dpesek said,
November 23, 2008 at 7:27 am
That’s interesting! Not sure if Rae had thought about what a 3rd cat might do to change the equation between the cats. I’ll make sure she sees your comment. Glad to know it’s worked out for you. Although maybe the real solution to handling the cats is the Yorkie 🙂 Thanks for sharing your story!