Hi All,

I know that this likely is not a new topic for any of you. However, I am currently in the process of introducing a new male kitten (about 14 weeks, 4 lbs) to our current female (1.5 years give or take). When we first introduced them she hissed, as no surprise to us and we just went along our way and put the kitten into a separate room with all he needs. We have been going back and forth between rooms to ensure that each cat gets attention and love. Although, our existing cat has been hissing and growling at myself and my husband, I can assume it is because we smell like the kitten and she is not happy, she also does this whenever you try to introduce anything with his scent on it. Though, she seems torn as she watches me then growls, then hisses, then stares as though she wants to come and see me but won't. We have been giving her some space and know that it takes time to introduce a new kitten but we do not know what to do when she begins hisses at us or anything with his scent on it.

Bella (our current cat) is quite shy and skittish from time to time so we do have anxiety drops and feline spray for her so we have been using that as well.

The new kitten is not having any issues and seems to be adjusting quite well and would like to befriend our current cat.

Any suggestions to help with the hissing, growling and introductions would be greatly appreciated as this is breaking my heart and I cannot stand to not be with both cats.

Thank you!!!

Hi :)

I went through the exact same situation as you just a month ago! And my older cat’s reactions were exactly the same as yours. He hissed at me, at any smells of the new cat and was very upset. He too, is quite a skittish cat.

Here is what I did – for the first week, I kept the new kitten in my bedroom. Every night, I would bring (Athena) the new kitten out into the living room, and put Zuki (older cat) into the top level of his cat tree so that he felt safe, and could observe the new kitten.

Do you have a tall cat tree in your living area so you can do the same?? The reason for this, is because if they are on the same level, there is very likely to be hissing and your older cat will probably run off scared. If she has a high, safe place, it will work out much better for you.

Okay, so once Zuki was in his high place, I would just play with Athena on the floor with a toy. Zuki would observe. After about 20 minutes, he jumped down a level. Then down again, then down again. He then sat not far from us and just watched. Athena jumped too close and he hissed at her. So I put him back in his tree.

Just keep bringing them out together like a few times a day.

The next step I took, is feeding them together. At first, their bowls were a couple of meters apart. If they both eat without hissing or glaring, that means you are off to a good start and it shouldn’t take long to socialise them. If, however, one (or both) is not willing to eat, it may take longer. Each meal time, keep bringing the bowls closer to one another.

If all is going well, you can try to play with the two of them together. Don’t force them, but simply bring out a toy with both of them on the floor, and play.

I was quite upset at first as my poor Zuki was so distressed and was hissing at Athena’s scent. But it only took him a week to warm up to her and now they are inseparable.

Good luck!

Hi!

Thank you for the tips! We do have a large cat tree in our living room, we will take this advice to heart, we currently have them separated and are playing with Bella to give her some normalcy. I am glad it worked out for you and it puts my heart at ease as I think Bella would do well with a playmate once she adjusts to him!

Thanks!

Hi again!

Oh that’s great, definitely try the tree thing then  You can then swap the new kitten to the top of the tree and play with Bella on the floor. But, knowing kittens, they are more likely to want to climb down and join in with the playing, rather than staying put and watching haha

But I guarantee you, after doing this several times, Bella will feel more confident. At the moment, she is just feeling like her territorially insecure and doesn’t know what this little baby cat’s intentions are! Once she can observe comfortably from a high place (the new kitten doesn’t even need to know she is up there, unless he notices himself), she will see that he doesn’t mean any harm and isn’t a threat. Don’t try to take her out of her spot. Just keep her there. If she is poking her head out, or even climbing down a level to observe the kitten, that means she is showing curiosity, and that is a very good sign! Watch out for that. It means you’re on the right track.

If she, or the kitten walk up to one another, just let them sniff and see what happens, but be cautious. Hissing and growling is okay. I went through a lot of it. I remember one night, before they were friends, Athena (kitten) ran right up to my boy Zuki and touched noses with him. At first he had no idea what was going on, but then he quickly jumped back and hissed at her. Poor girl just wanted a friend haha. But it soon turned around and after feeling so discouraged, I couldn’t believe how they blossomed into best friends just after a week.

I hope this helps you, and please let us know how it goes between the two of them!

What you're experiencing is completely normal! Hissing is okay. As long as one cat is not aggressive toward the other. Swapping scents is the best way to go, even though your older kitty isn't happy with it right now. Your girl will just have to get used to the new smells and the new arrival and that can take a few weeks. You will have to continue to spend time with the introductions. You can bring them both together to feed them but make sure the bowls are in the same general area (feeding one on one end of the kitchen, the other on the opposite end). You can also bring them together and engage them individually in play to take the distraction off the other cat and onto the toy. I'm sure within a couple of weeks, they will be best friends and sleeping together. Naturally, until you can "trust" them together, you will want to make sure they are supervised. Good luck.

Even when she hisses at me? Thats what makes me nervous. As I said, I have the kitten in a safe room for now and it is not the kitten I am worried about its my existing cat. We are giving her as much of her normal routine as we can with adding his scent in slowly but she just hisses at everything and gets mad at the "world" when you bring his scent into any room. She knows that he is in his safe room and was at the door when my husband was in there this morning, she did not sniff the door, growl or hiss but she swatted my husband when he attempted to remove her from our closet where she ran into.

Yes, this is fine. My boy hissed at me, too, and I know of many people who have introduced a new Bengal and their older bengals hissed at them. She is just angry at you for bringing another cat in. You don’t need to be scared or nervous or concerned. This is all completely normal behaviour. My boy growled and hissed at me. He was very upset.

Bella will continue to behave like this if you keep the new kitten locked up on his own. Bring him out a few times a day and let her see him. Like I said, put Bella up in her tree and play with the new kitten on the floor. Let her observe. Feed them in the same room at every meal time. Give them a few short socializing sessions a day to see and smell each other. It is okay if they approach each other – hissing, meowing and growling is okay.

Don’t be so worried about Bella – I have gone through all this, and I was worried at the beginning, too, but honestly you just need to take steps every day and start getting them used to each other.

How long have you had the new kitten for?

Yea, you are right to be focused on your resident kitty. She feels a little bit betrayed right now, and is trying to sort out whether she is still a treasured member of the household, like she used to be.

So I wouldn't do anything more to remind her of the other kitten for awhile until she calms down a bit and is more ready for it. But you should spend time with her in whatever capacity that she will let you without getting upset. I think leaving her alone right now is a mistake. You shouldn't force yourself on her, but she needs to know that you are still her friend. Now would be a good time to break out the treats, or give her a heated blanket to sleep on next to you, or try for some really good interactive play. She may not be initially receptive, but keep trying periodically. I don't think you can really expect to make any headway between her and the kitten until you guys are friends again, so focus on that.

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The little monsters 3

Sometimes it's better not to rock the boat with a new kitten. Some "older" cats simply do not like the new arrival and the changes in the household! Hopefully your little girl will soon accept that fact. Hissing at everyone is common because she is upset that her territory has been turned upside down by some new, little creature. Just as children can be jealous of a new baby, it can be the same with cats. It doesn't happen in ALL households, but every cat is different. Once yours realizes the new arrival isn't going anywhere, she may be more accepting of him. And I'm sure she his hissing because she can smell the new kitten on you! Hang in there. Hopefully, you'll see a little improvement each day.

Hi all!

We actually just introduced them for the first time yesterday. All went really well with no hissing and no growling. They have been out together playing for a couple hours. They seem to be playing well they do rough house a little bit (no one is hissing, growling, meowing or anything), Bella more often than not appears to gently be placing her mouth around him, they from time to time use their back legs or or Bella is holding him in place to clean him. Though Corona has been growling when he gets a toy and she comes a little too close, which caused us a bit of a concern so we are looking for strategies to help with that, we are not sure if this is him trying to state dominance, or is normal.

Other than that they chase each other around the house, play but have yet to reach the limit of knowing when it is time to take a break and relax so we often will separate them for a bit.

Any suggestions to help with the growing would be greatly appreciated as well.

You are doing all the right things. The only way the cats can bond is to play with each other, groom each other, hold each other down -- it's their nature! You're having great success so far. Know that your little guy will GROW and at some point be as big (or bigger) as your gal kitty. Separating them if things get out of hand is the best thing you can do, although some kitties love to play rough. You need to protect both of your kitties. It sounds like they are going to be best friends.

Hi there.

We have two kittens who are brothers and one of them growls and the other doesn't.

The one who growls appears to have more of a hunting instinct and absolutely goes mad for little furry mice type toys, will carry it round in his mouth growling away and favours these toys over all others.

The other kitten just plays with it now and again like his other toys.

Maybe it's the same for your kitten and not a dominance type of thing but I guess that will become clearer to you in time.

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Oscar and Jasper (or one ear and two ears as dh calls them) black rescue mogges

RIP my sweet baby Dexter, Snow Bengal 19/5/14 to 5/3/15 and my lovely dear old friend Muskey, Brown Burmese put to rest aged 15 on 14/11/15.

Debbie

Yes I wouldn't worry if one of them growls over a toy, it just means that kitten highly values that toy and is guarding it. If the other kitten also wants it though, might be worth getting another, we have two of everything just in case!

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Clare
Hendrix and Jagger, Brown Marble Boys (born 18 August 2013)
Hampshire, UK

Just as children fight over toys, so do pets! They are just like children!