Most of the cat lovers want to have more than one cat in their home. They really love to spend time with cats. But when there is an old cat, introducing a new one is a bit challenging task (when you don’t know cat behavior). Some times it could make you disappointed and frustrated even when you think of the cat introduction. There are much social cats. They love to have new companions and take cat introduction seriously while some totally show their objection all the way. Either way, with proper cat introduction tactics, you can make sure that you are not heading for trouble.
You cannot do a cat introduction after bringing a new cat right away. He is new to the environment. First thing is to gain his trust and you should do it before he can trust any other animal at your home. Place him in a safe room. Safe room is ideally a small room with no outsider access. It includes
- A litter box
- Water bowl (at least five feet away from the litter box)
- A hiding place
- Something to sleep on (a blanket would be nice)
In order to make sure that two cats are getting used to each others’ smell, you can interchange their blankets every night.
When feeding them, put food at the two side of a same door. This will also make them more used to their smells. They may hiss or groan and that is totally natural.
Say, now they are much comfortable with their smells. It is time for the cat introduction. We are going to use a small trick here to make sure they are more comfortable with their smells (this trick has been created by studying cat behavior). Apply some baby powder to both of them. Especially, apply some baby powder under their chins. With both of them smelling same, they will be much comfortable in each others presence. However you better be stay prepared for the worst case too. You can use a blanket or a water bucket if there were to be any fight. After cat introduction, allow your old cat to wander around your new cat (and study cat behavior). Pay more attention to them till you are pretty sure that they won’t get involved in a fight. Time taken to get along is different from couple to couple. Some never get along at all. In such cases, they get used to tolerate each other. However, for many homes, it is good to have two cats if possible. Cats should have cat friends too.
