Cat Chat Feline Forum

Firstly, hi. I'm new to the forum.

I have two resident cats, brothers who are just under two years old. Very chilled out and friendly.

I got a new kitten two days ago. He's 10 weeks old, from a shelter.

Now I know the usual tips and tricks, keep them apart, let them smell each other and gradually introduce them at the pace of the cat who is most nervous... that being the two older cats.

Has anyone got any other tips that aren't always widely posted ?

I am very experienced with cats but not kittens so young.

How is best to split my time between the cats and the kitten so neither party is lonely ?

I have a spare room upstairs for the kitten to sleep at night with plenty of toys and his litter etc.

Then I allow my resident cats free roam of the house as the would.

But when I'm home, I make sure to spend plenty of time in the front room interacting with the kitten but feel bad for the other two

Any advice ?

Kittens are very energetic - older cats want some peace and quite. Make sure your two have a number of comfy spots where they can easily retreat too but the kitten can't get to.

Also, be wary, I tried to introduce a new cat a while ago (I thought he was homeless, but he just turned out to be a con artist!). My cat accepted him after about a month but my boy cat started spraying on the stairs as he was not happy.

I imagine you've heard of the trick of feeding them on opposite sides of the same door? They smell lovely food and new cat and begin to make a positive association.

Anyway, it takes time - eventually they'll accept each other, just hang in there.

It sounds to me like you're doing all the right things, but it's very early days yet, and it can sometimes take months for cats to adjust to each other. Try these links to see if they offer any info you haven't tried yet.

http://www.catchat.org/bonding.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.catchat.org/hierarchies.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;