Introducing cats

[shazrla]

I have a cat she is 2 and neutered. My partner has a cat who is a neutered male aged 4, my partner is spending quite a bit of time round mine to the point that we want to introduce the two cats and his comes to live with me. Really dont know how to go about doing this and would welcome any suggestions.

[camille79]

Could be tricky but I'd try bringing your boyfriends cat over in a carrier and then leaving him for a while in the box while your cat investigates and gets used to him. Once you let him out the box, don;t shut them in the room together or they will fight but don;t let them disappear to oppposite ends of the house either! I'd suggest you leave them in the living room and kitchen or living room and hall and shut all the other doors so they can retreat to their own space but still investigate the unusual cat. They might fight a bit but I shouldn't worry unless they are hurting on another. My two fight even now and it looks bad but neither ever has a scratch on them so reckon it's more a kind of wrestling to see who is top cat that day!

One tip I heard was to take a blanket from each cats bed and use it to rub the other cat so both smell a bit familiar.

[dominique100]

if i were you i would for a few weeks try and familiarise them with each others scents.
one way is to collect a favorite toy from each and introduce it to the other. and keep note of their reactions.
also try taking it in turns to place one if them in their carriers and let the other rome free able to approach the other cat if they want , this is a safe way of seeing how they react!
another way is to use cat nip spray to calm them, try spraying a little on favorite toy or blanket and then again leting them approach each other if they want! sometimes they will take no notice at all.. others will become agressive.
good luck!!

[gilby]

i had to move into my parents, they have a cat and i took mine with me. I kept my cat in my room overnight so that it felt like a safe space for her. the following day i let her out to roam until the tow of the met. there was a lot of howling and spitting but luckily no scratching. it took a few weeks for them to get used to each other but they eventually became very close. I got my own place a few months ago and felt guilty about splitting them up.

[shazrla]

Thanks Gilby, we are going to introduce them over the Christmas period so it should be fun and games all the way!!!