Thread: How to integrate a second kitten

Originally Posted by Antonia

I get the impression that Freyja, for all her playfulness and sweet antics, is in fact a far more timid kitty than she seems to be. You said yourself she wasn’t all that affectionate at first. Possibly Freyja is the insecure one whilst Wicca is the confident one – different personalities, just like people.

Thanks Antonia, and yes, I've started to come to the same conclusion today - at one point Wicca ventured into the study, squeaking away to let us all know she was on her way, and Freyja hopped up onto my desk and hid behind my laptop screen, hissing and growling over the top of it - she'd literally taken the high ground, but still hid to threaten Wicca, and I wondered then if Freyja's more insecure than I initially gave her credit for - guess she'd got quite confident when it was just me, her and OH.

And Jackie, Antonia and Howlinbob - that's a really good thought about the damp smell; it didn't occur to me that Freyja might be affected by that too; she seemed to treat the whole flood as an adventure as she had several new faces to flirt with before we got back, and I just didn't give it a second thought.

My breeder's suggested locking them both in a room with Feliway and leaving them to it - I'm not sure I'm quite brave enough for that yet but it might be worth a thought by the end of the week. Where can I buy cat-shaped boxing gloves??

I think I might have had a break through tonight - I blackmailed Freyja into entering the kitchen for food, putting the food high up so that Wicca couldn't nick it (man, that kitten's got an appetite and she has absolutely NO manners either - the only thing she didn't do after stuffing her face was belch and wipe a paw across her gob, but I'm sure it's just a matter of time...) and whilst I had to stroke her and talk to her, she did actually eat. I made a point of feeding her first, and she curled up on the breakfast bar for a bit, so I got out a teaser and we had some larks in the kitchen. Then I decided to get Wicca's food out and Freyja started jumping up the kitchen worktop for some of that, so I put the bowl down on the floor and she tucked in merrily, then wandered around re-sniffing the kitchen. She even warily wandered into the dining room but left again without incident. She's hissed and growled at Wicca since as I brought the poor little mite up from the dining room to join civilised society in the lounge, and after a quick explore round the room Wicca decided to head back to the dining room again.

Can't tell you what a source of relief it is coming on this forum and realising that this is - sadly - perfectly normal. Did all of you stress out about it or am I just being incredibly soft?? In any case, thank you, I'm grateful for the advice and patience!

Originally Posted by FreyjaRoMaine

I made a point of feeding her first

Funny you mention that... when handing out treats, we always make sure to give Tatja the first treat, then Monty, and the last one is for Minnie. Perhaps it's just symbolical because Tatja has had to tolerate two invaders and we want her to feel she'll always be our First Lady. But I suspect in reality the cats have a very different pecking order where Minnie is Top Cat and poor old Monty is Bottom Cat.

With all due respect, I am not keen on the suggestion from the breeder. It would make Freyja feel even more insecure and abandoned if you locked her somewhere she can't run to you for comfort.

And yes, we were stressed out as well when introducing the newcomers... I even had a very long talk about my fears with Minnie's breeder before taking Minnie.

But I understand there's already developments with Freyja and Wicca. That is interesting. Don't expect the hissing/growling to stop suddenly... it's a gradual process.

Originally Posted by FreyjaRoMaine

Did all of you stress out about it or am I just being incredibly soft??

Stress out?? Oh, boy, did I ever!! It had been something like 10 years since the last kitten introduction and Alice was such a wee thing compared to Hobbes. He was growling and hissing like a cat possessed and I was convinced that they would NEVER get on. True to form, after a couple of days Alice was Hobbes' BFF.

Then I remembered the problem I had when I lived in a flat in London and introduced a new male Burmese kitten to our older Burmese lad. I really DID think we'd have to re-home the kitten - it was open warfare until we realised that perhaps they actually needed a litter tray EACH (Sim'lar the kitten used to prevent Oosa from using the shared tray - putting the second tray in was a real lightbulb moment). It took several weeks for them to shake down together - our fault in a way for not knowing how to integrate Sim'lar and of course there was no internet back then to consult. In the finish, they became close buddies and Sim'lar mourned dreadfully when Oosa died.

So, honey, no.......you aren't being incredibly soft - despite the fact that I "knew" Hobbes and Paddy would settle down together, I still worried for the first few days.

Oh, and as for Wicca's table manners.........Paddy is exactly the same (and a dreadful thief to boot - we dare not leave any food of ANY kind out or the Brown Cat Burglar will have it away).

Hugs, Pam

I know a couple of you have posted support and concern in another thread and I just want to say thanks again to everyone. Not been an easy week - between having a difficult time at work, a house that feels grimy because I can see the water damage, and the kittens not getting on it's been interesting. I know there are two schools of thought about integrating an additional cat so I had to choose between 'letting them get on with it' or putting Wicca in a separate room for a few days. I opted for the first option as it was also was a couple of friends and my breeder recommended.

So, here we are a week and one day later and I am happy to report that hostilities have calmed considerable. Don't get me wrong, we're not at the stage where we could call the girls 'friends' but the hissing and growling has ALMOST stopped; occasionally Freyja will hiss at Wicca but it's become more of a rarity, and there's next to no growling. Freyja is spending less time stalking Wicca, and now seems genuinely more curious about her than threatened by her.

I'm now not so sure that Freyja was ever deliberately trying to stop Wicca getting to food bowls or litter tray - I didn't see it myself and as OH has been quite dejected about the whole week and needs to be reminded sometimes that the hissing has gradually reduced, I'm not sure that he didn't read more into it.

We're not yet at the point where they'll play together, although Wicca tries to play with Freyja. Freyja tends to treat her with contempt most of the time and doesn't respond or react, which is another positive sign I think.

Now when Freyja chases Wicca around the house, there is no hissing, growling or extended claws, and Wicca will often chase her right back - again, aside from thudding fluffy shovels on the stairs, there's no noise to speak of. Although we have heard the MC chirp when they've been chasing each other which I think must also be a good sign.

And instead of creeping up close to grown and hiss, Freyja tends to creep up close to have a good sniff. When Wicca reciprocates, Freyja seems to let her.

Last night we went out for a few hours and because the aggression seems to have passed decided to let them get on with it - hence the reason we only went out for two hours though! And it was a relief when we got home to a) find Wicca intact; b) that they seemed to have existed in the same room without a fight and c) that Freyja did what she normally does when she's been on her own for an hour or more and trotted down to the kitchen to greet us.

We've had two major breakthroughs this morning when we first saw Freyja lounging about on our bed and Wicca hauled herself up to join her - they were both lolling about in quite relaxed poses and were only about 4 inches from each other. Wicca decided she wanted to play with Freyja, who wasn't in the mood, and just shifted her face a couple of inches further round rather than jumping down off the bed and out of the room. And right now, they are both sharing the Tigga Tower, albeit on separate levels. Not something I thought we'd ever see a week ago.

Litter trays and food bowls are now all back in the kitchen, although being kept separate for the time being - we'll see how things go before we decide whether to move things together.

I can't describe the cats as friends, but it now seems likely that they will at least get on, so watch this space... who knows what will happen in anther week. Freyja's not her old self yet but we've seen glimpses of her over the last couple of days. No real idea what's changed to make her more relaxed with Wicca - could be double-dose Feliway, could be Zylkene, could be time, or all three!

How nice to see an update from you!
I already suspected you needed to take some time out, for all the reasons you mentioned.

And what progress the girls have made! The way you describe it, it reminds me very much of how Tatja got used to Minnie… with Tatja's hissing and walking away gradually subsiding until it became more like ‘going through the motions’ than real hostility.

Wicca tries to play with Freyja...
Reminds me of the way little Minnie kept trying to coax Tatja into playing and cuddling… and eventually succeeded.

Thanks for the update. This is all very good news. I think by this time next week you will have two happy girls who enjoy each other’s company!

I agree with Antonia its great to have an update & also agree that before long you will have two happy babes,when I look at all of mine & think of the times when we have wondered if we had done the right thing & now you see them all together you know it was worth it.We still have ups & downs with them but don't you always in all walks of life,the latest was after Pansy P had been so poorly,for some reason Shimba stepped down as top cat while she was ill & Merlyn thought he would take over the reins again,he growls & hisses at them all & strutts around which in turn was making a couple of the others upset with each other & gradually all of them were getting unsettled again,then a few days after Pansy P had recovered & settled back into her old routine Shims decided enough was enough Merl done one hiss too many & for his trouble was chased down the hall full pelt by Shims who just gently tapped him round the ear with a paw,sat & glared at him for a few seconds & then walked away,top cat again & peace reins once more amoungst them all.Moral here being that it doesn't mean to say Freyja will end up top cat but they will be best friends,until the next one comes along & they both gang up on that one...... Yes/No !!!!

That's great news Karen, so glad that they are starting to settle down. I'm sure you'll be posting some pictures of them soon, looking like friends, or even having a cuddle, you never know. It's a very stressful time but you are surely emerging from it now. How about that drink?....

So here we are, another couple of days on, and things are looking really good, at least between the two furries. Over the last few days, we've seen them chasing each other; wrestling; sharing the same room (not something we saw AT ALL last week); peering in each others food bowls whilst one's actually eating; and co-existing on the same Tigga Tower. Last night they both sprawled out on our bed together and then chased Freyja's favourite teaser around until my arm ached. And today - this is fantastic - today, they've shared the same platform on the Tigga Tower (and given Freyja's size now, this is no small feat of engineering); even the builder we've got in was surprised at how much things have changed. And if that wasn't all amazing enough, they actually started grooming each other this afternoon. I felt like I'd seen baby's first steps.

Freyja's still not entirely back to her old self, although some of that might be residual Zylkene in her system (she's not had any today and they've still got on great). She's not ready to play hide and seek with us yet (suspect it's more fun to play with Wicca than either of us though, so I can't blame her on that score!). And she still hisses at me and OH sometimes - I'm trying to see if there's a pattern or trigger behind that and THINK it happens when she's seen me fuss Wicca, irrespective of the fact that Freyja gets heaps more fuss than Wicca does. Wicca's a true lapcat and loves cuddles and fuss, easily spending an hour hopping between mine and OH's lap.

I was concerned that Wicca was so dominant when she first arrived that Freyja was just made more insecure - when she first started 'hanging' with Wicca, she seemed to be a bit like the school geek that was in awe of the school cool kid, putting Wicca firmly in charge. Things seem to have evened themselves out now and Wicca tends to follow Freyja around quite a bit and I guess that might have helped Psycho settle down again.

So, it's all looking pretty bloomin' good. Once PK is fully back to her old self (and every day she gets a tiny bit more like it) life will be peachy. Even with 6 de-humidifiers rumbling on 24/7 and two doors that won't fit their frames anymore!

Isn't it a great feeling when it all comes together,lovely photos of them side by side,can we all say "told you"it would happen,sorry it is all being spoiled for you by the de-humidifiers,it is obviously going to be a lot longer for you before things even start to be back to normal in the house,keep us updated on both babes & home....