<p>It’s been almost six months since new cat joined our house. Today (Tada) for the first time, they are both in the same room! No chasing, no hissing. </p>
<p>Right now I’m sitting on my bed. Old cat is sitting next to me giving herself a bath. New cat is at the foot of the bed sitting and watching!</p>
<p>I wouldn’t trust them alone together in the house while we are gone…but this SURE is an improvement!</p>
<p>Remember when the second sibling was born? I bet it was longer than six months before you left them alone together!</p>
<p>And they didn’t even have claws.</p>
<p>I was thinking about the same sort of update - new cat Toby arrived in early August and neither of our two old cats liked him. About two weeks ago (six to seven months), we moved from separate to okay (more or less) together. One of the older cats tolerates Toby - chases him occasionally when the opportunity presents but without hissing or biting. The problem remains with our other older cat. Toby makes her life a living h-ll whenever possible. She runs and he chases and then both growl and slap and head toward worse. Definitely can’t leave all alone in the house.</p>
<p>I realize it doesn’t sound like much of an improvement but trust me it is.</p>
<p>Congrats thumper1 - I can honestly say “yea”!!!</p>
<p>thumper, somehow I missed the original drama, but I’m glad to hear things are going better!</p>
<p>We had the same issue when we brought a new cat home last July. We’d never had a problem introducing a new cat, for more than a week anyway. But this time, we had to keep them separated for 6 months. They still have occasional tiffs, but it gets better and better. DH thinks he actually saw them playing the other day.</p>
<p>Cat Lovers: I just read “Homer’s Odyssey” about a blind kitten that was raised by a woman who had two other cats. It is by turns touching and hysterically funny. :)</p>
<p>Thanks for the book rec - I just ordered a used copy online form Amazon - something to look forward to after tax season is over and I have time for something fun!</p>
<p>Another update (not the OP) and a message of encouragement to anyone wondering if the old cat/new cat dynamics will ever be okay.</p>
<p>New cat (as of last August) Toby and 10-year-old cat Pug coexist … I’d almost go so far as to say that they like each other more than either would admit. While not together, as in together, they can often be found in the same room. In fact, Pug sleeps on the desk at the moment while Toby sleeps on the floor. My other 10-year-old cat Callie spends less time hiding in a cabinet or under a bed, anywhere away from Toby, than she has been … though acceptance of the situation remains just out-of-reach. I do see light at the end of the tunnel though.</p>
<p>It has been a slow, slow process and one which I worried would never work out. It has though. If you find yourself in the process of adopting a new pet, don’t be tempted to give up. Time and patience really make the impossible move to unlikely move to okay.</p>
<p>Update from me…the OP. at the beginning of April, the two cats decided to become friends. Believe me when I say…I have no idea why! It’s very cute. They find the sunny spots and snooze. They curl up at the foot of my bed. No more hissing and growling…and biting!</p>
<p>Hooray! Cats are very social animals. They definitely have a hierarchy, and sometimes, you have to wait out the establishment of that hierarchy. And it is fun to watch when the new Alpha takes over. I am guessing Callie is a calico? Oh, they are the worst as far as territoriality. You are lucky that she allows the others to live in HER house. </p>
<p>Thank you so much to all who are rescuing these sweethearts!</p>
<p>And remember, spay and neuter!</p>
<p>Aww thumper, great news. :)</p>
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<p>Callie is a run-of-the-mill tabby. (Don’t tell her.) Pug is her littermate. Their mother was a stray cat who had her kittens under the neighbor’s bush. We took in all five (mother and kittens) hours after birth. One of my friends adopted the mother, another friend adopted two kittens, and we kept the last two. Toby is our latest addition, another kitten found in a neighbor’s yard. </p>
<p>I also have an outside cat (that ended up in our backyard five years ago, hungry and hurt).</p>
<p>So, four cats - three inside and one outside - two, age 10; one, age 6; one, age 1. We seem to take in a cat every 4-5 years. No more for a while though. </p>
<p>Yes, all are spayed/neutered (including the ones adopted by friends).</p>
<p>Crazy cat lady here.</p>
<p>Love the cat stories. I adopted 2 ferals, brother and sister, from a cat rescue to keep as outdoor cats. They’re very shy/scared with people, but they absolutely adore our older male indoor cat. We let the indoor cat go out for supervised visits and the 2 ferals are beside themselves with pleasure. The female purrs loudly, rubs up against the indoor cat, and rolls around in the dirt at his feet. The male feral is a little more reserved, but he comes over to greet our indoor cat and rubs up against him too. The indoor cat is more interested in eating forbidden grass than in visiting these young upstarts, but he tolerates them with no issues at all.</p>
<p>The female feral has decided that our calm, non-aggressive dog is the devil incarnate and hisses & spits whenever the dog comes too close. But sometimes she forgets when she’s in a paroxsym of joy over our indoor cat, and she rubs up against the dog too.</p>